2015 R1200RT Low air pressure warning on dash

[reg26]

Took a ride this afternoon and the low pressure warning came on for the rear tire. I turned around to come home and the pressure in the rear tire was 42 PSI and all of a sudden the warning light went out. Any Ideas as to what would have caused this?  I have had two rear flats in the past and the light came on giving me a great warning this time it was a false warning that went out after a short time 

[Oldrider51]

How cold was it when you left for the ride? Could be just a temperature related fall in the pressure until you had ridden far enough to warm it slightly to get the pressure up. 

[dirtrider]

15 minutes ago, reg26 said:

Took a ride this afternoon and the low pressure warning came on for the rear tire. I turned around to come home and the pressure in the rear tire was 42 PSI and all of a sudden the warning light went out. Any Ideas as to what would have caused this?  I have had two rear flats in the past and the light came on giving me a great warning this time it was a false warning that went out after a short time 

Evening Reg26

 

Your tire pressure readings are temperature compensated so it either has to be REAL cold or your tire needs to be low.

 

See if the warning comes on again (might have just been  rouge signal interference) ,if it does come on again then swing by your BMW dealer & have them use their hand-held tire pressure sensor tester to wake-up your rear sensor & see what the battery output level is.   

[Frank Brown]

Could be the battery going bad????

 

[Cap]

With tongue only half in cheek, you could try changing the CR123 batteries in your theft alarm module. 

[reg26]

I'm thinking the battery might be going bad. I rode the bike yesterday and all was fine. There is no way a drop in temperature could have caused this. I was a full on warning just like when you get a real flat. Then just went away after a few minutes 

[realshelby]

I have had my tire warning light come on....first was in LA traffic and I was in a panic to get off to the side of the road. For no reason, it was fully inflated. Happened two other times. Cannot say it was ALL the battery, but it has not done that since changing the battery in the wheel unit. 

[AndyS]

Yes, it happens on mine too.

I have given up on reliable readings from that system!

[Paul De]

I have the same vintage Waterhead and still on the original TPMS modules in the wheels.  While I haven't had the low pressure warning you recieved I have gotten the dashed line no signal  from time to time this last year.  I wonder if as the batteries fades the lower voltage causes funky communication with the onboard receiver. Next tire change I'll update those modules.

 

 

[Paul De]

Never did take the pressure reading as gospel, but to monitor a significant change while riding. So, if mine goes to throwing errant LP warnings, I will go old school on monitoring tires (good visual check every time I mount up) and switch to monitoring temperature until I replace the wheel modules.

[reg26]

When I get new tires mounted I will have the battery's replaced. I do like the fact that the two times I did get real flats that the bike gave me a warning and I pulled of the road right away. I feel it's a good safety feature 

[alegerlotz]

Was it "low pressure" or that the TPMS unit was not reporting any pressure at all?  I suspect it was the latter, and that's what one of my sensors started doing when it was on the way out.  I did this on and off for a couple of months before I got new tires and replaced that sensor.

 

I kept the old sensor so I can replace the battery (you can see how to do it on you tube) when the other sensor fails.  Since I have 3 of them now, I can rotate them as I replace batteries in the future.  I can then use my GS-911 to program the ones that are in the bike to the correct locations.

[realshelby]

Many times ( and still do ) will get the "dashed line" meaning there is no signal. I pay no attention to that. 

 

The RED warning light comes on when it sends a signal of dangerously low tire pressure. I have seen that about 3 times so far, and each time tire was properly inflated. 

[reg26]

57 minutes ago, alegerlotz said:

Was it "low pressure" or that the TPMS unit was not reporting any pressure at all?  I suspect it was the latter, and that's what one of my sensors started doing when it was on the way out.  I did this on and off for a couple of months before I got new tires and replaced that sensor.

 

I kept the old sensor so I can replace the battery (you can see how to do it on you tube) when the other sensor fails.  Since I have 3 of them now, I can rotate them as I replace batteries in the future.  I can then use my GS-911 to program the ones that are in the bike to the correct locations.

It was definitely a low pressure warning. Bright yellow triangle and red light on rear tire. I've had it twice before Like I said so I know what it means. Strange how it disappeared as I decided to ride home after pulling of the the side of the road. 

[reg26]

17 minutes ago, realshelby said:

Many times ( and still do ) will get the "dashed line" meaning there is no signal. I pay no attention to that. 

 

The RED warning light comes on when it sends a signal of dangerously low tire pressure. I have seen that about 3 times so far, and each time tire was properly inflated. 

Well I guess this is my first time LOL. I will let you guys know after todays ride. Thanks for all the help!

 

[Skywagon]

I’m still on original on my 14. Never a blip. It’s the screen I keep up on the dash all the time. It varies a little from my gauge due to temperature compensation. So far so good

[alegerlotz]

2 hours ago, reg26 said:

It was definitely a low pressure warning. Bright yellow triangle and red light on rear tire. I've had it twice before Like I said so I know what it means. Strange how it disappeared as I decided to ride home after pulling of the the side of the road. 

 

That is the same warning I got when my TPMS sensor was failing.  The pressure shown was -- rather than a number.  

 

If the pressure is low, it should still show a number.  If its --, there is either no pressure at all in the tire, or the TPMS sensor is not being recieved.

[Cap]

4 hours ago, reg26 said:

When I get new tires mounted I will have the battery's replaced. 

 

Most of us will buy a new TPMS unit, for which the batteries are not considered to be a user-replaceable item.  However, if you dig around on the forum, you will find a thread showing how to replace them yourself with some effort.  I am pretty sure that your tire dealer won't replace the batteries in your TPMS... and a non-BMW dealer will be unlikely to have the right TPMS part in stock for you.

[Paul De]

Ugh! My 2015 RT rear TPMS just started to throw the same warning reg26 reported.  Previously I had experienced the double dash display.  It makes sense with both our bikes being 2015's the TPMS batteries would be going dead at about the same time.   Well, we are almost into Farkle season here so I will address then.  Not sure if I am going to try the batteryectomy on the OEM units, or find a suitable 3rd party replacement TPMS unit.

[alexp]

In my bike the TPMS went blank --- for the front and than the back.  Sometimes one worked ok.  After I changed the two CR123 located inside the alarm box, all the problems went away and never had any issues after that. 

[Bernie]

19 hours ago, alexp said:

In my bike the TPMS went blank --- for the front and than the back.  Sometimes one worked ok.  After I changed the two CR123 located inside the alarm box, all the problems went away and never had any issues after that. 

I tried that, changing the CR123 batteries in the alarm box. It did not fix the TPMS on my 2018 R1200RT.

So I believe it is pure luck on your part or unique to your 2015 RT.

Waiting for new TPMS units to replace my sensors, since my dealer refuses to file a aftermarket warranty claim, unless the units are completely dead.

It is cheaper for me to replace the sensors, then to pay the dealer to do a diagnostic test to determine the units are faulty (weak batteries).

PS: slightly used CR123 batteries available for shipping charges. LOL

[alexp]

I guess in your case you really need new sensors.  Don't get the aftermarket ones.  I heard horrible stories on them. 

[simskid]

I have a 16 RT -35,000 miles.  The front sensor started to blank out intermittently.  Needed new tires so I replaced both front and rear sensors with the tires.  Bought the sensors from MAX BMW.

 Did the tires and sensors myself so I saved a ton in labor.  The new sensors were picked up right away by the bike.  If anyone wants the old sensors let me know by PM ( There may be someone that wants to try to replace the batteries in the old sensors). 

 

 

John

 

[reg26]

10 hours ago, simskid said:

I have a 16 RT -35,000 miles.  The front sensor started to blank out intermittently.  Needed new tires so I replaced both front and rear sensors with the tires.  Bought the sensors from MAX BMW.

 Did the tires and sensors myself so I saved a ton in labor.  The new sensors were picked up right away by the bike.  If anyone wants the old sensors let me know by PM ( There may be someone that wants to try to replace the batteries in the old sensors). 

 

 

John

 

 John how much did the new factory sensors cost?

[simskid]

About 170 bucks per.  

[simskid]

MAX had and still has 15 % off.  I know they're expensive but I just didn't want the hassle of trying to replace the batteries or play with an after market sensor.  Just me.  

[reg26]

Thanks. Yes I'm a customer of theirs and was thinking of buying a pair for when mine finally go . I wonder if the battery's are not activated until the install otherwise it would be foolish to purchase now. Who knows I could still get another season or two out of my originals.

[dirtrider]

11 minutes ago, reg26 said:

Thanks. Yes I'm a customer of theirs and was thinking of buying a pair for when mine finally go . I wonder if the battery's are not activated until the install otherwise it would be foolish to purchase now. Who knows I could still get another season or two out of my originals.

Morning reg26

 

The battery's would have to be activated at time of manufacturing  as they are potted inside a fully enclosed housing.

 

But, they remain pretty dormant until the sensors are either woken up by wheel rotational movement or by a sensor tester.  

[strataj]

10 minutes ago, reg26 said:

Thanks. Yes I'm a customer of theirs and was thinking of buying a pair for when mine finally go . I wonder if the battery's are not activated until the install otherwise it would be foolish to purchase now. Who knows I could still get another season or two out of my originals.

 

After a couple of sets of after market sensors I too went with the OEM, yes they are very expensive even with a nice discount.  The batteries aren't in use so no real power drain but like the ones  you have stored they have a self life.  If I didn't think I needed them within a year I'd wait to purchase. 

[reg26]

Yea , that's what I'm thinking too

[lather]

I am finding this  trhead quite interesting. I have a 2013 RT which I bought in June and the sensors have always worked flawlessly. I wonder if I am just lucky or BMW changed sensors on the 2014+. I also have a 2008 Kawasaki Concours 14  which was one of the first bikes to come with tire pressure monitors. The Connie monitors have always been a major gripe on the Connie forum and we have learned to solder in new 2032 batteries. Actually the 2032 batteries will last 5 years but the display will start showing a low battery warning in cold weather after the batteries are about 18 months old. After a few minutes the warning goes away.  I learned that this was due to the Lithium battery passivation and I suspect this could be a factor in the complaints mentioned in this thread. https://s24.q4cdn.com/142631039/files/doc_presentations/Passivation-of-Primary-Lithium-Cells.pdf

[simskid]

The folks at MAX told me that they start going kaput at 4 -5 years,  Mine (2016 RT-35K) began to fail late  in the fourth year.   

[Skywagon]

My 14 must have eveready batteries cuz it just keeps on going...

[strataj]

I know how you feel Skywagon.  My 14  as well has eaten batteries.  Some of which could be the 2 sets of knock offs I tried.  One of them lasted about a week.  My original set went, then 2 sets of Chinese knock offs.  I have a set of BMW OEM's now and hope they last longer.  It's a good thing I have tire changing equipment and a GS911 and time to mess with this BS.