Is it typical for tire pressure to drop significantly after a night of 32 degrees? I haven’t checked the pressure in two months and the indicator light flckered on yesterday after we had our first cold night. All four of my tires were 2 or 3 psi below normal with one exception which was 5 psi below normal. So maybe this one has a slow leak. Would a Fix’a’flat correct that? Thanks.
Your tire pressure drops about 1 PSI per 10 degrees, so 2 to 3 PSI low sounds about like what I’d expect here. You need to be checking your pressures more frequently in fall when temperatures drop.
As for Fix-a-Flat, that’s for emergency roadside repairs only. You don’t even know yet if you have a leak. Fix the pressure and start checking it weekly for a while.
3 Likes
Just inflate them to the recommended pressure and check them more frequently. Do not use fix a flat.
6 Likes
This is normal. things shrink in the cold. do not use fix a flat for a flat tire unless it is your only choice to get it to a tire repair shop.
2 Likes
Fix-A-Flat is not a permanent repair.
So no.
Tester
2 Likes
This same statement was made to Keith back in January . I check my tire pressure once a month . And forget the Fix-a-flat stuff .
2 Likes
I would say it is getting about that time of the year to change the air in the tires summer air out winter air in. 
6 Likes
That lower one may have a leaking valve. Try unscrewing the valve a couple turns, then tighten it back up nice and snug. Then inflate the tire. Pay special attention to that tire, of course, when you next check pressures.
1 Like
Good advice above, probably nothing needs to be done other than asking your shop to re-inflate all 4 tires. The recommended tire pressures are often on a sticker in the door latch area visible when you open the driver’s side door. Those sorts of fix flat products can cause problems for the shop the next time the tire needs to be removed from the rim, and can also cause issues w/ in-tire pressure sensors. Best to avoid except in a situation where there is no other option.
2 Likes
I’ll just add when you put air in, push the valve in for a little puff of air to push out any dirt or water, especially in the winter. Yeah it was cold enough last night to burst my watering wand. I normally don’t pull hoses in until november
3 Likes
After you get your tire pressure to the desired PSI, be sure to reset your tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). Otherwise you might just get some false low pressure readings. If you are not sure how, check your manual or Google the instructions.
Most TPMS work off the ABS system and the sensors send the rotation speed of each wheel to your car’s computer and when it senses a variation of rotation speeds due to different tire pressures, it fires off the warning light. It has no idea of the actual tire pressure.
Now, here is a question for the folks who really know the TPMS. If all tires are systematically lowered the same PSI so there is no variation of rotation speed, would the TMPS ever fire off with a low tire pressure warning?
The same thing happened 2 days ago on my Versa when the temp dropped to 33 degrees. It was expected. The recommended pressure is 33 psi and the TPS warning light comes on at 28 psi. I hadn’t checked the pressure for a couple of months and all tires will lose pressure over time. These are newish Michelin tires but one of the OEM Continental tires used to loose 3 psi per month.
Many reset themselves, check the owner’s manual.
1 Like
It wouldn’t. This cheaper type of system is meant to catch only a leaking tire.
My 2017 Accord EX-L does not by my wife’s 2019 Odyssey EX-L does.
Do you know which TPMS mechanism Keith-Al’s 2013 Nissan Versa uses?
Very likely it’s the “direct” type, which uses an individual TPMS sensor at each wheel. That type works off pressure and does not work off rotational speed of the wheels.
If it’s the “indirect” type, then yes, rotational speed is used to detect a low tire.
Indirect TPMS began making a comeback a few years back.
The Versa has the air pressure sensors in each wheel and it will turn off the light by itself once the tires are filled to over 28 psi.
Versa owner.
1 Like
3 times tpms went off in the Acadia. One was fall and 2 were in summer, 1 rear tire then the other rear tire a week later. I must have the battery sensor as the light went off before driving. The mysteries of life!
Even worse if in a cold pool 
2 Likes
You have been told to not use fix-a-flat. I will tell you why you should not use fix-a-flat. It is mainly a heavy latex paint, like the spray-a-seal cans. It contains a lot of water. If can be a permanent fix, in that it will seal a small leak in a tire for the life of the tire, BUT, and this is a really big BUT, the moisture inside the tire will cause the rubber to break down sooner and it won’t do any favors to exposed alloy or steel in the wheel. It will be a race between the wheel cracking from corrosion or the tire rotting from the inside out for your next failure.
Edit: personal experience on this one. You can use fix-a-flat for an emergency but get the tire dismounted and dried out as soon as possible.
3 Likes