Summary
The TireGard wireless TPMS, or Tire Pressure Monitoring
System is easy to use, light weight and accurate, but
expensive.
Background
A tire pressure monitoring system -- specifically a
wireless TPMS -- has been
on my radar screen for some time.
And now that I think about it, is there such a thing as
a "wired" TPMS? Possibly, but wireless is the only
way to go.
But anyway, the only systems I've seen must be mounted on the
motorcycle wheel rim under the tire. So, I kept thinking
that I'd mount a system
next time the bike was up for a new set of skins.
But I just never got around to it, and besides, the
TPMS unit I was looking at did not seem very
accurate anyway.
So along comes the TireGard Wireless TPMS, which
piqued my interest.
The kit consists of two replacement valve caps with
their own tire pressure monitoring system and a (bonus) tire
temperature monitoring system, plus some kind of
wireless broadcasting system.
Ah -- the wonders of modern technology and electronic
miniaturization! The valve caps register the
pressure and temperatures and send them to a hand-held
monitor in real time.
But, being a natural skeptic (some say a crank), I
just didn't believe this would all work as advertised.
If the other brands of tire pressure monitoring systems
need a heavy sending unit attached to the wheel rim
inside the tire and a big handlebar readout, how could
this little system work?
Well, surprise surprise, it does. I can't
comment on longevity, because I've only used it for
about 3 weeks so far, but I was definitely surprised the
first time I screwed on the valve caps and got an
instant tire pressure reading. Not only that, it's
pretty darn accurate too -- so far within about
± 1.5%. That's about ±
0.5 PSI in a 35 PSI tire, well within my personal
tolerance level.
TireGard Wireless TPMS I've always made a habit of checking the tire
pressures before a ride as part of my pre-ride
check-over. On some motorcycles, this can be a bit
of a pain, depending on the accessibility of the valve
stem. I also usually try to do it before I suit
up, because it's easier to bend down and it's also much
easier to work the air pump if necessary when I'm in my
street clothes, rather than all suited up in leathers.
The TireGard system makes it easy; it consists of the
two valve caps, which seem pretty solid and are made
from brass, plastic and some other metals and which
carry the TPMS and battery under a plastic screw-on top,
which also has an O-ring to keep out the water.
The valve caps are labeled "1" and "2", rather than
"F" and "R" for some reason. They weigh 10 grams
each, which seems like a lot for a wheel/tire assembly,
but I actually haven't noticed any balance problems at
all.
The kit came with two CR1632 Swiss Renata 3V watch
batteries to power the valve cap sending units and a
no-name AAA battery for the monitor. Sliding the
watch batteries into the valve caps was a breeze;
inserting the AAA into the monitor was a pain. The
back cover is very hard to replace, but I finally got it
on correctly by luck and I hope I don't have to do it
again for some time.
The hand-held monitor has an on/off button, a "Set"
button, a button to display the temperatures and it even
has a button that controls the backlight. The
monitor displays the tire pressure on the little LCD
screen as numbers under the icon of the motorcycle with
front and rear tires.
Monitor and Usage
The monitor weighs 45 grams and it can be set to display
PSI, kPa, Bar or kg/cm2 pressures. The bonus is
that it also displays tire temperatures in F or C.
The settings can be easily changed by pressing and
holding the "Set" button and then using the temperature
and backlight button to change the display (see the
video below).
The TireGard TPMS can also be set to give a warning
beep and a buzz for low or high temperatures and low or
high pressures. Each of these trigger numbers can
be set by the owner. However, the beep and buzz
are so mild that you'll probably never notice them if
the monitor is in your pocket while you're riding.
Which brings up another point: I have not tried using
the TPMS while riding. It's just too difficult --
and dangerous -- to fish the monitor out of my pocket,
look at it to find the button, turn it on and take a
reading.
This is probably the major difference between a
rim-mounted system with a monitor that can be mounted on
the handlebars or dash, because it can provide a low
pressure warning while riding, in case something goes
wrong with the tire.
But I don't think the beep and buzz on the TireGard
TPMS are strong enough to give you a warning, thus some
potential owners may determine that half the usability
of the system is gone. I guess you could stick
some Velcro on the back of the monitor, and matching
piece on the dash, and stick the monitor there to view
while riding.
But the LCD screen on the TireGard monitor seems to
be pretty good at collecting glare, so I'm not sure how
well this would work and I haven't tried it.
TireGard claims a 50 ft. monitor distance, but I only
use it in the garage, so I haven't confirmed their
numbers. I turn on the monitor when I walk out
into the garage, the readings display on the monitor and
that's it. It takes a while to trust the thing,
but I've checked it against a
Roadgear
digital tire pressure gauge (review) and an Accu-Tire
manual gauge and the TireGard TPMS always seems to be
right on the money to within maybe 0.5 PSI.
I also don't know how long the batteries will last; I
assume quite some time -- TireGard says 1-2 years
approximately for the valve caps and 6 months for the
AAA in the monitor.
The system will monitor tire pressures from 0 to 60
PSI, which covers just about any motorcycle I can think
of.
The kit also includes a pair of round locking nuts in
the kit that supposedly help prevent theft, but I don't
use them and anyone with a small hex wrench could defeat
the system anyway. I'm not sure who would want to
steal the valve caps, because it wouldn't do much for
them without the monitor too.
The owner's manual is pretty straightforward, and
loading the batteries probably takes more time than
anything else. It's basically a plug-and-go
system; plug in the batteries and you're ready to go,
especially if you accept the default settings. But
even if you want to change something, it's very easy.
Now there are a few flies in the ointment here:
first, the price is pretty steep for what basically
amounts to a lazy person's way to check tire pressures.
If you balk at the $199.95 price for the kit, then buy
yourself a good tire pressure gauge and prepare to stoop
and squat every time you check the tires.
Which, by the way, also brings you "up close and
personal" with the tires, which isn't a bad thing, as
you may find a screw through the tire like I did here.
If I hadn't been bending down to check the tire
pressures, I would not have found the screw and who
knows where that would lead.
On the other hand, lazy types or techies may want a
TireGard wireless TPMS for their own reasons.
The second potential problem is that I read a few
posts here and there with owners complaining that their
systems went belly-up after a few months. So far,
no problems at all here, but we'll see.
The other issue is that as it is, the system isn't
really designed for mounting in a way that could provide
real-time tire pressure monitoring, which is sort of
half the equation. I'm not sure why the company
didn't address this.
The monitor does have a cheap-feeling key ring on one
end, but I don't use it, because I don't want the
monitor banging around on the headstock and I'm afraid
the key chain would break while I'm riding. A
handlebar mounting system would probably have been a
nice addition, although it shouldn't be too difficult to
rig one up if you're handy.
Conclusion
The TireGard wireless TPMS (Tire Pressure Monitoring
System) works (so far) surprisingly well, is very easy
to set up and it's also very accurate -- it could be
more accurate than many tire pressure gauges.
Kind
of expensive, and you could even buy one of
these
ultra-deluxe tire pressure gauges for
about 1/3 the price, but farklers will want one anyway.
The mounting issue and the price may make this a no-go
for many riders though. I like it because all I
have to do is turn it on and it instantly confirms the
tire pressures.
I can now remotely check the pressures before every
ride, even when I'm on the road and stopping for a
break. I usually don't do this with a manual
gauge, so I figure the more times I can check the
pressures, the safer (theoretically) I'll be, and if the
TireGard system makes it easier for me to do that, it's
worth it. Besides, the monitor is a lot of fun to
use and it's kind of a kick to see the tire pressures
instantly display on the screen!
Please
send
comments to
Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.
Not all comments will be posted. Posted comments may be edited.
From "T" (9/09): "Read
this thread and warn users re possible danger of
valve stem letting go..."
Editor's Reply: Thanks for the info,
although it's not clear in that posting that the
Tiregard cap was to blame, it could have been an old
valve stem or other problem.
From "A.F." (9/09): "I have owned
this system for 6 months now and it works as advertised
with a small quirk in my case.
Unlike the original reviewers comments about checking
tire pressure in the garage before the ride I find that
wheels need to be in motion for a while or sense a
pressure change to indicate a value on the display once
the unit is turned on.
Turning on the unit will display the last pressure value
recorded, but unless the LCD display shows the wheels
blackened, current pressure is not displayed. I
find that I need to ride a mile or so to get a updated
result for both front and rear wheels, and the front
wheel typically takes much longer to register than the
back one."
Editor's Reply: Interesting -- the
unit we have displays the pressures in real time whether
the bike is moving or not, as you can see in the video.
Perhaps your batteries are low? Anyone else have
this problem?
From "S.S." (8/09): "While I am sure
this is a cool thing to have, the price is certainly
prohibitive, but more than that, I think that this sort
of device contributes to the passive sort of bike
maintenance that too many riders practice.
The point about being able to check your air pressure
instantly and often would lead you to believe that this
device actually improves safety, but I think the
opposite is true. Checking tire pressure manually
with a hand gauge gets your eyes down to the suspension
level, where you can do your visuals on brake pads,
chain tension, etc., as part of what should be
everyone's pre-ride inspection.
Treating a motorcycle maintenance as casually as we do
our automobile maintenance can frankly get you killed,
and a device such as this just encourages laziness."
From "R.O." (8/09): "I've seen this
Tire Monitoring system at my local shop – But $199.00 is
way too much!! – especially when I have to pay $0.75 for
air also – Once again I have to say “too much”, I guess
I’ll wait until it’s 75% off $199.000. On top of
it all, you now need to carry another gadget; maybe if
the monitor could link with our phones – then it could
be great product — Over all great idea."
From "J.A." (8/09): "Replaceable
batteries in the tire mounted sensors is certainly a big
plus. Most sensors, including the TST systems
mentioned above, must be replaced when their battery
fails making Tire Pressure Monitoring systems an
expensive maintenance item. This is especially
true of systems that are always "on" unless removed from
the tire valve."
From "J.K." (8/09): "I have had one
of these on my 2008 Victory Vision now for a little over
3 months (5500 miles). I have had zero issues with
it. As I tried to get some other riders to take a
look at the product, there were some concerns over the
added weight of the sensor on a rubber valve stem and
that it could break it down over time. Any
thoughts on this? I intend to replace my rubber
ones with metal when I change my tires next riding
season.
It is important to note that they offer one for touring
bikes that pull trailers too (4 tire system) and one for
trikes too (3 tire system). The 2 tire system can be had
for around $150 if you search around a bit.
In closing, with this product there is no longer an
excuse to not check your tire pressure every time you
ride. We all know we should check each and every
time we mount the bike."
Editor's Reply: I don't know if the
10 g weight of the valve cover is a potential source of
problems, but I'm assuming the company has tested it and
found no problems, otherwise you'd think they'd be in a
heap of trouble with the DOT and everyone else if the
weight of the valve cover caused a valve stem failure!
Note that the weight is pushed outward as the wheel is
turning.
I've seen skull heads, lights and many other types of
valve caps that probably weigh as much or more, so I'm
guessing there isn't much of an issue here."
From "M.G." (8/09): "This is a great
safety and proper pressure gauging idea and I would love
to buy a system for my sport bike, but $199 is nearly
the price of a rear tire mounted and balanced.
Until they get this down to under $50 its just not going
to proliferate in my opinion. The techno tourers
will love it though. Good stuff."
From "D.K." (8/09): "Truck System
Technologies, Inc sells a two tire TPMS for $159.
I use their 6 tire system on my motor home. In the
RV "off-season" the sensors can come off the motor home
and two go on the bike with the Velcro'd display unit
easily sticking onto the instrument area of the bike or
I could just stop being cheap and buy two additional
sensors for my Concours for $100.
The system will monitor up to 22 tires at once so I
guess if you've got a garage full of bikes and cars it
could save some time and knee pain squatting and
checking tire pressures.
With the
TST
system you're not going to get a nice little
motorcycle display picture but you will get the tire
data you need including info about a slow leaks and a
display you can actually monitor while riding if you're
that concerned about tire pressures or flats.
With the six tire system (which I bought on special
for $249) I could theoretically monitor all three bikes
in my garage at once and just move the display unit from
bike to bike as they are ridden.
Also, no connection between me and TST, I just think
their system offers good value."
