omagicbum

Hi I've been searching the forums and haven't found any information. How involved is it to get a factory TPMS installed. I am starting from nothing. So I figure I need to get the wheel sensors, antennas, and other various components. Or are some of the antennas in the car? I also know I will need someone with STAR to enable it so I can see in the menu. Any help or pointers would be appreciated.

Viper98912

I'm not sure if it was even an option on the C-class? So it might not even be enable-able. Why do you want it? It honestly creates a lot more hassle and problems than it's worth (imho).

omagicbum

I know it is not a factory option, but I remember seeing a 2006 C55 retrofitted to have TPMS using factory equipment and not the having like the hella system sold by tirerack. I definitely know it can be enable via STAR like the passive TPMS.

lkfoster

It's built in, but not activated in the states. Why is most likely because too many Americans whine about everything. Not, apparently, Canadians because it's listed in the owners manual as Run Flat Indicator (Canada only). You need a STAR system to turn it on.

While it's not a pressure sensor based system, it does work. It flagged a blown tire for my wife before she could feel it while driving in BFE Nevada a couple years ago. I've had it activated for a couple years now and have not had a single false signal.

lkfoster

I have the Hella system in the wife's TT which doesn't have a spare. It works better than the TPMS in our Mercs but I couldn't find a reasonable place to mount it.

It's nice not having to check tire pressures, but re-setting it every time you rotate tires is a pain.

omagicbum

Thanks Ikfoster, but the one I am talking about is the true indicator. You can read the psi/bar of the tire from the menu screen for each tire. Unlike the passive TPMS which tells one that they have a low tire but not which tire is low.

Viper98912

Actually now that I remember, there's a member on the W203 forum that has this option, and I actually find it pretty cool and very convenient. What I don't like are the systems that light up the dash when you're 3+ lbs under pressure - in the winter overnight, this could easily happen and annoy you on the way to work.

91RS

One of the cars Steve did overseas he added and "active" tire monitor, but who knows how it was done! The "passive" tire monitor can be activated easily, but it really isn't worth it. It would be easier just to check your tire pressure.

RLx02

How does the passive tpms work? Did our oem wheels have a tpms installed?

I just carry a digital tire pressure gauge in the glove compartment...next to my kimber ultra carry II

lkfoster

Passive TPMS works by using ABS sensor readings in diagonal corners to look for a change in speed as a tire rolling diameter gets smaller and that corner speeds up. It's already there but not turned on in the states. Apparently some Canadian cars have run-flat tires which require some sort of a sensor so they get it activated.

You set the system once tire pressures are where you want them and the system remembers the proper respective readings. According to a Continental tire white paper anything less than a 3% difference in rolling circumference doesn't bother most passive systems.

While proven to be problematic in some cases and not as reliable as an active system, it does work. The American wife had a chance to try it out awhile back. The flashing red central display came on before she could feel a rear tire blow out while at freeway speeds.

Being that she is just a "girl" she only had a Beretta 96 in the glove box, which was just as well as it happened at 2am on a two lane highway in BFE Nevada that MB Roadside Assistance gave up trying to locate. She was NOT impressed with MB Roadside Assistance.

RLx02

Ah thanks for the explanation. My friend's TPMS in his 335i actually had the unit mounted in his wheel so I was curious as to how ours worked.

Isn't the 96 kind of a large pistol for the glove box? My kimber has a shorty 3.5" barrel but the grip is a little bit too long and juts out a little bit when I am carrying. I have a modded glock 17c but I'm tempted to get a sub compact so its less noticeable and more comfortable to carry.

Biscuit

Eventually I plan on replacing my clarion head unit with a carputer and LCD screen. Once you've done that you can buy the little sensors to go on your tires and have your own TPMS. I think mp3car.com sells all the stuff to do it.

Not exactly what you're looking for but that's how I plan on approaching it.

lkfoster

Just got back from a 5,000 mile road trip and I have to say that activating the passive TPMS (Run Flat Indicator for the Canadian market) was the best $75 I ever spent. Picked up a 2-1/2" long dry wall screw in a rear tire heading up to Yosemite that caused a slow leak. Was able to nurse the car back to civilization by waiting for the alert to trip which worked out to about a 10 psig drop.

It really paid off when starting out with a temporary replacement tire that was bad also. There was no way I could have known that it was bad also. I did notice that the cheap temporary replacement needed a 20 psig drop to trip the alert so the TPMS is not perfect, but I knew that going in.

Amongst other things, I learned that the OEM air compressor works pretty well but having to stay within the 50 mph mini-spare speed limit sucks.

RES

I have Star and added the passive system and feel it works really well. The only time it has gone off is when I have had a tire bad. With 30 profile tires that's very helpfull and saves ruining a tire. It only takes a few minutes to add with Star system.
You can add the active system which I believe has gone from four antenas to just one and works with the sensors in the wheel. This requires some Star programming to. I would need to check on how much the parts are running now. It would have the individual pressures read on your instrument cluster.