Hi all! I purchased a 2015 Chevy Spark at the end of June. Manual, 66k miles, practically no rust, great shape overall. I have a used car warranty guaranteed by my state (set to expire at the end of August), so the issue I’m describing is a little time-sensitive.
The TPMS light has been coming on and going off intermittently. It comes on after I’ll have driven at highway speeds for at least ~20 minutes, flashes for 60 seconds, then remains on for about another 10-20 minutes. Then it turns off and stays off for maybe another ~20 mins. Wash, rinse, repeat.
I just got my car back from the dealer — they realigned it and checked the brakes at my request, but mostly I was concerned about the TPMS light. Unfortunately, since the light was off when I brought it in, they couldn’t do anything. They say they drove it for a while trying to get it to come on but it didn’t.
***The tires are all at 40 PSI, which they should be for this car
The dealership I bought this car from is actually a BMW dealer, so they recommended I take it to a Chevy dealer/shop that would have Chevy diagnostic tools. That doesn’t sound like it would be covered under my 60 day warranty, though!
What do y’all think is the best way to solve this problem while getting the most value out of my warranty? I’d love your input, and thanks in advance! (And check out this cute little hot-rod of a car!!) image|666x500
I’m betting one or more of the sensors have low batteries and the signal to the TPMS computer is dropping out. Your Owner’s Manual describes it this way-
The flashing is an indication that it’s not a low tire but a malfunction of the system. The most likely reason is one or more sensors have low batteries. They don’t last forever. An advanced diagnostic might be able to extract the battery info or indicate which one is creating the error…
I looked it up on line, and the recommended pressure is 40 psi for front and rear tires. I agree with @TwinTurbo, it may well be a low battery. This might not be covered by warranty since batteries lose their charge over time. You might also have to replace the entire TPMS monitor In each tire to refresh the batteries. I’d wait until I need new tires before fixing this issue if the tires are the originals when new.
Yes I would suspect a low battery in one of the sensors too but the problem is trying to determine which one if it it intermittent. Cost me about $80 each or change them all, or wait until it’s time for new tires. At 60K it might be soon anyway.
I did have a problem with my Acura way back that was never resolved before I traded. I would lose readings when there were people riding in the back seat. Seemed to be an antenna issue since the receiver was in the trunk. The dealer wasn’t too anxious to put people in the back and drive around for a while and I was not that concerned about it to have them do it. It didn’t sound like there were any codes that would be set to help in the diagnosis except to replace the receiver.
