Tip #22: The tire pressure light is a warning to check, not proof of a flat
The tire pressure monitoring light means one or more tires is below the threshold set for your car. On a cold New Jersey morning that is often just low pressure. Check all four with a gauge before deciding whether you have a flat.
Tip #22 in one line
The tire pressure monitoring light means one or more tires is below the threshold set for your car. On a cold New Jersey morning that is often just low pressure. Check all four with a gauge before deciding whether you have a flat.
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Call nowWhat the light is telling you
The TPMS warning comes on when a tire falls a set amount below its recommended pressure. It does not wait for a tire to be flat. That makes it useful, but it also means a light on a cold morning can simply be the temperature drop described in Tip #2.
On many vehicles, a light that flashes for a minute or so and then stays on points to a fault in the monitoring system itself rather than low pressure. The owner's manual explains what your car's lights mean.
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Call nowHow to tell which it is
Find a safe place to stop, look at all four tires, and check them with a gauge. Compare the readings with the pressure on the driver's door jamb sticker.
If every tire is a few pounds low, it is likely the cold. Add air to the correct pressure at a station or with a portable inflator, and the light should go out after some driving.
After you correct the pressure, some cars need you to drive for a few minutes before the light resets, and some have a reset procedure listed in the owner's manual. If you have rotated or replaced tires recently, the system may need to be relearned by the shop. If the light stays on after every tire is at the correct pressure, have the system checked.
If one tire is much lower than the others, or keeps dropping after you fill it, it has a leak. Look for a nail or screw in the tread. A slow leak needs a tire shop soon.
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Call nowSigns of a real flat
The car pulls to one side, the steering feels heavy or vague, you hear flapping or thumping, or the tire is visibly sitting on its rim. Do not keep driving; see Tip #13.
If you have run-flat tires, you may not feel a thing, so the light is your only warning. Follow Tip #17.
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Call nowGetting it handled
If the tire is flat or will not hold air, a flat tire change installs your spare with the truck shielding the scene, and if the spare is unusable, a tow to the tire shop is quoted on the same call to (908) 444-0129. More answers are in towing questions.
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Call nowMore on tires
Keep reading, or go back to every post on the blog.
- Flat tire on a New Jersey highway: what to do
- Tip #2: Cold weather lowers your tire pressure overnight
- Tip #13: Driving on a flat ruins the tire and the wheel within a short distance
- Tip #14: Find your spare, jack and wheel-lock key before you need them
- Tip #17: Run-flat tires buy you limited miles at limited speed, not a free pass
- Tip #86: Rotate your tires on the schedule in your owner's manual
- Tip #92: Check the spare tire's pressure, because a flat spare is no spare
- What to do when your car breaks down in New Jersey
- All posts
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