Trust the tech - TPMS.

Droverunner

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Aug 2, 2017
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Location
West Cambridgeshire
Your Mercedes
2007 CLK 220 CDi Sport. 2014 S-Max 2.0TDCi.
In the first week of owning the CLK worrying that it was too good to be true finding a 10yr old vehicle with every bit of electric/electronic kit working Mrs D kept thinking this or that didn't operate properly but reading the manual at work lunchtimes she found it was always a case of her error.

I'd just done a tyre/fluids check for her to have last week away and the washers/wipers seemed to have failed. A few frustrated minutes with the manual didn't help but she said I'm sure it's just you and there's nothing wrong with the car. I was about to go into the fuses when I Googled to find as I had the bonnet up the system was interlocked. Sure enough dropped the bonnet and all was fine.

Returning from the week away she calls 25mls from home and says she's pulled off to a petrol station as the tyre pressure warning has come on. I cursed the fact these systems are known across all makes for false alarms... said that it was probably nothing... but told her to put it on the air line anyway.

She reported back it was one where you set the pressure to auto inflate but didn't show the start figure and off she set again. Phoned from a pull in 10mls from home with the warning on again... said tyres (40 series) looked about normal. I advised to drive at lower speed and pull over at the slightest odd feel to steering... but still thought it was probably a system error.

Arrives home without drama and after a few minutes I put a gauge on a rather sad looking o/s front... oops 10psi.

Lesson learned... I've put a manual gauge in her car and advised in future to trust the system and stop asap to check or change wheel.

Sadly I found a bit of road debris must have gone into it right on the shoulder cutting a few steel cords and lifting a flap of tread so it's scrap... had 5mmm tread too. Frighteningly as I prodded quite lightly with a screwdriver to see the extent of the damage it went pfttt and deflated... must have been pretty close to a blowout.

When I looked very carefully at the other front tyre (also 5mm) there was just the start of cracking all round one of the channels so a pair of new Dunlops to match the 5wk old rear ones booked online for Halfords tomorrow.
 

Yugguy

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Location
Rugby, UK
Your Mercedes
C220CDI W204 Elegance Comand
:D You're not the only to be caught out by the bonnet thing. Too clever by half.
 

Srdl

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Location
Hampshire
Your Mercedes
GLC43 AMG 2018 (X253)
I've experienced TPMS warnings twice and both were genuine alarms. Once on the Merc which identified a slow puncture but I was able to reinflate it until I could get it repaired. The other time was on SWMBO's Mini where I had removed a small spring from the Runflat the day before. Sure enough, the warning came up about a mile from home the next day when I was driving it.
 

JBell

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Dec 9, 2011
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Location
Torquey
Your Mercedes
C350 CDi Estate (GAD Edition)
They do work well
 
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