I will preface this by saying this solution worked for me. I make no guarantees for anyone else's particular car or situation. I am in no way related to the aftermarket company nor do I receive any financial benefit because of this post...

I have a 2011 Vantage V8 Roadster and about 3 weeks ago started up the car only to discover the dreaded yellow TPMS fault light. At first I mistakenly thought one of the tires was low which was generating the light so I checked all of the pressures. The passenger front tire was about 30psi. Low but certainly not critical. I topped off each of the tires and drove for a little bit but the light did not clear.

I took the car into my local dealership where they checked the system. Turns out it was the sensor -- three of them in fact. My car has the newer TPMS system but even still they quoted me about $1300 in parts and labor to replace all four sensors. Like others on this forum I balked at the price and decided to try to find a better, i.e., more affordable, solution. While others have bypassed the system in their cars I didn't want to do that as I do believe a working TPMS system is a valuable thing to have. Just my opinion.

After reading a lot of posts on here I decided to do some more general internet searching and came across a seller on eBay reporting to sell the same sensors used by Aston Martin minus the OEM part numbers. The price was good -- almost too good -- but I opted to take a chance figuring I could return them if their guarantee of working on my car proved to be incorrect. I had some curb rash on two of my rims and was already planning to have them repaired. If you're in the Boston area, I highly (HIGHLY!!!) recommend The Wheel Fix. Anyway, long story short the guys swapped out the sensors on all four wheels for me pro bono.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I picked up the car. I figured worst case scenario was they wouldn't be compatible and I'd have to go through the dealership to get OEM sensors and then return the ones from eBay. Even if they were compatible I knew I might need to have them programmed by the dealership but at least it'd be far less expensive than buying OEM sensors. I was (VERY) pleasantly surprised to find not only did the sensors work but they auto-negotiated with the system and were registering correctly without any further intervention. No trip to the dealership and no programming needed. So out the door, it cost me a mere $148.43 (not including the cost of the rim repair) vs. $1300+ quoted by the dealership.

Below is a link to the units I purchased. The seller even contacted me after the auction to confirm the make, model, and year of the car before sending them out. I was a bit skeptical but I (and my wallet) couldn't be happier with the results.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/HUF-TPMS-Tire-Sensors-RDE011-Aston-Martin-Vanquish-Vantage-DB9-DBS-AD43360671AA/401571646479?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid =p2060353.m2749.l2649

 

It seems they are universal programmable UVS2000 sensors not a direct RDE011 replacement. Have you checked their speed index, for Aston Martin the index should be 300km/h+, otherwise you are take some risk if you drive really fast. I know usually Intelinsens have 240km/h top speed homologation. Best regards,

 

Do TPMS sensors have built-in batteries? Is there an expected lifespan? I am going to be replacing my tires in the spring and now wondering if I need to replace the sensors as long as the tires will be off the wheels?

 

You should assume 6-7 year lifetime of build-in batteries if you do not drive on daily basis or ca 60k km.

 

240kph = 149mph
300kph = 186mph

Short of tracking the car, it's unlikely that I'd approach either of those speeds.

 

Just as a follow up, I did reach out to the company regarding the speed index of the TPMS sensors. They said the stems were rated up to 150mph. I don't intend to track the car and I've haven't driven quite that fast on open roads (>:-) so I think I'm good. But of course, YMMV.

 

Hey courtier, I have a 2012 V8VS and am having similar 'Tire System Fault' issues so may give this option a try - thanks for posting. So it sounds like these are only rated at 150 mph whereas the Aston OEM sensors are rated at 186 mph. Does anyone know what's the risk if you exceed the limitation of the TPMS sensor? Does it simply fail, or could it catastrophically come loose inside the tire at those speeds? I'd also imagine there's a safety factor built into those ratings and it's probably rated based on a sustained amount of time at that speed, similar to tire speed ratings. At the end of the day, who am I kidding? I doubt any of this matters without an Autobahn here in the US but curious what theoretical failure looks like...

 

I found an OEM equivalent TPMS sensor for $35 and had it installed at my local tire shop for $30 - so $65 per corner would be $260 for the set of 4 sensors installed - way better than the $1200+ at the dealership. Here's the link for the TPMS sensors I used - they are pre-programmed and ready to install right out of the box. These are RDE011 sensors with the same components and ratings as the Aston Martin sensors. I can confirm they worked for my 2012 V8VS with the factory BERU system (Huf acquired them so these sensors are the same manufacturer just under a different name):

https://www.tpms.com/Aston_Martin_Huf_IntelliSens_TPMS_Sensor_p/uvc0811-astonmartin.htm

 

Wonder if they will work on my 2007....

 

Not these ones. But there's a good thread on PH that covers Smartire sensor cloning.

 

Great info, @courtier - The eBay ad is for 2010+ models on the Vantage or so it says. Trying to see if he has them for older models... I emailed the guy to ask, but just wondering from Aston folks if the systems was any different? I have an 09 V8 Vantage Convt.

 

@robkat
As far as I know from the research I did, the two systems are from completely different manufacturers and are not interoperable, meaning you can't use the sensors for one system with the head unit from the other. First step would be to identify which version your car has. Given the year of manufacture, it's *probably* the older system but I'd verify just to be sure before spending $ (and especially before spending $$$). Assuming you have the older system, your most affordable option would be to either bypass (disable) the system as many have done or purchase replacement sensors for it (if available). Alternately, you could investigate replacing the head unit and sensors with the new system if replacement sensors are not available for the older system. For me personally, I didn't want to disable but was fortunate enough to only have to replace sensors not the complete system. @JTaylorGT found another source for sensors and they might have ones for the older system if the source I used doesn't pan out for you.

 

Pre-2010 all used Smartire. These guys found a fairly inexpensive replacement: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/...f=70&t=1845335

Lots of trial & error, but it worked in the end.

 

I ended up buying these, which I was assured they will be programmed ahead of time and are plug and play. I'll keep everyone posted if they work: https://www.ebay.com/itm/4-MAX-433mh...72.m2749.l2649

4 MAX 433mhz TPMS Tire Sensors for Aston Martin CD23360671CA 7PP907275F DB9

 

Those will not work for Smartire system that part number is for later Beru systems. Pre programming is to your onboard Smartire module under the dash, not the sensor itself. In order for them to work the module retains the coding of the pressure sensors.