griffey

Hi Folks.

I just had a new set of tires put on my 2008 Civic. When they were replacing the tires the mechanic said that one of the tire sensor stems was bad and needed to be replaced--he said he'd order one and I could come back and they'd install it.

When I left the shop (Farm and Fleet--if you're not in the midwest they are sort of a WalMart for Farm-related products and have a pretty trusted auto shop) the TPMS light was on--which was expected.

Well today I went and go the stem thing replaced, and the mechanics reset everything several times but while the TPMS light is now off, the low tire pressure light is on, and (get this) is blinking. There's nothing in the manual that I can find about it blinking. The mechanic ran codes and did the whole nine yards and rechecked all the tire pressures but still can't get the light to stop blinking. He said if it doesn't go off on its own, I'll probably have to have Honda look at it.

Any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

Mike

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

did they use an oem honda tpms sensor? im guessing not, since i used to deliver parts to farm and fleet. those sensors are very picky in working with these cars and it can be reading extremely low pressure for that tire. aftermarkets usually do not have the calibration needed to work properly. usually the flashing light means there is a fault in the system (defective sensor most likely), or one tire is dangerously below the preset minimum pressure.

griffey

Thanks so much for your reply.

On Sunday when I got my tires put on they did not have the sensor in stock. The mechanic got on the phone and ordered one from somewhere local (Napa?) and said they would have it by 1:00 on Monday "but to call and check." Monday I called and was on hold forever, so I just assumed that the part had arrived and went there first thing this morning.

When checked manually, all four tires (obviously) have the correct air pressure in them.

So what do I do? Will this thing ever go off on its own? Do I need to go to the Honda dealer (and do we think they will look at it with their sensor thing without charging me an arm and a leg)?

Thanks again.

Mike

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

no it will not go off on its own. i think you need to replace it with a honda sensor. i doubt they would charge you that much just for one wheel. its a simple install, they just have to remove and remount one tire. prolly less than $100.

griffey

Well that's no fun.

Thanks for the help, though. I'll check with the Honda dealer first and then go back to Farm and Fleet and see how this is all going to work out, because I already paid $75 to Farm and Fleet to replace the sensor--I'm not dropping another $100 because they used the wrong kind (or whatever).

Thanks again for responding!

Mike

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

you may want to drive the car for 15 mins on the freeway (without stopping) to see if that turns the light off. if not, the system cannot calibrate the new sensor properly.

griffey

Okey doke. Our commute home is about 20 minutes on the highway, so we'll see what happens.

Thanks again!

CraigW

iTrader: (1)

Check real quick and see if they still have your old sensor so you can get it back.

Maybe you can repair it. (there is supposed to be a rebuild kit but I have yet to find one)

Mark C1v1c

Before you go to the dealer, you might want to try this. I had the same problem, back to Discount Tire twice and the (!) was still flashing. Today I saw the following (http://www.8thcivic.com/forums/mecha...ing-light.html) and got the guy at the tire store to indulge me and try it. It really worked! Save yourself $50+ and give this a try first.

1. Inflate tire(s) to 44 PSI
2. Deflate tire(s) to 20 PSI
3. Inflate to desired pressure (32 PSI)
4. Drive several hundred yards (I drove around the mall parking lot)

Hope it works for you too!