Tire pressure monitor

tpollard95124 · #1 12-04-2009, 06:21 PM

A question for 2010 35d owners. I should take delivery of mine later this month, and have a set of 19 inch wheels already for my winter tires. I don't especially want to go to the expense of adding the tire pressure sensors to each wheel, but I also don't want to have a constant low tire pressure warning light/readout/gong. So the question is, is it possible to turn off the low tire pressure warning in i-Drive - the manual is kinda vague on this.

Any guidance would be appreciated.

BMW_F1 · #2 12-04-2009, 06:24 PM

As far as I am aware it is not possible to disable the TPMS. Although the dealer may be able to do it through there computers.

Penguin · #3 12-04-2009, 06:30 PM

Nope.

Not possible.

Well, almost anything is possible, but there does not appear to be any practical way that I have seen or read about. The ability to turn off the monitors is probably a liability and/or legal issue, as I suspect since they are now a Federal legal requirement, the law probably does not allow for the system to be able to be turned-off by the user. And we've seen an example of someone's child accidentally turning on the hourly chime function recently, so a BMW lawyer would likely be rather worried about accidentally turning off the TPM system.

I suppose you could carry the original wheels around in the back.... just kidding.

I believe Tirerack sells compatible TPM's, and if just for safety reasons, it's probably a good idea to spend the extra $200-300 to keep the system active in any case.

P.S. A quick check of tirerack.com shows that the X5 TPM sensors/valve stems can be bought in a package of 4 for $196.00

ring007 · #4 12-07-2009, 04:19 PM

Note: the '10 TPMS system is different than previous models. The Tirerack system quoted below will not work with the '10's as they now use generation 3 TPMS. I just bought a set of (4) of the G3 sensors and stems for my winter wheel set from my local dealer for $317 with BMWCCA discount.

What a rip, but no other alternative that I could find on-line for a better deal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Penguin

Nope.

Not possible.

Well, almost anything is possible, but there does not appear to be any practical way that I have seen or read about. The ability to turn off the monitors is probably a liability and/or legal issue, as I suspect since they are now a Federal legal requirement, the law probably does not allow for the system to be able to be turned-off by the user. And we've seen an example of someone's child accidentally turning on the hourly chime function recently, so a BMW lawyer would likely be rather worried about accidentally turning off the TPM system.

I suppose you could carry the original wheels around in the back.... just kidding.

I believe Tirerack sells compatible TPM's, and if just for safety reasons, it's probably a good idea to spend the extra $200-300 to keep the system active in any case.

P.S. A quick check of tirerack.com shows that the X5 TPM sensors/valve stems can be bought in a package of 4 for $196.00

FunfDreisig · #5 12-07-2009, 04:38 PM

Huh? The 'Tire Pressure Monitor" system in the X5 does not monitor tire pressure -- it monitors differential rotation between the axles.

IOW it assumes that a tire/wheel that is rotating more slowly than the others is low on air. AFAIK this monitoring is done at the axle not the wheel/tire. That is why the manual tells you to 'initialize' the TPM EVERY time you adjust the air pressure in any tire.

Funf Dreisig

Edit: My Bad

I didn't realize that the X5 has TWO systems that monitor low/flat tires. The one I described above is the Flat Tire Monitor system. But there is another more sophisticated Tire Pressure Monitoring system.

Thanks to Penguin and others for pointing this out.

Penguin · #6 12-07-2009, 05:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunfDreisig

Huh? The 'Tire Pressure Monitor" system in the X5 does not monitor tire pressure -- it monitors differential rotation between the axles. Funf Dreisig

Nope, the E70 in the U.S. now uses direct monitoring of the tire pressure with a sensor inside each wheel. Take a look at the valve caps on your tire stems.

I believe that the E70 for some other markets still uses the indirect, relative-speed-of-rotation method, since it is cheaper. You will see both systems are discussed in the Owner's Manual, but the U.S. models all use direct pressure sensing/RF transmission.

P.S. It starts on page 92 of the Owner's Manual, with the relative-rotation method being called "Flat Tire Monitor (FTM), and the direct-pressure-sensor method being called "Tire Pressure Monitor (TPM). The U.S. gets TPM, primarily as it is difficult to meet newer legal requirements in the U.S. using FTM.

Redridge · #7 12-07-2009, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunfDreisig

Huh? The 'Tire Pressure Monitor" system in the X5 does not monitor tire pressure -- it monitors differential rotation between the axles.

IOW it assumes that a tire/wheel that is rotating more slowly than the others is low on air. AFAIK this monitoring is done at the axle not the wheel/tire. That is why the manual tells you to 'initialize' the TPM EVERY time you adjust the air pressure in any tire.

Funf Dreisig

so the 2010 models dont use remote sensors in the wheel/tires and is calculted by wheel rotation differences? That would be great....

motordavid · #8 12-07-2009, 04:50 PM

I thought the new/newer MYs used the Direct TPMS readout method?

FunfDreisig · #9 12-07-2009, 05:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by motordavid

I thought the new/newer MYs used the Direct TPMS readout method?

I based my reply on the "Owner's manual video" about X5 TPM on the BMW USA site. You know the one that I downloaded and viewed while I was astonishingly bored waiting for our 2009 X5 35d to be built. Maybe it changed for 2010. I'm downloading the 2010 version now.

Funf Dreisig

Edit: The 2010 version of the X5 Tire Pressure Monitoring system still says the system measures the relative speed of the wheels and makes no mention of any direct pressure measuring. Of course, we know that BMW USA's site is not always up to date. So this video may be wrong.

FWIW the 2009 Owner's manual says that you should "always use wheels with TPM electronics".

Penguin · #10 12-07-2009, 05:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunfDreisig

I based my reply on the "Owner's manual video" about X5 TPM on the BMW USA site. You know the one that I downloaded and viewed while I was astonishingly bored waiting for our 2009 X5 35d to be built. Maybe it changed for 2010. I'm downloading the 2010 version now.

Funf Dreisig

I noticed while I was waiting and did the same thing that the idrive video they had for the 2010 Diesel was still showing the old idrive. They don't do a very good job of updating those videos.

P.S. In looking at the Owner's Manual, I noticed the the i-drive screen they show actually differentiates between the two systems, e.g., the FTM reads "Flat Tir Monitor," while the TPM reads "Tire PRessure Monitor" on the i-drive screen.