Have a '06 Tacoma. My winter tires are on the original wheels with the pressure sensors. My other tires are on wheels without pressure sensors. Sometimes the light goes on, sometimes the light goes off on the wheels without the sensors. I'd like to take out the warning light bulb. How do I do that? Any other suggestions for defeating this useless mechanism would be appreciated. Thanks.
Is it a bulb or LED? If it's an LED, you'd probably have to disconnect the actual power to the display, preferably in a reversible manner by unplugging a connector.
Where is the display? If it's on the clock / hazard switch panel, the device may have it's own connector. If the indicator is on the main display, the whole process is probably a lot more complicated than pulling a bulb or connector, beyond getting sensors for the second wheel set.
My '05 doesn't have the "feature", as it was not yet Gov't Mandated. You can thank the idiots who flipped speeding, overloaded SUV's, with under inflated tires, for the display.
Thats a good thing!
For $10, you can get 24 hours of access to techinfo.toyota.com, and get the detailed procedure(s) for meter cluster removal and reinstallation. Even if you read up on it and decide to leave the tape in place, the $10 might be worth it.
When I did stereo upgrades and GPS installation on my '05, I was blown away with how much time, effort, and potential cosmetic damage that the service *.pdf's saved me for $10. I learned the CORRECT door dash and door disassembly steps, finishing with no rattles or scratched trim. I didn't need to get behind the meter, otherwise I'd share the steps with you.
Alternatively, aren't the sensors in the valve stems? If you're planning to keep the truck for a long time, have you checked the cost of adding sensors to the steelies?
There is much more to this than speeding, overloaded SUV's.
Such as?
I know it as a descendant of the Firestone / Ford lawsuits.
It's illegal to deactivate the warning device.
Don't deactivate it. Put a piece of black electrical tape over it.
On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 18:51:54 +0000, pmkeating tossed this out for all to see:
proof please.
Can you give us a cite on that?
Nearly every car on the road has not even got tire pressure sensors, how can it be illegal to turn a system off that most cars haven't even got?
I have no idea if it's illegal or not, but looking from another angle...
From 2006 forward, TPS is US Gov't mandated on trucks and SUV's. I would imagine that any bid'net that got caught intentionally defeating a gov't mandated device might get in the same sorts of trouble they would if they removed cat converters, seat belt warnings, or clutch switches.
Maybe a nick, or even the loss, of a dealers and repairer's license? If it isn't illegal, I'm sure any smart business wouldn't accept the tort liability of disabling such a system.
I'm sure the person who stated it was illegal will hurry right back with details.
Now, if the _owner_ does it...
Really! I did not know that.
IAssuming you are correct about the mandated nature of the system, I'd have to agree that any numb-nut that defeated it would have the same sorts of problems as he might face by defeating seat belts.
It seems to be a poorly thought out system if the sensors are rim-centric, because lots of people in the Snow Belt keep Winter and Summer tires on different sets of rims, and the changing seasons can easily create a condition that one would want to defeat.
I agree.
Some systems use ABS wheel rotation sensors to detect differing wheel speeds (rollout differences), but it creates other issues, such as might be found when tires are worn unevenly. I live where it snows, but leave BFG TA/KO's on year round, and my '05 truck is not equipped with TPMS. Otherwise, I'd probably spring for an additional sensor set.
Some TPMS have been known to really mess things up when airing down for off-road operation, as a "real" 4x4 might be used. I read about some
2006 Honda Ridgelines (possibly early production) that would refuse to move when aired down for sand.
That would ruin a day in no time. I regularly air down to as low as 5 psi for added traction off road. I once hit the sand at full pressure and found myself stuck on an embankment. I was about to go ask the nice gentleman with the tractor if he oculd give my Jeep a gentle tug, but before I did, I aired down. I got out of my prediciment with ease.
I normally use my Jeep to go rock crawling, and low tire pressure is very useful there as well.
Tell me about it!
The TA/KO's dig an even better hole in sand than all-season tires, if not aired down LOTS! I even know HOW BIG of a hole they can dig, with a Jeep or a Tacoma!
With the OEM tires (BFG Long Trail and Goodyear Wrangler), I could cheat a bit and run both the Jeep and Taco @ 12 PSI. The TA/KO's need to be well down in single digits to avoid embarrassment.
I also have the tires with the continuously variable automatic air-down feature, and this adds to the confusion.
On Wed, 17 Oct 2007 23:55:37 +0000, Jeff Strickland tossed this out for all to see:
I've had a set of those.
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