Hey guys, I'm thinking of buying a new set of rims with TPMS for my 2018 C43 for my winter tires as I live in Canada and those things are pretty mandatory here. Quick question on the TPMS, if I have two sets of them (1 for summer and 1 for winter), how would I be able to switch between them? I know in some cars, there is a reset button. How does it look like for our car?

Also, what if I don't have TPMS on my new rims? Would the flat tire symbol always be on when I'm driving with my winters?

 

My tire installer does the initial calibration on the new valves to cars tpms. There after... system should recognize the valves on either set ..winter...or summer once installed. Last switch took a minute or 2 of driving until pressure system received the readings from the valves.
btw... yes the flat tire symbol will always be on

 

The system will automatically detect the new wheel sensors (as long as it was recognized by the same vehicle before like the post above mentioned through calibration >when the compatible sensors were first installed (ie. swapping summers off then to winters both with TPMS sensors recognized by the vehicle before and then swapping summers back on will allow it to detect it automatically after driving for a few KMs), the sensors go in standby mode if it doesn't sense movement (and possibly pressure on the sidewalls).

As for your last question, yes it flashes shortly after you swap tires without sensors inside once TPMS realizes it is not receiving any communication from the wheel sensors. This happens after you take a short drive. Next time you start the car, it will just pretend the wheel sensors are not on and warn you first (because the sensors aren't active during startup for the reason I explained above), if after a short drive, it detects the sensors, it will go back to normal. Sometimes all it takes is backing out of a garage for example. The tire pressure warning light sometimes flashes during drive but it is mostly constant.

I do not recommend driving without TPMS to be honest, it is a good driver's assistance system/aid (that being said, it shouldn't be replacing the habits of checking tire pressure manually the old school way as it is just there to assist us. Just like active brake assist, it is meant to help mitigate the impact of a crash or prevent it, not meant to be an excuse for drivers to not pay attention to the cars in front). We paid for these technologies (mostly safety) for our cars so why not make the most use of it and have those sensors in the tires so the system can actually work (just imo). Our cars have active TPMS so if it detects no sensor, it won't display any warning if there is a tire puncture. I remember the E450 I test driven had passive TPMS which means it detects the rotation speed of tires and wheels (using ABS I believe) to determine if there is tire pressure loss. That one doesn't have sensors in the tires. Even if you have TPMS, I recommend checking the tire pressure manually at a gas station or with your own device frequently during winters and even summer for peace of mind (and mainly safety). After all, the tires are what connects you, your car to the road. TPMS sensors are rather cost effective, some quality aftermarket ones only cost $120 CAD including tax for a set, you can always go OEM, they aren't that much more expensive. Just make sure when you go aftermarket, have it properly programmed and make sure it is designed/compatible with your vehicle.

Here is an image of how the car reacted when I was driving with no TPMS sensors.

I hope that helps : )

 

Thanks for all the helpful info guys! It was really informative. I was tired of paying $130 every season just to change from Winters to Summers and vice versa. If our TPMS can receive signals from two sets of sensors and auto detect which one is on, I think it's a no brainer for me to get a new set of rims and TPMS for my winters as well.

Initially, I was scared I had to bring it to the dealership to get them to re-activate the correct TPMS every time I change my tires, but obviously thats not necessary.

 

No worries at all, glad the information was helpful. Yup, it would be annoying if you have to do that all the time, glad our cars aren't designed that way : P
By the way, yup definitely consider a second set of wheels for winters. It doesn't make economic sense to pay $130 as you said and on top of that, do (some) damage to the rubber of the tires (every time they remove it from the wheel). You are basically paying them more money to cause damage to your tires : P
Enjoy your car : )

 

TPMS in our car don't need to be programed like Toyota.

Unless you are swapping out the wheels yourself, you are looking at half of that at local shop for seasonal tires on rim swap.

 

Actually it is 433MHz in the US since at least 2010 for most cars including W205 C.