Which TPMS

[Grumpy John]

I'm looking to purchase a Tyre Pressure Monitor System before our big trip to the Birdsville races this year. There are quite a few on the market now and there is a huge variation on price. Paying big bucks for something doesn't always get you the best, and the cheapest product is sometimes cheap for a reason.
The three main units I'm looking at are tyredog (http://www.tyredog.com.au/store/all-products/new-6-wheel-tyre-pressure-monitor-td-2300a-x06-0-to-180-psi.html), innotechrv (http://www.innotechrv.com/InnotechRV_6_Sensor_Tire_Pressure_Monitoring_System/p1769244_8615242.aspx), and sidewinder (http://www.sidewinder.com.au/page161a.html). The Innotech unit can be purchased off ebay for $288 making it the cheapest by far, but is it a reliable product?. If any of the Forum members are using a TPMS I'd be interested in any feedback.

[dai sensei]

Be interested in any replies. I was looking at these too and needed 12 sensors for all the tyres and airbags.

[Grumpy John]

Interested in these (http://www.abcbeads.com.au/) also.

[Grumpy John]

Be interested in any replies. I was looking at these too and needed 12 sensors for all the tyres and airbags.

Interesting point Neil, didn't think of using them to monitor the airbags as well :2tsup::2tsup::2tsup:.

[Grumpy John]

A small review on what I ended up purchasing.

EK215H Tyre Pressure Monitor
I recently purchased a Tyre Pressure Monitor with 6 sensors to keep track of the tyre pressures on my car and van when we do our trip to the Birdsville Races later this month. When traveling on corrugated roads it is not always easy to tell if one of your tyres is slowly losing pressure and thats where a pressure monitor comes in handy, it also monitors tyre temperature as well. As the sensors are mounted on the tyre valve I'm not sure how accurate the temperature reading is, but on the short test runs I've done so far the cold temp has gone from ~10 deg. to ~18-20 deg after about an hours driving (the ambient temp was ~14 deg.).
Before fitting the sensors I checked the pressures on my tyres and made sure they were all the same (40psi). The monitor showed the pressure at 38psi on all wheels, which doesn't bother me as they were all the same and the inflator I use with my home compressor is just a cheap one and might not be all that accurate. I then went for a drive for about an hour down the Sth.Gippy Hwy and the pressures on all tyres rose to 42psi, which means I must be using the right pressure if you believe the 4psi rule.
I have noticed that when I stop for a while the temperature in the right rear tyre goes up about 5 deg. Maybe the wheel bearing on that wheel is on the way out.


http://www.exatek.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2&products_id=5
http://www.aawen4x4.com.au/

Readings after driving for about 30 minutes Sunday afternoon. These photos were taken after I’d been stopped for about 15 minutes while I went and found my camera.

Right Front
355688

Left Front
355686

Right Rear
355689

Left Rear
355687


I have yet to fit the sensors to my van wheels, but I see no reason as to why they will not work.
(http://www.exatek.com.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2&products_id=5)

[dai sensei]

Hmm, what made you chose that one? I must admit I prefer to seeing all the pressures at once rather than flipping between.

So how often are you checking the tyre pressures as you travel. You could get addicted and spend all your time flipping between :U

[Grumpy John]

Too many numbers on the screen at once would confuse me.
if you go for one that displays all pressures simultaneously plus tyre temp you'll be confused as hell.
You have 6 tyres on the tug plus 2 on the trailer and if you monitor the airbags that will be 10 sets of pressures and 10 sets of temps displayed at the same time. It would do my head in.

edit, not sure if you realised it, but the screen scrolls through all the sensors automatically. 5 seconds on each wheel.

[dai sensei]

I was only thinking pressure not temp. I didn't realise it scrolled through, that is certainly better, but considering the 3 other cameras etc I have it means I might end up looking at them all the time and not the road :rolleyes:.

It's hard enough when you are already using one eye to constantly look for burls whilst driving :U