re-balance after new tpms?

[rh71]

Apparently my tpms at 5 years old have a dying battery (malfunction msg) so it's time to swap out. Does this mean all 4 tires will need to be re-balanced also since they are "breaking the bead" of the tires to do the swap? Some rim shops are quoting only $10-15 a swap so it doesn't seem like they care to balance.

 

[disappoint]

Apparently my tpms at 5 years old have a dying battery (malfunction msg) so it's time to swap out. Does this mean all 4 tires will need to be re-balanced also since they are "breaking the bead" of the tires to do the swap? Some rim shops are quoting only $10-15 a swap so it doesn't seem like they care to balance.

Unless they put a chalk mark to line the tire up on the rim exactly as it was or they will not be changing the tire's position with respect to the rim (the latter being more likely) then you should ask about re-balancing.

I've never had this done though so it doesn't hurt to ask them.

 

[boomerang]

They would only need to break one bead if the equipment they use is capable of doing so. Or they can mark the tire and wheel as disappoint said. At that price, they are evidently confident that rebalancing won't be needed.

 

[cabri]

I have had 2 TPMS replaced at different times on my Jeep.
Failure was not due to battery.

Both times, a new tire has been installed prior to the new TPMS becoming available.
The Timer was not taken off the rim; just the bead seal broken; the old sensor removed and the new one installed.

Had it done one at NTB and the other at my local tire shop.
Jeep dealer wanted $75+ for the unit and then charging to install.
Obtained the units from Internet for $20.

 

[Mide]

I would've thought that most shops would do a rebalance any time the tire came off the rim.

 

[phucheneh]

I would've thought that most shops would do a rebalance any time the tire came off the rim.

It doesn't. On traditional wheels (i.e. non-custom, non reverse-mount) without runflat tires, you can just break the front bead loose and push the tire in while you change the sensor. It helps to have an assistant. Or a modern machine with a pneumatic arm, typically used to help you install stiff, low-profile tires.

The position of the tire stays the same because the back bead held it in place.

But yeah, actually removing a tire should generally mean rebalance. You'll see people chalk mark them and not balance after doing a patch, but that's lazy. Obviously the patch is going to cause a bit of a change. Plus front wheel weights should always come off before a tire is spun off the wheel.

 

[bigi]

I'd insist on re-balance of all. Nothing feels crappier like out of balance tires, even slightly.

 

[rh71]

I have had 2 TPMS replaced at different times on my Jeep.
Failure was not due to battery.

What were the failures due to?

Coincidentally my brother is also having the same problem on his car... a malfunction rather than low tire pressure. The car is only a few months old.

 

[phucheneh]

What were the failures due to?

Coincidentally my brother is also having the same problem on his car... a malfunction rather than low tire pressure. The car is only a few months old.

Being smashed. Especially GM and Ford sensors. The ones on Japanese cars use rigid stems and the body of the sensor hugs the surface of the wheels, so they are comparatively hard to break.

The other common type (disregarding the Ford's LOL-worthy band-mounted sensors) uses a soft rubber stem with a wider sensor that hangs below it, nowhere close to the wheel. It's utterly retarded and extremely easy to break if someone is not careful. Best of all, I've seen them break off and keep functioning, until death eventually comes from tumbling around inside the tire. Great way for tire shops to say 'not our fault; the TPMS was working when the car left.'

Low batteries can be hard to troubleshoot, as the sensor will often still be picked up by the little TPMS tool that is held next to the tire to scan for the sensor's signal. You must hook up a scan tool, see which sensor is being flagged as 'low battery' (noted as RF, RR, LF, LR), then you have to figure out which sensor is actually being referred to as which by comparing the programmed sensor ID's.