How to Disable the Ford F-150 Tire Pressure Sensor
There are several cases where you may want to make changes to your Ford F-150’s sensors and warnings. The tire pressure sensor can be one. Learning how to turn them off or remove them can be a challenge in some situations.
How to disable the tire pressure sensor on the Ford F-150?
There are some restrictions on how you can disable the tire pressure sensor. In some situations, you may be able to turn off this light by simply turning the ignition off and on three times in a row. Do this with your foot on the brake pedal. This may not work in all situations.
When it comes to TPMS sensors and features, there is a lot of frustration and confusion to resolve. Here, we will talk about several potential options for disabling the tire pressure sensor, including removing it completely. Be sure to take the time to consult the History of the Ford F-150 vehicle for more information about your truck.
What is TPMS?
Most modern vehicles have a Tire pressure monitoring system or TPMS. It is a type of electronic sensor that helps monitor the amount of air pressure inside the tires. One of the main advantages of these systems is that they provide you with real-time tire pressure information while you are driving the car.
If you’ve ever had a flat tire or a sudden flat tire, you may recognize the benefits of this system: it can help you get off the road safely before a flat tire occurs.
These sensors are located inside each of your tires. They are located in the central area of the wheel. They should be placed approximately 180 degrees from the valve stem. Each of the sensors is held in place by a steel band. The sensors work by generating a radio frequency that is emitted whenever the vehicle is driven at least 20 miles per hour.
Let’s say the tire pressure is starting to drop. It could be a very small air leak or something much larger. When these sensors detect a problem, they alert you instantly. The vehicle’s security module receives radio frequency signals from each of the sensors and then interprets them.
If the tire pressure is outside the normal range, the system turns on the low tire pressure warning. This is displayed on the dashboard so the driver can see it.
What does it mean when a Ford F-150 low tire pressure warning light comes on?
These types of warnings can occur for a variety of reasons. Most of the time, this means that the inflation pressure of at least one of the tires is not correct. The system recommends inflating the tire to the correct pressure.
In certain situations, the TPMS will send intermittent signals for about a minute. Then it will remain stable.
This could mean one of the following many problems:
- The TPMS system sensor is not working properly.
- The TPMS system has not undergone the correct learning procedure.
- There is a communication problem between the sensors and the vehicle’s security module.
- The vehicle security module is not working properly.
To find out what’s wrong with your F-150, you can use a scan tool to read codes for vehicles These diagnostic tools can read codes for you in minutes and tell you what to do.
How to disable the TPMS system
Ford wants you to have the TPMS sensors in place. And actually, they should be there for security reasons. Furthermore, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has made it illegal for dealers or other automotive service providers to disable or remove these sensors from their tires. Most of the time, there really is no problem using them.
However, some people develop a problem with the Ford F-150 tire pressure sensors. The sensors seem to constantly alert, even though the tire pressure is normal. Using an external tool to measure pressure indicates good tire pressure, but the system warns.
When this happens, there are things you can do about it. Remember that your dealer probably won’t remove them for you, but there are some ways to avoid this.
Use a tool to disable them
One of the options to consider is to use a program like Forscan to disable them. It works to remove TPMS components. Again, this is not something most people should do. Here is a video showing how some people have done this.
This video shows you how to delete the menu related to the TPMS system on your vehicle’s computer.
Some report that it helped them permanently disable the sensor’s warning signals. Doing so may not be recommended as your vehicle has no way of alerting you to a tire pressure failure that could lead to an accident.
Remove the TPMS sensor
Technically, when you remove the TPMS sensor, you are doing so to replace it with a new sensor. You may not have to do this and you can still put the tires back on the vehicle. Here is a video to help you see how to remove the TPMS sensor from the tires.
In this video you will learn how to access the tire sensor and then how to remove it. This process requires the use of professional tire removal tools. The sensor is easy to remove once the tire is removed.
Stay up to date with your vehicle’s maintenance and needs
No matter what complications you have with your tire pressure monitoring system, you know the importance of keeping your truck in good working order. You may also want to look at some of the other features it offers. You can do this by checking the model year of your Ford F-150 in the vehicle history.
