miner

Some low-life stole all 4 valve caps from my tires (RL not even 1 month old). Does the TPMS require special valve caps?

Mike_TX

Nope. In fact, someone also stole ONE of mine , so I bought a set of 4 at Walmart for about 4 bucks. They're nice chrome ones, and they look better than stock to me.
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bkw

TPMS does not have any dependencies on the valve caps. You shouldnt be using the steel factory ones anyways. They tend to seize over time and Acura had recalled them.

If you got the gray plastic ones stolen, I believe theyre like $.10 to replace.

Rob L

Yeah some idiot stole mine like a half year after I got the car. Sad humans are that pathetic to rip-off valve caps that are cheap. I could see if they were made of platinum but sheesh...lame

Mike_TX

Are you serious? I've used steel (chromed) caps for decades and I've never had any problem with them. I've always found the cheapie plastic caps either strip out the first time you put them on a little crooked or they harden and crack and fall off.

I guess I thought it was cheap of Acura to put those crummy little plastic caps on in the first place. Why anyone would want to steal them is beyond me.
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jftjr

It's more of an issue in the snow belt. The valve stems are bronze, the caps were aluminum. Add some salt water (from road salt) and you have two dissimilar metals with an electrolyte -- which if you remember your HS chemistry, is a battery -- and you get a galvanic reaction that causes the valve caps to corrode onto the valve stems.

Plastic, of course, isn't subject to this.

Mike_TX

Ahhhh ... those of down here in the sun belt wouldn't know about that stuff.

Thanks for the clarification.
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miner

The ones on my car ('06) - and stolen - are metal with a green rubber O-ring on the outside.

Mike_TX

Do you have the PAX tires?
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miner

No PAX - regular Michelins that come on base RL

Mike_TX

Makes me wonder if your dealer put nitrogen in the tires. My local Inifniti does, and they replace the caps with some that have a blue ring on them to identify them as nitrogen-filled.

Otherwise, I don't know, since standard Acura caps are chintzy grey plastic jobbies.
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miner

Yes, they did - that answers my question about the caps.

BTW Mike-TX, the traffic around the 'Plex' was a mess this weekend. Was in East Dallas and had to drive to Azle, TX Sat. afternoon.

Mike_TX

Yeah, the NASCAR race at Texas Motor Speedway kinda effed things up a bit. LOL. Usually does. Also, I-30 westbound was closed due to a bridge being demolished. And since you were going west, it's not surprising traffic was bad.
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