Tire Pressure Monitor Has Come On

[valeman]

Hi,

I have a Lexus ES350, bought back in Feb 2007. I have never had to add air to the tires and the car has been serviced twice, the prior visit to the dealer was in Jan 2008. Since last week, the TPM light has come on (and stays on) as I turn the car on. I checked the pressure - it is 34-35 PSI on all 4 wheels (the normal recommended is 30 PSI).

Would appreciate a response:

Should I be bringing the pressure down on all 4 tires down to 30PSI?

Should I take the car to the dealer?

Thanks.

[mhawkin1]

I had some issues with my tire pressure gauge in the winter. I had the dealership fill the tires with nitrogen and the light hasn’t come on since.

[LVL61]

Check the spare tire.

[ZEF]

I own a 2007 ES350 and had the Tire Pressure Warning System light come on as outside temperature ahs dropped due to cold weather. I checked all pressure levels in all tires and then re-initialized the TPWS system. The buttom to do this on a 2007 ES350 is slightly out of site under the driver's side of the dash just past the Air Bag System panel. I followed the instructions in the owner's manual and the system was reset easily.

[BrianP]

Definitely check the spare. This happened to me a while back and the problem was the spare. The monitor checks all FIVE tires.

[poncherello]

I own a 2007 ES350 and had the Tire Pressure Warning System light come on as outside temperature ahs dropped due to cold weather. I checked all pressure levels in all tires and then re-initialized the TPWS system. The buttom to do this on a 2007 ES350 is slightly out of site under the driver's side of the dash just past the Air Bag System panel. I followed the instructions in the owner's manual and the system was reset easily.

I had the same issue with my 07 ES350 and reset the system using that button. There are two buttons under there. The one on the right turns off the ABS and the one on the left resets the TPM. I held the button in and the warning light blinked three times and then went out. I then released the button, turned the car off and then restarted it and the light stayed off.

[SteveP]

I had the problem and it was the spare.

[a/m]

why would one want to turn off the ABS???

[valeman]

Thanks for your helpful replies and suggestions. Per some of them, I checked the spare and it is well inflated. So I reset the system and so far it has stayed off. It very well could be due to temps dropping, so lets see how it holds up.

To A/M - I dont think anyone is suggesting that the ABS be shut off, the poster was pointing the location of the TPM reset switch which happens to be right next to ABS button (below the steering wheel).

Appreciate your responses.

[Billglea]

Thanks for your helpful replies and suggestions. Per some of them, I checked the spare and it is well inflated. So I reset the system and so far it has stayed off. It very well could be due to temps dropping, so lets see how it holds up.

To A/M - I dont think anyone is suggesting that the ABS be shut off, the poster was pointing the location of the TPM reset switch which happens to be right next to ABS button (below the steering wheel).

Appreciate your responses.

My tire pressure light came on this weekend, just as the temperatures went into the 30's.

Is this something to be expected every winter?

[N.C.O.]

My tire pressure light came on this weekend, just as the temperatures went into the 30's.

Is this something to be expected every winter?

To compensate for the cold temperature, first set the tire pressure to the recommended pressure on all five tires, then initialize the system, after that add a few more psi to the tires.

It is actually recommend that the TPMS be initialized every time tire pressure is changed.

N.C.O.

[Robi]

It was especially usefull to read comments on this subject. I did not read the manual about the warning light and as the one year inspection was coming up just after I changed for snow wheels (original supply with the purchase of the car) I asked the dealership to take care of the light. Guess what; insted of explaining where the button is hidden, they charged us $50 for the reset.

[SouthBayAce]

I had the problem and it was the spare.

I have a 2008 ES350 and just had this happen. The weather has been cooler here in Los Angeles, but will go check the spare.

Thanks all. I will try that.

[bigwong]

why would one want to turn off the ABS???

No one mentioned turning off the abs. There are two push buttons down there, one is to reset the TPMS, the other is to shut off the headlight turning mechanism.

[cfo]

I was told by a service advisor not to reset the tire pressure monitor unless I had checked all tires including the spare. When you reset the monitor it uses the lowest pressure of the 5 tires as its new reference pressure.

[truckerr]

Shouldn't a luxury car like Lexus tell which tire is low? Even Chevy does this.

[GDixon]

Shouldn't a luxury car like Lexus tell which tire is low? Even Chevy does this.

What about when the tires are rotated? Does the sensor then sense the distance from the sensor to the tire to decide which tire is low? How about the spare which is usually between the two rear tires? It would seem that the sensor would have to be able to sense radio waves within a couple of inches if the sending unit is inside the tire.

[jbeidl]

Shouldn't a luxury car like Lexus tell which tire is low? Even Chevy does this.

What about when the tires are rotated? Does the sensor then sense the distance from the sensor to the tire to decide which tire is low? How about the spare which is usually between the two rear tires? It would seem that the sensor would have to be able to sense radio waves within a couple of inches if the sending unit is inside the tire.

Yes, I agree. I have a Corvette and a Silverado (my cars) in addition to my wife's Lexus and they both read out the pressure by location. I complained about this on our first service visit and I was told that only the LS series does this.

The receiver for the Lexus is in under the headliner just in front of the rear window.

On the Chevy's, if you rotate tires you must train the TPS system as to where each tire is located otherwise the Drivers Information Console will display the wrong location.

John

[Clift]

Someone rear ended me a few days ago but the damage to the bumper only seems to be esthetic (chipped paint and scratches). The tire light however has now come on. It was on constantly for 2 days and turned itself off after going to the collision reporting centre (no work at all was done there at all). Could the sensor be damaged at all by that sort of impact?

Although there appears to be minimal damage, there was quite a loud smack and both myself and the passenger were jerked forward a lot.

Thanks for your help and any advice is welcome.

[jbeidl]

If you have the full size spare tire, make sure it was not damaged. It also has a sensor that can trigger the warning light.

John

[Clift]

Thanks for the advice John. I'll check it out and see if that's the issue.

[rob_es350]

Shouldn't a luxury car like Lexus tell which tire is low? Even Chevy does this.

YES. Very frustrating..should be able to see the pressure in all tires on display!!