Low Tire Pressure Indicator... Help!

[1ForAllFor1]

Would you two just shut up and help me?!?! lol

I have an update to offer... I took the advice provided here and went out there this morning with my own little gauge to check the air. EACH tire was reading roughly 32.5 to 33 PSI. I checked all four tires, three times each. Now, it's pretty clear to me since the low tire pressure indicator went on well over 24 hours ago, that if I had a flat, ONE of these tires should be showing a more significant dip in pressure than the others... wouldn't you all agree? As I'm not seeing that, I'm inclined to think that the combination of my car having sat on a dealership lot for a good long while, coupled with the increasingly cold weather, may have simply led to a dip in the overall pressure of ALL of my tires. Does this seem possible? If I am reading correctly, the recommended front AND back PSI for a 2008 135i is 36. If that's correct, my hope is to simply add air to all four times and be done with it. What do you guys think?

[Lester]

Originally Posted by 1ForAllFor1

Would you two just shut up and help me?!?! lol

I have an update to offer... I took the advice provided here and went out there this morning with my own little gauge to check the air. EACH tire was reading roughly 32.5 to 33 PSI. I checked all four tires, three times each. Now, it's pretty clear to me since the low tire pressure indicator went on well over 24 hours ago, that if I had a flat, ONE of these tires should be showing a more significant dip in pressure than the others... wouldn't you all agree? As I'm not seeing that, I'm inclined to think that the combination of my car having sat on a dealership lot for a good long while, coupled with the increasingly cold weather, may have simply led to a dip in the overall pressure of ALL of my tires. Does this seem possible? If I am reading correctly, the recommended front AND back PSI for a 2008 135i is 36. If that's correct, my hope is to simply add air to all four times and be done with it. What do you guys think?

Set the tires to the correct temp, then reset the TPMS. It should be fine. Everyone should check their tires at least once per month or so. And before you start any road trips.

[1ForAllFor1]

Spoke with BMW again this morning... I was feeling better about the situation, but they indicated to me that a drop of 4 PSI in ALL of the tires should not set off the low tire pressure indicator. If that's not what caused it, then I'm really at a loss to figure out what did...

Can someone confirm for me that 36 PSI is the recommended weight for ALL 135i factory tires? Thanks...

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by 1ForAllFor1

Spoke with BMW again this morning... I was feeling better about the situation, but they indicated to me that a drop of 4 PSI in ALL of the tires should not set off the low tire pressure indicator. If that's not what caused it, then I'm really at a loss to figure out what did...

Can someone confirm for me that 36 PSI is the recommended weight for ALL 135i factory tires? Thanks...

There's always the possibility of a malfunction of the TPS - perhaps you have an intermittent problem. Either way, you are now equipped to maintain your tires the "old fashioned" way.

According to the manual, 36/36 lbs. is recommended for the summer performance tires. If you have the optional 17" all-seasons, then the recommendation is 33 front and 36 rear.

BTW, I'm noticing that the tires on my 128i will lose about 3~4 pounds when sitting for a couple of weeks and are also quite sensitive to temperature changes. The same was true of the run-flats on my Z4.

Tom

[1ForAllFor1]

Tom, is it your feeling that my TPS went off because of the pressure drop in the tires, in spite of BMW's arguement against that? It seems like the simplest solution, but I was discouraged when my service guy seemed to shoot down that theory.

Also, I never asked for any specific optional tires, so I'm assuming my tires are just stock run flats.

[Tom K.]

Originally Posted by 1ForAllFor1

Tom, is it your feeling that my TPS went off because of the pressure drop in the tires, in spite of BMW's arguement against that? It seems like the simplest solution, but I was discouraged when my service guy seemed to shoot down that theory.

Also, I never asked for any specific optional tires, so I'm assuming my tires are just stock run flats.

Hard to say re the TPS - I wouldn't worry about it unless it comes on again, in which case I'd take it in to have the dealer check the sensors (assuming the pressures are OK).

Check the raised lettering on the side of one of your tires. If it says 215/40ZR18 on a front tire or 245/35ZR18 on a rear, you have summer performance tires and should inflate to 36 lbs. all around. If it says 205/50HR17 (front or rear), you have all-seasons and should inflate to 33 front, 36 rear.

Incidentally, if you have the 18" summer tires, don't drive in temperatures much below freezing and avoid snow and ice at all costs.

Tom

[1ForAllFor1]

Hi all,

I filled up with air at lunch time and the low tire pressure warning message FINALLY went away. I didn't reset the system yet, because I overfilled two of my tires, and will need to release some air from them when I get the time after getting home from work. I'm assuming that after I have sucessfully balanced all of the PSI levels, THEN I should reset the system?

Hopefully this will be the end of the drama.

[Lester]

Yes - I think it's time, thanks for the update.

[ben14142001]

Mine did the same thing this morning. It was the first cold morning in a while and all the tires were down 2-3 pounds so I just reset the TPMS and went on my way.

-Ben

[Dr_Jones]

happened to me this morning. About 300 miles from home so better safe then sorry at dealer.

Did you guys know that the wheel and tire warranties are not tied to VIN. If you dont have the policy number you are SOL?

[135iUSN]

do all dealers offer the hazard warranty on the tires?

[mistermojorizin]

Originally Posted by 1ForAllFor1

Are you kidding me? This is a BMW. There is no on board computerized tire gauge? Even my Acura TSX had one of those. Blah... I don't have a freakin' tire gauge here at work...

my vette had one too, and this was 8 years ago. lol, bmw is a little behind ok.