Winter Tires and TPMS, Know the Law 10/11/10
Hi Kevin: 10/14/10
Thank you for emailing us the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) DOT, Final Rule establishing a new Federal motor vehicle safety standard (FMVSS) requiring installation of a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) capable of detecting when one or more of a vehicle’s tires is significantly under-inflated. I spent about 4 ½ hours reading the entire 222 pages of this document so I would hopefully understand what it is saying and meaning.
NETSA believes the answer to the question “Can we install a set of winter tires and steel rims without the TPMS?” is clearly “NO” unless the vehicle they are being installed on is pre TPMS. All vehicles with TPMS should have tire/rim sensors that are operational and functional with that vehicle.
Our Reasons: #1 The TPMS Malfunction Indicator is required to work at all times on vehicles equipped with this TPMS System.
“the final rule requires the TPMS to include a malfunction indicator….that would alert the driver in situations in which the TPMS is unable to detect low tire pressure. This malfunction indicator is required to detect incompatible replacement tires, as well as other system faults.” (see page 10). The “significant real world population of TPMSs suggests that TPMSs will continue to work with replacement tires in the vast majority of cases. (see page 98) “However, to date, it has not been possible to develop an appropriate performance measure that would reliably identify those anomalous tires that would prevent proper TPMS functioning.” (see page 99) Thus “After considering these comments related to TPMS functionality with replacement tires, we have decided to adopt the approach presented in the NPRM to require the TPMS-equipped vehicle to be certified with the tires originally installed on the vehicle at the time of initial vehicle sale. We emphasize that it would not be permissible for dealers to install tires on a new vehicle that would take it out of compliance with the TPMS standard, and to do so would violate the prohibition on manufacturing, selling, and importing noncomplying motor vehicles and equipment in 49 U.S.C. 30112.” (see page 97) “Because no one is certain which tires, either produced now or in the future, will cause various TPMSs to malfunction, it is not practicable to require vehicle manufacturers to certify that the TPMS will continue to function properly with all replacement tires.” (see page 100) “Furthermore, by including a requirement for a TPMS malfunction indicator, we expect that the TPMS will be able to continue to provide low tire pressure warnings even after the vehicle’s original tires are replaced. The TPMS malfunction indicator will also alert the consumer as to when the system is unavailable to detect low tire pressure and is potentially in need of repair. (see page 189) #
#2 A business or tech may not knowingly make inoperative any part of the TPMS System. If they discover they unknowingly caused the system to become inoperative, upon illumination of the TPMS light inside the vehicle etc, they must immediately notify the consumer (owner) to make the system functional. If they knowingly cause the system to be inoperative, they have violated the law i.e. install a tire(s) onto a rim(s) that doesn’t have a TPMS sensor(s) that they reasonably know is going to be installed onto a vehicle with TPMS, or mounting tires/rims onto a vehicle that has TPMS with tires/rims that are substantially of a different size etc than the vehicle came with as O.E., or disabling the MIL, or not replacing a defective sensor(s) etc..
“We also disagree with commenters who suggested that the TPMS MIL should not be required to signal when the vehicle is equipped with alternative or replacement tires that prevent continued proper functioning of the TPMS. That requirement is key to the long-term functionality of the TPMS, and unless such a warning is provided, some drivers may lose the benefits of the system entirely. It is plainly forseeable that most vehicles will outlast their original set of tires, so this requirement is necessary to ensure consumers continue to receive the TPMS’s important information related to low tire pressure.” (see page 66) “We do not believe it is appropriate to permit disablement of the MIL when aftermarket tires and rims are installed on the vehicle that are not compatible with the continued proper functioning of the TPMS.” (Requirement for owner’s manuals on September 1, 2007.) “TPMS malfunctions may occur for a variety of reasons, including the installation of replacement or alternative tires or wheels on the vehicle that prevent the TPMS from functioning properly. Always check the TPMS malfunction indicator after replacing one or more tires or wheels on your vehicle to ensure that the replacement or alternative tires and wheels allow the TPMS to continue to function properly.” (see pages 126 & 127) “We do not believe that the final rule will have a significant impact upon the service industry in terms of aftermarket sales or repair. First, the agency has already stated that we do not consider installation of an aftermarket or replacement tire or rim that is not compatible with the TPMS to be a “make inoperative” situation under 49 U.S.C. 30122, provided that the business entity does not disable the TPMS MIL (see section IV.C.4(a). In such situations, once the TPMS MIL illuminates, the consumer is put on notice that the aftermarket motor vehicle equipment in question is not compatible with the TPMS. From this point, it is within the consumer’s power to substitute other tire or rims that permit continued proper TPMS functionality,” (see page 161) “As noted previously, vehicle manufacturers, tire manufacturers, and other businesses may not know, or reasonably be able to know, exactly which of the many aftermarket or replacement tire and rims would prevent the TPMS from continuing to function properly. There are many tire and rim choices for a given vehicle, and a variety of businesses are involved in tire and rim installation and repair. In such cases, these businesses may only come to know of a problem once the TPMS MIL illuminates, Furthermore, because some TPMSs must be driven for a period of time in order to detect a malfunction, it is quite possible that the consumer would have driven away from such business before the MIL illuminates. After the time of first sale, our primary goal for the TPMS MIL is to provide information and a warning to the consumer in order to ensure long-term operability of the TPMS. In the tire-related situations described above, the TPMS MIL has arguably served its purpose; the consumer has been warned of the compatibility problem, and the consumer and installer are able to work together to resolve the problem. The intention is not to penalize the business for accidentally installing one of a very small number of incompatible tires that are difficult to identify. We note that this result might be different where it can be shown that the installer knew of the incompatibility beforehand or took some other action to disable a functioning TPMS unit.” (see page 104)
Kevin, we believe there is a misinterpretation of this Rule by TIA, and we’ve tried to explain why we feel this way. Hopefully TIA will revisit the entire Rule and let us know your thoughts, so that NETSA & TIA can both have the same understanding of this Rule.
Thanks,
Dick Cole – NETSA Executive Director
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