PSA: When you replace tires, you MUST replace the valve stems

[jhalkias]

My Mach E has 49,000 miles on it - about 4 weeks ago with winter coming, I decided to replace my tires. They were not completely worn, but worn enough that I did not want to winter drive on them.

Went to my Ford Dealer. Replaced the tires with Michelin all seasons. Drove from NE Ohio to Columbus and at the hotel after valet parking, I got the low tire pressure warning. Asked valet to check (I assumed they ran over something) assured nothing looked wrong. Two days later go to leave and passenger rear is at 28psi. I get out the inflator, do NOT use the sealant, and pump up the tire. Having that is handy - not having a spare is NOT. Tire pressure kept falling the whole trip to the dealer. Got out every 25 miles to put air in the tire like an Indy pit crew of 1 in falling sleet.

Call the dealer on the way home and they agree to let me stop and look at the tire. Could find NOTHING wrong. No leaks. Remount and reseal the tire and I go on my way. Maybe bad mounting.

Drive to work all week, and tire starts losing air again every day. Not as dramatic. Enough that I have to stop every other day for about 8psi. Call dealer again. Go back in on a Saturday, and they replace the tire since they cannot figure it out.

Another week of the same follows, I set up another Saturday appointment, and a friend at Ford sends me the attached bulletin. With this car, you MUST replace the valve stems when you replace tires. (I thought that was SOP when you got new tires anyway, but they probably thought this car was fairly new and why bother).

Once they replaced the valve stem and did the job right, no problems. Make sure you have them do this if you get new tires. 3 weeks of frustration from poor attention to detail. Attached is the bulletin.

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[Neil4Real]

Interesting, I just had my tires replaced with about 9,000 miles on the Pirelli summers to DWS 06+. Shop said the valves looked great still and wasn't needed at all. I'd assume this goes for most people on the forum. @scoopman did you replace yours when you got your new tires?

 

[HuntingPudel]

New stems and valves *should* be SOP with new tires, but some shops skimp. Sorry this happened to you. ??

 

[jhalkias]

Interesting, I just had my tires replaced with about 9,000 miles on the Pirelli summers to DWS 06+. Shop said the valves looked great still and wasn't needed at all. I'd assume this goes for most people on the forum. @scoopman did you replace yours when you got your new tires?

Well, it did not seem to affect 3/4 tires, but the one it did caused me a huge PITA.

 

[djjerv91]

Had mine replaced about 3 weeks ago at a Discount Tire and didn't even mention any of this information. Tires are fine with no problems.

 

[i8iridium]

New stems and valves *should* be SOP with new tires, but some shops skimp. Sorry this happened to you. ??

Same thought. Every time I've put tires on a vehicle it's come with new stems and TPMS sensors. They both have a finite life to them, like tires. lol

 

[Mach-Lee]

More likely that they damaged your valve stem when they replaced the tires. If they took care during the install it probably would have been fine.

 

[Avelli]

How did they get the air out without replacing the valve stems?

A valve-stem puller threads on and yanks out the old valve stem, at which point it is done. This also allows the air to escape at max velocity, making the bead breakdown a lot faster and easier. The old valve stems are sacrificial at this point, and cannot be reused. It's like $2 for each stem, or much less if they buy in bulk.

The other option is they used a Schrader valve removal tool, which may be their SOP, given the rise of metal valve stems. However this would not damage the valve seat, and should be replaced with a new valve insert if they do it this way. But this is time consuming and less efficient than replacing the valve stems outright.

If they're skimping on valve stems, what else are they skimping on? Wheel balancing and torque wrench check comes to mind. Check your service paperwork to see what was stated, as it may also specify the valve stem situation.

 

[jeffdawgfan]

Hmmm...replaced my tires at 22K miles and kept same stems....no problems. Not sure why you would have to replace the stems on this car and not any other every tire change.

 

[jhalkias]

How did they get the air out without replacing the valve stems?

A valve-stem puller threads on and yanks out the old valve stem, at which point it is done. This also allows the air to escape at max velocity, making the bead breakdown a lot faster and easier. The old valve stems are sacrificial at this point, and cannot be reused. It's like $2 for each stem, or much less if they buy in bulk.

The other option is they used a Schrader valve removal tool, which may be their SOP, given the rise of metal valve stems. However this would not damage the valve seat, and should be replaced with a new valve insert if they do it this way. But this is time consuming and less efficient than replacing the valve stems outright.

If they're skimping on valve stems, what else are they skimping on? Wheel balancing and torque wrench check comes to mind. Check your service paperwork to see what was stated, as it may also specify the valve stem situation.

I know they didn’t replace at least that stem. Know why? The cap was still in my coat pocket from my Indy pit crew tire filling and there was no cap on that stem.

 

[ChuckA]

I know they didn’t replace at least that stem. Know why? The cap was still in my coat pocket from my Indy pit crew tire filling and there was no cap on that stem.

A good dealer would have put a cap on. They cost under 1/2 cent. Crud on the rim or bead sealing surface will cause slow leaks. Also needs bead lubricant on bead when installing tire.

To deflate the tire most dealers remove the core and then pull the valve thereafter after verifying that’s it’s not a tpms sensor which can be replaced though not usually necessary.

 

[scoopman]

Interesting, I just had my tires replaced with about 9,000 miles on the Pirelli summers to DWS 06+. Shop said the valves looked great still and wasn't needed at all. I'd assume this goes for most people on the forum. @scoopman did you replace yours when you got your new tires?

I got my DWS06+ at America's Tire, where installation included new valves and stems: https://www.americastire.com/learn/tire-installation-cost?storeCode=1063

 

[scoopman]

Had mine replaced about 3 weeks ago at a Discount Tire and didn't even mention any of this information. Tires are fine with no problems.

Discount Tire is the Canadian version of America's Tire, and they replace your valves/stems automatically with an install. https://www.discounttire.com/learn/tire-installation-cost

 

[Discount Tire]

Had mine replaced about 3 weeks ago at a Discount Tire and didn't even mention any of this information. Tires are fine with no problems.

I got my DWS06+ at America's Tire, where installation included new valves and stems: https://www.americastire.com/learn/tire-installation-cost?storeCode=1063

Thank you, both for your business!

We replace the rubber valve stem assembly or rebuild the TPMS valve (aluminum) any time a tire is removed from the wheel. This is done at no addition charge.

TPMS Rebuild Kits | Discount Tire

 

[nashbrydges]

Maybe a stupid question but will ask anyway. When replacing the stem, does that also mean replacing the TPMS or can they replace the stems without also replacing the TPMS?

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