Government regulations require all cars now to have tire pressure monitoring systems as original equipment. The question is what do these systems do…or better one is how do they work? Unlike a starter or an alternator the TPMS is a unit that is battery powered and has a 100% failure rate over a period of 10 years.
The system uses a sensor in each tire that contains an internal battery and sends a signal to a receiver in the vehicle. When one of these sensors detects a low tire pressure it signals the ECM and the check tire light will flash.
Every year it is estimated that there are over 40,000 accidents and 33,000 injuries due to tire issues. Not to mention more than 650 deaths are attributed to under inflation related issues so having a system that will relay potential issues is an amazing advantage. Aside from the safety issues the potential money savings is a big factor too. Not just for the driver but for everyone since a tire that is under inflated by 10% will cause a 1% drop in efficiency in performance. It is estimated that over 2 billion gallons of gas are wasted each year due to under inflation. This system has been standard equipment in normal passenger cars since 2007 and will be federally required after 2012 in all new vehicles.
