Help-Dealer wants $1200 to fix tire pressure monitor!

I am am emailing on behalf of my dad who has a 2007 911. The battery died and he went through the normal procedure to get the car going again. Once the battery was recharged he noticed that the tire pressure monitoring system was no longer working. He assumed that the system would reset itself after driving for a while and it did not. He took the car to 2 dealers and they each said it would cost $1200 to fix the problem…they said that the batteries for the tire pressure system needed replacing. He has never heard of this and neither have I. $1200?? Really!

Some of the TPMS sensors are disposable - when the batteries are kaput, you install new sensors. $300 per wheel sounds about right for Porsche. Link to another site with discussion: http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/9...ative-opc.html

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Yes, that is true, replacing all 4 of the TPMS sensors costs 1200 from the dealer. I know, because I had all 4 replaced under CPO and that cost was ~1200. However, you can buy aftermarket TPMS sensors for a lot less and get a Tire place like Goodyear or whatever to do it for you, almost 1/3 of the cost. do a search and you'll find plenty of answers. If you don't find it on the 996 forum, you can for sure on the 997 forum. Mike

thanks guys….I forgot if his year us a 996 or 997!

997 but you're in the 996 (better) forum.

I just bought 4 new TPMS sensors for my BMW, same brand that BMW uses for $240. My local tire place put them in my winter wheels/Tires no problem, for $125. Get away from the Stealership. Porsche TPMS probably the same

So wait, if the cars main battery dies it causes the batteries in all 4 TPMS sensors to die? That doesn't make a lot of sense.....

Having moved to a 2006 (turbo S Cayenne) I can testify that there is a $160 solution. I bought new sensors ($160 for 4) and had them fitted when my snow tires were mounted. The original (ca.2006) units had given up the ghost. Discount Tires did the dirty work, the OBC learned their position within 10 miles. Your 911 may need a learning cycle (otherwise known as a 20 minute/mile drive).

We have TPMS sensors?

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I know exactly what you did there

That price is correct for OE parts from the dealer. You should be able to have aftermarket sensors installed in your dad's 997 by an independent tire shop for roughly half of that amount.

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Yes, it doesn't sense because the main battery has no connection to the batteries in the TPMS sensors.

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If the TMPS sensors are original their batteries are likely dead. 7 years is a long time for the sensor batteries. What I have most often is someone replaces their tires after 4 years and refuse to follow the SM's recommendation to have the TPMS sensors (with their built-in batteries) replaced due the cost. Naturally as the cost can be considerable. This is an even harder sale if the units are functioning ok, as they often are after 4 years. But too often the owner is back not long after with one or more dead batteries in his car's TPMS sensors. Often times the owner wants to blame the tire mounted operation for damaging the sensors, but this is not what happens. It just so happens the TPMS sensor batteries ran out of time. The SM has seen this time and time again which is why he (and the techs if you ask them) will recommend new sensors/batteries when the tires are changed. Now if the sensors have been replaced in the past, or even if they are original, you owe it to your dear Dad to read through the owners manual and see what needs to be done after the battery has been replaced. I assume the battery died and was replaced. If not I need to know what was done to resurrect the battery? They really do not take kindly to begin run flat and while they might take a recharge and appear to be ok they often are not. It is just best to replace the battery and make a note to never ever let one run flat. It could be the temporary loss of battery power has rendered the TPMS controller and its receiving antenna inoperable and with some procedure using the car's OBC stalk you can resurrect the TPMS controller.

Some Porsche models have a learning procedure for the TPMS, check the manual. There's no reason why a dead battery would impact the TPMS sensors. As for the cost, my dealership will charge $250 to replace your air filter. So there you go......

My tire pressure monitor lives in my toolbox. It consists of a gauge with a hose attached. I think it cost $40.

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+1

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The Wichita KS Porsche dealer used to be pretty good. I had my Boxster repaired there when I hit some road debris on 50 highway just west of Strong City KS. My local Porsche dealer replaced the light bulbs, filters for free if I buy the parts from the dealer. I just buy the filter for instance and leave it in the car with a request it be installed during the service I'm having done (usually oil/filter service). When I pick up the car I always offer to pay for the labor but the SM never charges me.

Free dealer service for replacing bulbs or wipers is a lost practice in Los Angeles. I went to my local VW dealership parts department to get a mondo fastener that held the rear wheel bearing in place. The same area in the dealership houses both the parts counter and the waiting area for the service department. While I was waiting for the parts department to locate the part, a service adviser came in and said, "Janice Miller?" A woman stood up and identified herself. The service rep said, "We did a complimentary safety inspection after your service was completed, and the tech found a tail light bulb burned out." "How much will that cost to replace?", she asked. "Fifty dollars, which includes the price of the bulb." I almost fell over. She decided to go with the repair. A two-dollar bulb, three minutes to change, and that's $50. It pays to take matters into your own hands.

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Mine is an aftermarket setup I bought from Amazon for less than a hundred bucks, and it alternates between tire pressure and tire temp, displaying data for all four tires simultaneously. I keep a spare in my door pocket - just in case the batteries tank - but realtime data on pressure and temp is very useful, especially if conditions aren't perfect and one wants to know whether the tires are hot enough to tolerate some hooning.