Tire Pressure Sensor detected low pressure in left front 2x

[jake75]

For the 2nd time in the 17 months I have owned my '09 Vibe the tire pressure warning light appeared. As before, the pressure in the left front was down to 26 psi. After pumping back up to 34 psi the warning light went off. After the first time I kept checking the pressure for a few weeks and it seemed o.k. It was last in for service just a few weeks ago. You would think they would have checked it then. Come to think of it, the last time the tire pressure warning light came on was 8-11-09, shortly after a LOF service. That 8-27-10 service was to include my 3nd tire rotation. so that would mean it was not the same tire involved both times. One wonders if they really did the tire rotation. The right front was still at 34 psi. The two rear tires were down to 32 psi. Nevertheless, I am getting to appreciate the tire pressure monitor.

[star_deceiver]

Never had mine go off. Had the low washer fluid light before though!

[Zimm]

Quote, originally posted by star_deceiver »Never had mine go off. Had the low washer fluid light before though!we have a low washer fluid light? i'll be dammed...i try to keep my tires at 38 psi. i notice when they get down under 35, and if i can't tell by the ride and steering, i can usually tell by the mpg. i usually get 20-30 fewer miles per tank when my tire pressure gets down around 35.i can't imagine how sluggish my car would be if my pressure got low enough to trigger the TPM. not sure i could afford the low MPG either!

[ou.grizzly]

Quote, originally posted by Zimm »we have a low washer fluid light? i'll be dammed...Canadian models only

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by jake75 »For the 2nd time in the 17 months I have owned my '09 Vibe the tire pressure warning light appeared. As before, the pressure in the left front was down to 26 psi. After pumping back up to 34 psi the warning light went off. After the first time I kept checking the pressure for a few weeks and it seemed o.k. It was last in for service just a few weeks ago. You would think they would have checked it then. Come to think of it, the last time the tire pressure warning light came on was 8-11-09, shortly after a LOF service. That 8-27-10 service was to include my 3nd tire rotation. so that would mean it was not the same tire involved both times. One wonders if they really did the tire rotation. The right front was still at 34 psi. The two rear tires were down to 32 psi. Nevertheless, I am getting to appreciate the tire pressure monitor.24 hours later - LF tire still at exactly 34 psi.

[09vGT]

I WISH I had the low washer fluid light.. that would be VEEERRRRRYYYY helpful for me..

[Merzbow]

Hey, haven't chimed in on here in a while but hopefully this helps you Jake. Tire pressure monitor sensors are a pain sometimes. Here's some info on them:1) The light will usually come on once the tire falls below 30psi.2) If they rotate the tires, some cars need the sensors relearned to their new positions otherwise, if your LF tire is low and it is rotated to LR, it will still say LF on the screen until the new positions are relearned.3) In order to re-learn SOME sensors require a special tool a lot of basic LOF shops will not buy so you have to either find a dealer or a shop with the tool.4) If the tire keeps losing air, it's probably got something in it as it is too new to have a rim leak (unless of course the rim is bent or tire bead is damaged)5) The inside of the door frame will tell you what the tires should be set at and it is most likely 35psi. Anything more or less than that you are driving at your own risk. The Firestone tire issues on the explorers years ago was due to a stipulation between the the rating that Ford put on the door frames and what Firestone recommended on the tire sidewall.6) IF you want to try and re-learn the sensor positions yourself, you'll have to look in the manual but usually, if you turn the car to on, then hold the "unlock" and "lock" buttons on the key fob at the same time til you hear the horn chirp, then start to deflate the LF tire until the horn chirps, then do the RF tire til the horn chirps, then RR, then LR and once finished the horn will chirp twice, then you fill the tires back up to 35psi.PHEW, OK any questions? haha! I would take the car to Discount Tire or something, have them take it off and see if they can find anything in the tire. Normally they will lose/gain 1-2psi for every 5-10 degrees of consistent temperature drop/increase so if it's losing air it's probably got a screw in it.

[vibenvy]

Quote, originally posted by star_deceiver »Never had mine go off. Had the low washer fluid light before though!Wow! People just keep getting lazier and lazier (in regards to the low washer fluid light) .The TPMS light has never gone on on either one of our '09 GTs. Than again, I am very good about checking the pressure and I don't think it's ever gotten below 29 or so. The sticker on the driver's side door jamb says 32 all around so that's what I keep them at. As a matter of fact, I checked my mom's yesterday and every tire was at 29 . The light did come on immediately however when I ran over whatever it was that I ran over and the tire went flat and the wheel was destroyed. Fortunately the sensor wasn't damaged so I didn't even need to do the reset process or anything when the new tire and wheel were installed.It's funny because last winter, my TPMS light would stay off until I drove a certain amount of time or distance because our 18s were stacked up in the garage right in front of where my Vibe was parked . My mom's would come on immediately though because her Vibe was parked over a bit from where the 18s were stacked up .

[jake75]

Quote, originally posted by Merzbow »Hey, haven't chimed in on here in a while but hopefully this helps you Jake. Tire pressure monitor sensors are a pain sometimes. Here's some info on them:1) The light will usually come on once the tire falls below 30psi.2) If they rotate the tires, some cars need the sensors relearned to their new positions otherwise, if your LF tire is low and it is rotated to LR, it will still say LF on the screen until the new positions are relearned.3) In order to re-learn SOME sensors require a special tool a lot of basic LOF shops will not buy so you have to either find a dealer or a shop with the tool.4) If the tire keeps losing air, it's probably got something in it as it is too new to have a rim leak (unless of course the rim is bent or tire bead is damaged)5) The inside of the door frame will tell you what the tires should be set at and it is most likely 35psi. Anything more or less than that you are driving at your own risk. The Firestone tire issues on the explorers years ago was due to a stipulation between the the rating that Ford put on the door frames and what Firestone recommended on the tire sidewall.6) IF you want to try and re-learn the sensor positions yourself, you'll have to look in the manual but usually, if you turn the car to on, then hold the "unlock" and "lock" buttons on the key fob at the same time til you hear the horn chirp, then start to deflate the LF tire until the horn chirps, then do the RF tire til the horn chirps, then RR, then LR and once finished the horn will chirp twice, then you fill the tires back up to 35psi.PHEW, OK any questions? haha! I would take the car to Discount Tire or something, have them take it off and see if they can find anything in the tire. Normally they will lose/gain 1-2psi for every 5-10 degrees of consistent temperature drop/increase so if it's losing air it's probably got a screw in it. Both times it was the LF Tire that triggered the tire pressure light - both at 26 psi. The recommended is 34 psi. Both times when I added air the tire pressure monitor light went off without any need to reset anything. IF the tires were rotated by my dealer all 3 times they said they did, then the 2nd low pressure was on the tire that originally was Left Rear. Also, both low tire pressure incidents happened about 10 days after a LOF service at which time they are supposed to check a number of things including the tire air pressures. I suspect that was not done. This was at two different dealers. As Reagan said, trust but verify. Before the next LOF I think I am going to run one of the tires down to about 30 psi leaving the other three at 34 psi and see what the reading is after the service, Ill mark the tire as well to see if they really did the rotation.

[Merzbow]

Excellent idea Jake, I was just going to suggest marking a tire on each side. Deflating the one a bit is also a good idea!I am a mechanic and even when I'm working on a car for something far from the tires, like a head gasket or an alternator, I ALWAYS make sure the tires are filled and washer solvent is filled...it's just a courtesy thing! And even though most of the garbage cars we get at our shop and I usually care more about the car than the actual owner does, there's still that one person that verifies if it was done and it's making that one person happy that makes it worth it to me!

[TONY TAT2]

Mine was the left rear,I didn't see anything in the tire when I rotated em,now its on the left front. loses a few lbs a month. Ill check it out again on next rotation around Turkey day.My light went out when I aired em up.