TPMS on my Tundra not resetting

My 2010 Toyota Tundra threw the TPMS light on yesterday. I stopped and check everything and all four tires were pressured appropriately. So I took a minute and pressure-balanced them all identiclly in case it was a pressure differential thing that was angering the truck. Got back in, hit the reset button... but they won't reset.

I'm assuming this is just bad/dead sensors? AFAIK they've never been replaced, so they could be nearly 15 years old at this point. The truck will need tires in the next six months or so, so I guess I'll put new sensors on as well, but is there something else I should be looking at, too. Like a receiver or a module or something?

I've read in several places, maybe even here, that the receivers go bad. I believe it is up in the back of the headliner.

Likely just dead batteries in one or more of the TPMS sensors in the wheels. They are typically setup to last for 10 years, so at 15 years old, you got your money's worth.

- Sean

So there seems to be two systems.  In some cars the info screen will tell you the psi of each tire.  In my Prius and everything else I own I have the cheap system where the yellow light comes on and you have to guess which one (or ones) is bad via a tire gauge. 

Tire shops seem to have equipment.  

Is it possible to buy a hobiest level tpms reader?

Toyota TPMS are one of my favorite topics!  

Chances are you have a dead sensor.  Get yourself a copy of Techstream and a cable, I recommend the VXDiag VCI Nano, for whatever reason the cheapo depot cables did not play nice with the TPMS computer on my Land Cruiser 200 (but worked fine on my LC100? YMMV).

With Techstream, figure out which sensor is not reporting.  You can see realtime values, so just let air out of the tires as you watch values, when the values change, record which sensor is in which position.

When you find the dead sensor, pull the wheel off, pull the valve stem core out, pop the bead off one side with a floor jack, and shove the bead down past the sensor.  

Remove the nuts and hardware holding the sensor to the rim, pull out the sensor.

Record the actual part number off the sensor, don't trust the interwebs.  The interchange on Toyota TPMS is not always correct if there was a model year split anywhere near the build date of your truck.

Order up a new Denso OEM sensor.

Get the sensor.

TAKE PICTURES OF THE ID OF THE SENSOR.  

Instal the sensor in the wheel, air the wheel back up, reinstall.

Use Techstream to write the new sensor value to the ECU.

Within a few seconds you should see the values reported to the ECU.  I will usually air up to a higher than normal PSI just so I am 100% sure its making coms, then air it down to the recommended value.

There is no programming or initialization required other than maybe having to drive around the block.  No "beep the horn 3 times, stand on your head, turn on the left blinker, listen to an hour of AM radio, cycle the key to the rhythem of La Bamba" that some other cars make you do.  

Direct link to cable here.

https://www.vxdiagshop.com/wholesale/vxdiag-vcx-nano-for-toyota-compatible-with-sae-j2534.html

Or just take it to a tire shop and let them deal with it.  

93gsxturbo said:

Toyota TPMS are one of my favorite topics!  

Chances are you have a dead sensor.  Get yourself a copy of Techstream and a cable, I recommend the VXDiag VCI Nano, for whatever reason the cheapo depot cables did not play nice with the TPMS computer on my Land Cruiser 200 (but worked fine on my LC100? YMMV).

With Techstream, figure out which sensor is not reporting.  You can see realtime values, so just let air out of the tires as you watch values, when the values change, record which sensor is in which position.

When you find the dead sensor, pull the wheel off, pull the valve stem core out, pop the bead off one side with a floor jack, and shove the bead down past the sensor.  

Remove the nuts and hardware holding the sensor to the rim, pull out the sensor.

Record the actual part number off the sensor, don't trust the interwebs.  The interchange on Toyota TPMS is not always correct if there was a model year split anywhere near the build date of your truck.

Order up a new Denso OEM sensor.

Get the sensor.

TAKE PICTURES OF THE ID OF THE SENSOR.  

Instal the sensor in the wheel, air the wheel back up, reinstall.

Use Techstream to write the new sensor value to the ECU.

Within a few seconds you should see the values reported to the ECU.  I will usually air up to a higher than normal PSI just so I am 100% sure its making coms, then air it down to the recommended value.

There is no programming or initialization required other than maybe having to drive around the block.  No "beep the horn 3 times, stand on your head, turn on the left blinker, listen to an hour of AM radio, cycle the key to the rhythem of La Bamba" that some other cars make you do.  

Direct link to cable here.

https://www.vxdiagshop.com/wholesale/vxdiag-vcx-nano-for-toyota-compatible-with-sae-j2534.html

 

Or just take it to a tire shop and let them deal with it.  

I was in until I saw the cable was $90, which is a lot for a single-use tool that's only going to get used once every decade or so. 

Coming from a GM guy who uses a $10 Amazon tool to relearn TPMS sensors when swapping wheels...Toyota's TPMS sensor relearn is nonsense.

I got an XTOOL TP150 from Amazon during Black Friday sales to do this stupidity.
 

Chased this on my Tundra twice.  Turns out the spare was low the first time and the tire shop never reset the pressures after they mounted new tires the second. First step is to validate all 5 tire pressures are in spec.  :)

In reply to JG Pasterjak :

JG, I agree with others that you have gotten the full life out of the sensors (mine gave up on a 2007 Tacoma a few years ago, so same-ish life).

Before you go to the trouble of changing out sensors, and this is important, check the pressure in the spare tire!

The spare on this era is also monitored and will flag a low pressure even though it is not currently touching the ground.

If this dopes not clear the code then you do have a bad sensor (or multiples). Replace with Denso sensors and as noted get a picture of the serial numbers on the replacements. That can help if the sensor reader/reprogrammer at the tire shop/dealer has issues. Change the spare sensor at the same time. They are all on the same battery schedule and they will fail one by one making life hell.

I did the sensor replacements myself since I was mid life on tires and had the dealership recode the sensors during my routine maitenance.

Oooh... spare. Gonna check this the next time I go outside. Nice idea.

Cable is $90...BUT.....You can do all sorts of things with Techstream - its the OEM scan tool so nice to check this, that, or the other thing or make programming adjustments to enable/disable features that you may or may not want - things like DRLs, horn beeps when lock/unlock, lock behavior, etc.

The $90 cable may or may not be needed.  The cheapo depot one worked on my LC100, I needed the good one to work on my LC200.  

Write an article about it and its a business expense.  Boom.