Citroen tyre deflation detection

steady__eddie

My mate has a C5 (58 plate), 12 months ago his gransdon bought him a set of personalised dust caps which he fitted. A couple of days ago he decided, for whatever reason, to take off the dust caps. Unfortunately they would not budge, he soaked them with WD40 and after a few hours he used a couple of pairs of mole grips but still no joy. I assume that the caps and the valves being of two different metals, had corroded and due to electrolitic action had fused together (or something like that). Anyway, thinking that it might be handy to be able to connect a pump to the tyre at some point in the future, he took it to a dealership and explained the problem. French technology has the answer but it's going to cost him £95 PER TYRE.
Apparently he cannot just pop along to the local tyre place and have new valves fitted because the sensor will activate a message on the instrument panel screen and more annoyingly, a beep which sounds which apparently has been specifically designed to affect the drivers sanity after a couple of miles.
Is anyone aware of a fix which is marginally cheaper than £380 ? (Deactivation of tyre deflation detection maybe ?)

Red_Cat

What would happen if he took the car to the tyre place, disconnected the battery (killing the ECU - assuming no battery backed RAM), jacked the car up and changed the valves?
Then jacked the car down, reconnected the battery and hence ECU? Whilst the ECU was out it would not detect anything via the sensors.

Just be careful to follow the users manual in terms of what to do for a dead battery. It might be finickity about things like radio code etc.

anewman

I presume the sensors are in the valves then? Sounds like the dealer is trying to scare them into getting it done at the dealers. Maybe an independent French car specialist could sort out the pressure sensors cheaper.

Sandoval

The joys of unnecessary technology...

Strider590

Get the "feature" disabled, go a different dealer though and don't tell them why you want it doing, else they'll try to con you out of the £95 a tyre too.

anewman

Sandoval wrote: »

The joys of unnecessary technology...

Or worse the joys of pretty looking aluminium valve caps sold everywhere without warning that they bi-metallic corrosion will occur seizing them to your valves unless you put grease on the threads. Something should be done about it really - as shown in this post the consequences far outstrip the original couple of quid the valve caps cost.

steady__eddie

"I presume the sensors are in the valves then?"

Not sure about this, in the hanbook there is a warning which states, "Any repair or replacement of a tyre on a wheel that is equipped with a sensor must be carried out by a CITROEN dealer"

In the practical advise section, it gives precise instructions as to how the owner should change a wheel. Right at the end it states, "Wheel equipped with delation detection sensor. Such wheels have tyre pressure sensors. It is essential to have repairs carried out by a Citroen dealer."

From this I would presume that the sensor is in the wheel.

"The joys of unnecessary technology... "

Never a truer word.

Pew_Pew_Pew_Lasers!

I wouldn't be surprised if the ECU could be reprogrammed, and whatever "switch" is there in the software to detect these sensors, can be turned off.

I hate cars that beep at me.

Kilty_2

I know that on Renaults there is a sensor in the wheel and also in the valve - new valves need programming to the system by a stealer.

I'd definitely try to find an independent specialist who will turn the feature off.

epninety

The caps aren't hard to remove (at least the ones I did weren't), it's just boring and fiddly. File or dremel one side of the cap right down until it's just touching the valve container thread.
Then cut a slot in the top to weaken it and a nut splitter will spread it easily enough.

Chances are just filing the side down to just touch the threads will allow the WD40 to get in there.

sassy_one

My car doesn't have this and to be honest, I doubt I really would want it.

I always check my car tyres every week or every 500 miles, whichever is sooner.

This device has holes i9n it, just as has been shown in this thread

Thumbs down from me