Correct me if I'm wrong, please...

[Jackie]

...and this post isn't very technical, but I don't want to "assume" service that should not be expected.

I brought my Jeep into a Jeep dealership for an oil change and tire rotation last Friday. A day or two prior to that, I noticed that my "low tire pressure" warning light was coming on intermittently - but I didn't worry about it because I knew I had an appointment to bring it in for service.

After waiting 80 minutes at the shop, I walked out into the service area/garage to ask what the hold-up was and saw my Jeep sitting at the door ready to go. (Why didn't anyone tell me it was done???).

Now - just a week later - my "low tire pressure" warning light is on again, but this time it's on full-time. I checked the tire pressure tonight and every single tire including the spare is way low. Right around 30 and I usually run them at around 37 - 40.

I can fill the damn tires myself, but shouldn't that have been a part of the tire rotation service??? Now I wonder if they rotated the tires at all. I had just washed the Jeep, so break dust evidence is not to be had on any of the tires including the spare. So I have no idea if the services were actually performed or if my Jeep just sat there in the garage. The paperwork has all the boxes checked for completed and fine.

[mattzj98]

Those damn sensors always light up when it gets cold outside.. you can fill the tires up and the computer should reset automatically after taking it to a certain speed or driving a certain distance

[Popsgarage]

You would think so, Jackie. But if the light did not come on while it was in the bay, they might have assumed it was fine.

[MelloYello]

Agreed. But, I would you expect them check the pressure on a rotation with or without a dummy light telling them too. Maybe that is too much to ask.
That stinks Jackie. I guess it is ALWAYS better to check it yourself.

[Jackie]

I don't have a problem putting air in the tires, but I am not physically capable of rotating them myself. I doubt I could get the spare off the back without breaking my foot (and/or my back). I thought an oil change alone included at least checking the tire pressure even if the tires weren't being rotated. I'm questioning the service altogether...

The Jeep is running fine other than I obviously need to put more air in the tires, but I think that was shoddy work to let it go out the door like that.

[Mporter]

I don't know what psi the light is supposed to trip at, but with gas laws as temperature decreases, pressure decreases (woo college education!) and like Matt said, they will go off when it's cold because the pressure has gone down a little.

[Chris]

I thought the light was supposed to be on, mine surprises me when it's not! :lmao:

[Rob]

I thought the light was supposed to be on, mine surprises me when it's not!

:lmao: Might used to stay on when I had the BFGs on, but went off when I put the stockers, with the TPMS on them, back on. Now the light's always on. I just ignore it. I do, however, check my tire pressure at least once a week.

[Pathrat]

I find they pay attention more when I tell them what pressure to set my tires at. Plus, I stand there and watch the show.

[Jackie]

I stand there and watch the show.
I wish I would have done that. It probably wouldn't have taken them 80 minutes to do the job if I was standing there tapping my foot!

Seriously, my biggest issue is I have no way of knowing if the tires were acually rotated or not. Did they really do an oil change???

In the past, someone has always had to come in and ask me where I keep the key to the locking lug nut, ...not this time.

Whatever. They have less than 17K on them and have been rotated several times. I'm sure it's not the end of the world either way! (I just hate to pay for a service or product that is less than expected).

And they sent me an email to complete a customer satisfaction survey. I deleted it.

[glacierpaul]

TPMS, another new fangled gadget, that actually causes more problems than it saves.

[mattzj98]

My nissan 350Z had a problem wiht the tpms all the time, I finally started to ignore it.. a few months later my dealer said one of the tires were low and my frame wasn't straight because of the drag of that one tire.. (wtf?)

[Brody]

Now - just a week later - my "low tire pressure" warning light is on again, but this time it's on full-time. I checked the tire pressure tonight and every single tire including the spare is way low. Right around 30 and I usually run them at around 37 - 40.

I can fill the damn tires myself, but shouldn't that have been a part of the tire rotation service??? Now I wonder if they rotated the tires at all. I had just washed the Jeep, so break dust evidence is not to be had on any of the tires including the spare. So I have no idea if the services were actually performed or if my Jeep just sat there in the garage. The paperwork has all the boxes checked for completed and fine.

Well, as for the tire pressure sensor, what most of the people posted is what you should do: pretty much ignore it. And do what Stephanie suggested: Tell them what tire pressure to run.Period.

For the tire pressure, and it depends on the tires, 37-40 pounds sounds like a lot for a Jeep. This isn't a heavy vehicle as vehicles go. There are a couple of things to do to double check this.
If it is uniformly dry on the streets, chalk a line across the tires...or paint one. Drive a couple of blocks. Re check the line. It is is worn off in the center, you are overinflated. If it is worn off on the sides, you are under inflated. You can also get a tire depth gauge at Auto Zone or some place like that and simply measure the tread depth on the outside and center of the tire. Overinflation is going to show up as the tread being more worn in the center of the tire, underinflation is going to show more tire wear on the outsides of the tires.

On the rotation/tire pressure, I would have expected the tires to have been checked.

If the tires are really new and have been wearing evenly, then there isn't too much of a way to tell if they have been rotated, especially if everything is nice and clean. When I have had to have my tires rotated by someone else for whatever reason (usually because it is a freebie and I don't have to do it), I make a mark on the inside of the tire or wheel to tell if they actually did it or not.

If they did an actual oil change, then they should have changed the filter and looking at the the filter, you should be able to tell if it is brand new or not. You should also be able to pull the oil dipstick and check the oil. If it is pretty damn clean (not dark), then they probably changed the oil.

Holler at me the next time you want this stuff done. I actually make a point to do this stuff right....Of course, if this is part of a dealer warranty/maintenance, then the dealer should do this to keep the warranty in place. Just cover your ass by making a few little marks here and there that you can reference...

[otisdog]

When they have done service on my Honda car they always set the tire pressure at 32PSI. Then of course when the weather gets cold all of a sudden it drops the pressure enough to set off that stupid thing. I end up running the tires at 34PSI and that solves the problem.
I do all the rotation, oil changes etc on my Jeep. It doesn't have the sensors and my BFG's run best at 28PSI.
Jim

[Jackie]

The sticker inside my door frame recommends 37 psi with a max of 50. Friends on the Jeep Forum with the same Jeep as me suggested I keep it between 37 and 40. At 40, the ride is rough. At 37 I get pretty good gas mileage for a Jeep (usually 18-20 mpg). Right now Im getting 12.8 mpg. Time to air up!

[Brody]

You could, of course, do the Hunter Thompson approach and air them up to 140psi. You will get good gas mileage, but the ride will be a bit rougher.:lmao::lmao:

I run my 38s at around 28-32. The wear is even. I don't check to see what the gas mileage is doing as the tires cost over $300 each. I would rather get the most wear from the tires than better gas mileage. I believe that the sidewalls say 50-60 pound psi max. I am sure that if I ran 60 psi, the mileage would increase. So would the tire wear. And my rig would wander all over the place. I have them mounted at Discount tire. When I drive the rig home, I immediately deflate the tires from the 50-55psi they pumped in down to what works for me and my rig as it sits. I will also, if I have had different tires mounted, draw a mark across the tires and check to see what the "new" tires are happy at.

Tire pressure is different for every vehicle on the road. There aren't too many ways to see what is perfect for your particular vehicle other than what I mentioned. Front tire pressure will sometimes be a lot different than the rear pressure due to the weight of the engine. It usually weighs more than the rear mounted gas tank, which is the only "real" weight in the back of most vehicles..

If you want to, you can stop by tomorrow sometime and I will look to see if I can tell you if they did actually rotate the tires and/or change the oil and filter. No problem and happy to help. Most dealers are pretty honest when it comes to this stuff, places like "We be brakes and ****" are sketchy and will sometimes simply throw a mark on the oil drain plug with a paint marker, so that it "looks" like they changed the oil...

[upnover]

WOW, Way to high on the tire pressure, 30-32psi on most any truck. MAX is 40psi on most jeep tires.


I bet your jeep ride a little rough! Take you jeep to Brody!!!!ASAP.:wrench:

[mattzj98]

30 is where my jeep likes it as well

[Chris]

36-40 on my truck ;)

[Jackie]

WOW, Way to high on the tire pressure, 30-32psi on most any truck. MAX is 40psi on most jeep tires.


I bet your jeep ride a little rough! Take you jeep to Brody!!!!ASAP.

Which is why I'm comfortable with 37. Not a rough ride, and better gas mileage. My Jeep rarely sees highway driving, so it's just around-town-grocery-getter stuff unless I'm going to run a trail for the most part.

Brody has already done a bunch to my Jeep: side steps, bumper and winch. I'm sure he would have said something if he thought it was messed up!:lmao:

I always check the pressure after bringing it in for service and I have to deflate them a bit. The dealer usually sets them at 40. (This time they didn't even check them).:erm:

[gm4x4lover]

WOW, Way to high on the tire pressure, 30-32psi on most any truck. MAX is 40psi on most jeep tires.




Not true factory pressure is 35psi. Most dealers will bump pressure 2lbs to help keep the tpms light off. Alot of the 4 door wranglers with some after market mods push the 6,000-7,000 lbs range :what:. I think with stock sized tires that would be perfectly fine. Now the larger the tire and the more volume the less psi needed.

[Jackie]

I bought mine new from the factory with 8 whopping miles on it. The tires were inflated to 50 psi. Friends convinced me to air it down and they were right.