Wheel upgrade - TPMS question

[Johnny Mullet]

So I did a lot of reading on this site about wheels, tires, etc. I learned that my uni-lug aftermarket 15" wheels with P195/50R15 wheels and tires should fit this car without any rubbing or scraping, but I will know for sure this spring when I fit them to the '17 Mirage. These are the summer wheels/tires for my rotting out 98 Metro 1.3L 5-speed. They look good on the Metro, but rub on turns and scrape on bumps. This Metro will be come a winter beater since it's rusting out.........



Now the questions I have is about the TPMS on the Mirage. I know the wife will love the wheels, but if the light comes on the cluster, she will complain. At the shop I work at we have a TPMS kit that have universal replacement programmable sensors and the computer to do it, but not 100% sure if 2014/2015 Mirage uses same programming as 2017 models since our computer goes up to 2015 only.

Question 1 - If I do program 4 new sensors for the new wheels, will the old wheels still work on the car without setting a light?

Question 2 - Are the TPMS sensors easy to remove from the factory rims without damage and easily swapped to other rims?

Any other options/ideas on this swap?

[Top_Fuel]

Question 1 - If I do program 4 new sensors for the new wheels, will the old wheels still work on the car without setting a light?

The answer to your question is no. The Mirage computer (in the US) can only store 4 TPMS sensor ID's. If you program new sensor ID's in your new wheels, the TPMS warning light will come on when you re-install the original wheels. Then you'll have to re-program those sensors to the computer to get the light to go off. This isn't like programming TPMS sensors on a GM car (which is painfully simple). Mitsubishi's setup on the Mirage is very proprietary and requires a Mitsubishi scan tool that connects through the OBDII port..

The best/cheapest thing to do in the long run is to avoid registering new sensor ID's with the Mirage's computer. Nobody has successfully done this without a dealership Mitsubishi scan tool (at a cost of roughly 1-hour or $100). I had an independent shop try (with a good late-model scan tool that said it would work with Mitsubishi) and it didn't work. There is one TPMS tool out there (ATEQ Mitsureset) that says it can program Mirage sensor IDs to the Mirage's computer...but it doesn't work. Two of us here on this forum have purchased and returned this tool after it failed to do anything.

Right now I would tell you that the easiest way to have 2 sets of TPMS sensors work without setting the light off is to clone a second set of sensors from your existing sensors and have them installed in the second set of wheels. So both sets of wheels will have the same 4 TPMS sensor ID's. When you swap wheels back and forth, your car's computer will see the same sensor ID's and there will be no TPMS light coming on your instrument panel. Unfortunately...nobody on the forum has cloned their sensors yet (but nobody has tried). I don't see why this wouldn't work as long as you can find clone-able sensors for these cars. You can read a little more in THIS post.

Question 2 - Are the TPMS sensors easy to remove from the factory rims without damage and easily swapped to other rims?

Yes...here's what a Mirage TPMS sensor looks like (it's about the size of the car's key fob)...




The TPMS sensor clips on (and off) the end of a special type of rubber valve stem (called a VS90). Here's what a VS90 valve stem looks like...




Check out this video...the Mirage VS90 sensors are shown from 0:42 - 1:14 in the video...

[Eggman]

Someone recently posted that the Mirage is capable of two sets of TPMS sensors. But as has been said, it hasn't been done yet. It sounds like the dealers don't know how to make it work yet.

[Johnny Mullet]

So I see the sensor itself is easily removed from the stem but I would need to find 4 compatible valve stems so I could swap them over.

[Top_Fuel]

...I would need to find 4 compatible valve stems so I could swap them over.

Correct. The VS90 rubber valve stems cannot be removed from a wheel and re-used. The only way to remove them is to cut them out. Every tire shop in town should have VS90's in stock because the Mirage isn't the only car that uses this type of clip-on sensor. Just be aware that these valve stems cost around $5-$8 each.

[inuvik]

You have basically 4 options:

1: Put the wheels on without TPMS and the light will be on constantly. Obviously, this is a no-go for you.

2: Before you put the wheels on, remove the sensors from the OEM rims and install them onto the new rims. Other than dismounting and mounting the tires from both sets probably the most cost effective.

3: Buy a new set of TPMS sensors and have them cloned to your current set so ETACS thinks the same TPMS sensors are on the vehicle. Sensors are not that cheap and you'd have to find a tire shop that could guarantee that they would be able to successfully do this.

4: Buy a new set of TPMS sensors, have them installed on the rims and take the vehicle to the dealer to have the second set enabled. So far, even though the repair manual describes the method to enable 2 sets of TPMS no one has reported that any dealer has been able to perform this successfully. ETACS only allows 1 set to be active at any one time so if you had a set of snow tires with rims with one TPMS set and summer tires with another set of TPMS you would still have to go to the dealer at every tire changeover to switch the active TPMS set. This would be like $120 every time. Doesn't sound too enticing to me.

Reuse the current set or cloning is the way to go.

[Cobrajet]

The TPMS system on the Mirage is a pain in the ass. I am one of those who bought the MitsuReset tool and had to send it back. This tool is supposed to plug into the OBDII port and put the car's computer into TPMS 'learn mode'. You then trigger each sensor and the new TPMS sensor codes are registered with the car. So there is no TPMS light triggered.

I bought the MitsuReset tool, a TPMS sensor trigger tool, and four sensors that were new car take-outs. I mounted the new sensors and snow tires on the set of steel wheels I bought for winter, and installed the wheels on the car. The MitsuReset tool did NOT work. I plugged it in and it behaved nothing like the instructions showed that it would. All it did was flash a green light at me. I even tried it on my ex-girlfriend's '14 DE. It didn't work on that, either. It was completely useless, and I know I followed the meager instructions included with the tool. I must have tried it a dozen times!

Now, I have two sets of sensors...one set in the original summer wheels (alloys) and one set in the snow wheels (steelies). The snows are on now. Since I cannot change the sensor codes registered with the car without a trip to the dealership, I have been driving the car around for the last couple months with the TPMS light on. It flashes for a minute after starting, then comes on solid.

I don't like that it is on, but I do not find it terribly annoying. I decided it is not worth spending hundreds of dollars to make a light on my dash go out when I regularly check my own tire pressures anyway. When spring comes I will put the summer wheels back on and hopefully the light will go out again.

If and when a better, proven solution comes along I may try to tackle this problem again. But for now, I get to look at the ugly light in my instrument cluster.

[Ranny]

Are we sure only the dealer can do this? I had winter tires/rims installed on mine at discount tire and paid through the nose for a second set of sensors. They would not do it without the sensors installed. I haven't had any issue with the TPMS light coming on. Didn't ask how they did it because I didn't know it was difficult to do.

Btw, I have 185x65 15" tires which are over sized but supposed to fit and they do rub occasionally - especially if there is any weight in the rear.

[Top_Fuel]

...I had winter tires/rims installed on mine at discount tire
...paid through the nose for a second set of sensors.
...I haven't had any issue with the TPMS light coming on.
...Didn't ask how they did it

It's not likely they had a scan tool that was able to register 4 new TPMS ID's to your Mirage's ETACS module. I've dealt with 2 different shops that supposedly had the latest TPMS tools that were Mitsubishi compatible...and they didn't work on my Mirage. Remember there are aftermarket tools that will work on 2014+ Mitsubishi models like the Lancer/Outlander...but they also don't work on the Mirage. Hmmm...I'm seeing a pattern here with the Mirage...

You're going to find out how Discount Tire did it when you put your normal wheels/tires back on. If you put your summer wheels/tires on and the TPMS light on your dash doesn't come on, then they cloned your sensors. Honestly, cloning is the best way a tire shop would be doing it. It's much easier to clone sensors than to pay for expensive TPMS tools and software to interface with every car possible.

The ultimate way to determine if your sensors were cloned is to have a tire shop use a tool to read the 4 TPMS sensor ID's in your winter and summer wheels. Both sets will be the same 4 ID's if they were cloned.

edit - If you ever figure this out, please let us know! If they cloned your sensors, you are the first one on the forum to have done this.

[poorman1]

Drill 3 more holes in your spare tire rim and install all 4 in it
problem solved