TPMS - What happens when you take the wheels away from your car?
 

So I've been searching for awhile now, but couldn't find anyone covering this subject. ok, so here's the situation. Say I have a set of wheels that i want to use for track and they don't have TPMS. What will happen if I swap out the stock wheels with the non-TPMS wheels and use it for a track day, then switch back to the stock after I'm done. Do I still need to get the TPMS resetted? Or will the light go away after driving with stock wheels which has the original TPMS sensors?

When you put the non TPMS rims on the car, the TPMS light will illuminate on the instrument panel (after 30 miles it will trigger, not right away).

I'm guessing, once you put the tires with TPMS back on, the car should automatically recognize it's wheel. Again, you may need to drive a little (30 miles) for the computer to recognize the rims again.

I'm 90% sure that's what will happen, though I haven't done this. I'm curious as well. :tup:

why does it need so long to find if a TPMS sensor isn't there AT ALL but it can somehow tell instantly if you were to suddenly lose pressure?

If the system is working properly, it tell you instantly if the PSI drops below 27 on ANY rims. But if you swap a non TPMS wheel set or introduce another TPMS system to the ECU, it takes upto 30 miles for the light to go off at the dash (and it'll flash and stay lit from that point on).

Like AK said, just a small warning light that comes on in the instrument cluster. It flashes for about 30sec after you start the car then stays lit solid. I didnt transfer the TPMS over to my 20" wheels, doesnt bother me at all, the light is pretty small and unobtrusive.

if you buy a set of wheels that already has the Nissan TPMS sensors in there, for instance putting the Nismo Rays on your Sport 370Z, i'm assuming you still have to go back to Nissan to have them reprogram? or is there a way to do it without having to go to the dealer?

You're correct. Every TPMS set is different. They have to be reset again.

My bmw friends told me they can simply reset the tpms by pressing a button on the instrument panel:rolleyes:.

Nissan can give us SychroRev match technology which is the most complicated (and awesome) transmission feature ever but we have to reset TPMS every six months :shakes head: (at least those of us who switches winter and summer rims).

No worries though, I'm working on some TPMS reset tools :happydance:

ya figures! i just contacted my dealer and asked the same question, he says i MAY need to pull the sensors off the new wheels for the serial numbers? that seems a bit too convoluted a process! he said he'll make sure by talking to his mechanics tomorrow but do you know offhand if that is true?

WHAT? NO! false information. They can reset your tpms in 5 minutes. I think mine took 3 minutes if that. They can do it externally. Keep us posted.

You could always make a TPMS bomb..

Got TPMS? Problem solved. - JDM Chicago-Japanese Car Community

It's a great idea and dont see why it wouldn't work for us.

Ok he got back to me this morning and said exactly what you said, dismounting is NOT required. He said, however, it should cost under $100 bucks? Does it cost that much to push a few buttons?

Rasengan, are these the wheels you bought from Autobarn? If they are charging you I would be pissed.. how much did you just spend on those wheels and they want to charge you to match the tpms sensors to your car? That should be part of the deal imo..

oh no, i didn't get the wheels from Autobarn, they wanted too much for the Nismo Rays

still a 5 minute job shouldn't cost anywhere near $100 bones...

If you have two sets of wheels, and both have the TPMS installed, will the car recognize both sets, and be good to go regardless of which ones you have on, swapping back and forth as needed?

I think the car can only keep track of 4 sensors at a time, so if you swap a different set of wheels and get the sensors reset, the original sensors information will be lost.