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TPMS on spare?????????

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by topkick, Jan 13, 2010.

  1. topkick

    topkick Member

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    I searched but could not find anything on this.

    Last week I had to add about 6lbs of air to my right rear tire, yesterday the light come on and I had to add 8lbs to the same tire. This morning I took it to a local dealer that does not charge to fix flats and they found a nail and repaired the tire.

    This afternoon I was on my way to sam's and the TPMS light came back on. Since the dealer was in the same area I went there first and had them check it out.

    The service adviser told me that the person who had fixed it had not checked the spare tire and it was a little low. So they filled it up and the light went out.

    I told her I had not heard that the spare had a TPMS on it and she said it does. Can anyone confirm this for me? I asked her when they started putting them in the spare and she said some time back. I am pretty sure my 2007 did not have one in it.
     
    #1 topkick, Jan 13, 2010
  2. Paradox

    Paradox Prius Enthusiast / Moderator
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    #2 Paradox, Jan 13, 2010
  3. ToyotaFleetManager

    ToyotaFleetManager New Member

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    Toyotas with compact spare (i.e. space saver, doughnuts and such) do not have TPMS. Since compact spares usually run at much higher inflation pressures and are differrent sizes than the four main tires.
     
    #3 ToyotaFleetManager, Jan 13, 2010
  4. thbjr

    thbjr Member

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    I was at a local dealer yesterday and a Gen II was in for service. I over heard the service rep telling the owner that the doughnut tire did have a TPMS unit in it, it had been reset and the warning light on the dash was reset/out. I thought that quite odd at the time ... still do.
     
    #4 thbjr, Jan 13, 2010
  5. ToyotaFleetManager

    ToyotaFleetManager New Member

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    If the spare is a full size tire and is the same size as the other 4 tires, then it could have TPMS on it. However doughnuts do not have TPMS on them. Either the service rep was mistaken or maybe new to the position.
     
    #5 ToyotaFleetManager, Jan 13, 2010
  6. Joe166

    Joe166 New Member

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    The spare tire on my wife's Lexus GS 350, which I thought was a compact spare, has a TPMS on it and has caused us a lot of trouble from time to time. I found my compact spare to have about 40 lbs instead of the 60 it is supposed to have when I checked it upon getting my car home from the dealers.
     
    #6 Joe166, Jan 13, 2010
  7. topkick

    topkick Member

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    Thanks for the responses. With your help I did find it in the book. I also pulled the spare and looked to satisfy myself.

    It sure does not have one, but no wonder they face the stem down, that is one ugly yellow wheel! Would not want to run it long for sure.

    Just another case of the people at the dealership not telling the truth, and they had no reason to lie about it. I was not going to be upset about having to come back to fix a free tire repair. So at this point I just have to keep a watch on the low pressure alert to make sure the tire is fixed.
     
    #7 topkick, Jan 17, 2010
  8. Joe166

    Joe166 New Member

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    It's kind of like the story of the frog and the snake or whatever other evil creature bit and killed the unfortunate benefactor who tried to give him a ride across the river. THEY ARE CAR GUYS! For some of them, it's in their DNA. They don't need a reason to lie.

    While I have some great friends who are car guys and have been for years, many of their associates seem to think that they have a god given right to lie and mislead the consumers.

    Having represented many dealers and a couple of manufacturers before I stopped practicing law, I really do kind of like car guys, but you have to stay on your toes and some of them feel justified by the awful, nasty tricky things that customers try on them every single day. I was always amazed that otherwise honest people would think absolutely nothing of lying and trying to trick dealers, knowing if they got caught, probably nothing would happen to them because the dealer wouldn't want to get into it with them where a jury might side with the consumer.
     
    #8 Joe166, Jan 17, 2010
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