Reported Tire Sensor

[Flint302]

Is everybody getting somewhat accurate tire pressure reported via the car/FordPass? My car is reporting 42 (average) and my gauge says 38 psi. The gauge may very well be inaccurate; however, I was curious what others are seeing.

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[Polar]

Accurate from both sets of my sensors (winter wheels and summer wheels).

 

[P. T. Magoo]

Might depend on the brand of TPMS sensor. My wife's car has one of the 4 sensors different from the others, different brand/configuration. They all read close to the stick gauge and close to the gauge on the cheapish Tractor Supply inflator handle on my compressor, but the one orphan TPMS reads about a pound higher than the other 3 when they all read the same on the stick gauge and the inflator gauge.

If yours all read alike but low on the gauge, first thing I'd do is try a different gauge. They can be had cheap at car parts stores. I got one for free from Discount Tire when I asked after some tire service.

 

[RickMachE]

I was off 4-5 pounds. Friend was visiting with a very fancy gauge. TPMS was right on, I had been over filling tires for years.

 

[Flint302]

Thanks all. I will definitely invest in a better gauge. This is my first car with a tire pressure system--which I think is awesome.

 

[Polar]

Thanks all. I will definitely invest in a better gauge. This is my first car with a tire pressure system--which I think is awesome.

The TPMS has one specific job and it is good at it.

Our five, ten, fifteen year old stick or digital tire gauges are old and rely on us pressing them on a small valve at the correct angle to read correctly. I for one will now always defer to my TPMS for pressure since we now have one that reports pressure and not just High/Low as the first gen did.

 

[RickMachE]

Just to be clear, you should not rely on TPMS to ensure proper inflation. TPMS is not designed to ensure proper inflation, only to catch imminent problems like leaks and avoid blowouts from low pressure.

If your TPMS is accurate, that's great. But you should still regularly check your tires with an accurate tire gauge. You can find many articles explaining that.

Also, you should note that TPMS won't send a low pressure warning until a tire is approximately 10 - 20% off the recommended pressure (on your door jamb). So, a 39PSI recommendation may not alert until it senses a tire is at 31psi.

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