Prius Tire Valve Cap

@Hammersmith, you could put the bottom line on this. What are the official part numbers for the OEM Gen 4 and Gen 5 tire valve caps? There are several part numbers. They seem to be for different model years.

The dealer lost my OEM tire valve cap today while replacing a tire.

 

The only confusion is that there is also the 90942-A5002, which looks identical to the 90942-05039. Do you know the difference? I know my car specs the 90942-05039. Could it be that they are identical or there is a subtle difference such as one of them having an O-ring seal inside?

 

No, they are both black, I think.

 

OK, I think the 90942-A5002 might be cheapo ones vs. the 90942-05039 being made by Pacific. Mine came with Pacific-made ones.

 

Here is the Pacific Japan web page:

Products | Valve Products | Technologies & Products | Pacific Industrial Co., Ltd.

And this their catalog:

https://www.pacific-ind.co.jp/eng/product/valve/pdf/productguide_valve.pdf

PVC25 is the correct tire valve cap for my car, and it has an O-ring seal inside according to the drawing, unlike the cheap Xtra Seal cap the dealer gave me today.

Perhaps the two parts are identical after all. They look slightly different colors in these pictures (mine is black), but perhaps that’s the lighting. Or perhaps they are both made my Pacific but in different factories.

90942-05039:



90942-A5002:

 

Well, tomorrow I am getting three more tires and the service guy promised to give me four new Toyota tire valve caps. I will also check with the parts department to see what they actually have.

Sadly, my tires are still like new, but I got five nails in about a year and decided to keep spare tires in the garage. They also have discontinued the Dunlop Enasave 01 A/S (the manufacturing date on the ones I have been getting is the 41st week of 2022) and I wanted to get them before they were gone. Slightly over $600 total for four tires installed with a two-year new-replacement road-hazard warranty.

 

You need to be careful when getting tire valve caps for TPMS sensors.

Two rules:

• No metal caps allowed
• Must have a rubber bushing inside to form an airtight seal

I would refrain from cheapo aftermarket ones, though there are acceptable once satisfying the criteria above. See the technical drawing of the OEM Japanese Pacific tire valve cap PVC25 on the previous page.

 

Green means nitrogen fill.

Yes, it is a good idea to take them off at service, and I do that, but I thought at least the dealer would have common sense.

It was a good thing I declined the courtesy car wash because the TPMS sensor would go into the carwash with no tire valve cap. It is not to mention the harsh brushes.

 

The spare tire probably comes with the OEM Japanese Pacific tire valve cap CL shown in the brochure screenshot on the previous page. It is made of resin and has a rubber bushing like the PVC25 TPMS cap, but it is a lot larger and has a lot shorter thread and doesn’t have a lip inside.

 

And an interesting observation: A small nonthrough hole on the top of plastic tire valve caps seems to indicate the presence of a rubber bushing.

Metal caps naturally always come with rubber bushings, but they should not be used with TPMS sensors. TPMS sensors use the small cylindrical plastic caps with rubber bushings and long threads (not the large plastic caps with short threads intended for valves without TPMS sensors) pictured on the previous page.