FOBO tire pressure monitoring system

[DJ_Fission]

Hey all,

 

I purchased the FOBO Bluetooth tire pressure monitoring system. I was really impressed with how easy it was to install and pair with my phone. However, I found that the front sensor scrapes against the front brake caliper, since on my bike, the valve stem is on the right side of the wheel. If there was a couple more millimeters of clearance, it would work perfectly, but it scrapes and caused a small air leak (by the sensor becoming canted and allowing a small gap on the stem...no permanent damage). Fortunately, I noticed the scraping by some mild bumps I felt through the handlebars while I was backing my bike out of the garage.

 

I don't fault them for this...it seems like a good system and if not for the scraping, I'm sure it would have worked fine. If your front valve stem is on the inside of the wheel instead of on the side, I think it would work great for you.

 

Just wanted to let everyone know about my experience.

[RobinW]

Thanks for that, I almost pulled the ebay trigger on the week-end for a set of those but didn't want to commit. Lucky.

 

I did buy some 38PSI led valve caps. They light up Green/Yellow/Red the further away from 38PSI you get. $5 local or $2 from Honkers for 4. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate I can see the battery lasting a week

[DJ_Fission]

I did buy some 38PSI led valve caps. They light up Green/Yellow/Red the further away from 38PSI you get. $5 local or $2 from Honkers for 4. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate I can see the battery lasting a week

 

I have seen those online...perhaps I will give them a shot. Thank you for the tip!

[szurszewski]

I did buy some 38PSI led valve caps. They light up Green/Yellow/Red the further away from 38PSI you get. $5 local or $2 from Honkers for 4. What can I say, I'm a cheapskate I can see the battery lasting a week

 

I have seen those online...perhaps I will give them a shot. Thank you for the tip!

 

I have a mechanical version of those - same concept and about the same price, but it shows colored bands instead of an LED. I've had several people warn about someone they read about somewhere that was killed by them or whatever, but so far only one has failed (of two sets on bikes and two sets on cars, so 1/12 failure rate - not great but not a really good sample either). The one that did fail did NOT release all the air from the tire - the indicator part just came off (while in motion somewhere).

 

 

[DJ_Fission]

I have a mechanical version of those - same concept and about the same price, but it shows colored bands instead of an LED. I've had several people warn about someone they read about somewhere that was killed by them or whatever, but so far only one has failed (of two sets on bikes and two sets on cars, so 1/12 failure rate - not great but not a really good sample either). The one that did fail did NOT release all the air from the tire - the indicator part just came off (while in motion somewhere).

 

 

I've used that style on my car in the past. Although they worked fine, and despite my other comment, I think I'd like to get something where I can program the pressures for changing conditions, if needed. I'm looking at a TireGuard system; it was recommended to me by another R1200R rider.

 

I appreciate the suggestion though

[Michaelr11]

I've had the TireGard system for a few years now. Works very well. It would have the same issue as the FOBO since the sensor is in a screw-on valve cap substitute. TireGard reads out in 1/2 pound PSI increments. The display gets programmed for low and high PSI limits for each tire individually. You can opt for bars instead of PSI. It will also display tire temperature. Temps can be set and display in either C or F. There is also a warning set for high temperatures.

 

My one complaint on TireGard is that (when first turned On) the pressure displays the readings from the prior ride when you last shut the display off. The old readings stay there until the sensors "wake up" which usually takes a minute of riding. If you give the tires a couple of thumps you might wake up the sensors before taking off.

 

On a typical ride my front tire will initially show 38.0 PSI and after 15 or 20 miles the front will show 42 or 42.5 PSI. I set the low warning for 36.0 PSI.

[DJ_Fission]

I've had the TireGard system for a few years now. Works very well. It would have the same issue as the FOBO since the sensor is in a screw-on valve cap substitute. TireGard reads out in 1/2 pound PSI increments. The display gets programmed for low and high PSI limits for each tire individually. You can opt for bars instead of PSI. It will also display tire temperature. Temps can be set and display in either C or F. There is also a warning set for high temperatures.

 

My one complaint on TireGard is that (when first turned On) the pressure displays the readings from the prior ride when you last shut the display off. The old readings stay there until the sensors "wake up" which usually takes a minute of riding. If you give the tires a couple of thumps you might wake up the sensors before taking off.

 

On a typical ride my front tire will initially show 38.0 PSI and after 15 or 20 miles the front will show 42 or 42.5 PSI. I set the low warning for 36.0 PSI.

 

Thank you for that info. When I first started looking at the TireGard, I was similarly concerned about having the same issue as the FOBO, but a member on my R1200R forum told me that he has the same front valve stem configuration as me (on the right side sticking out), and he had no fitment issues. After some further fiddling with the FOBO sensor, I determined that it wasn't necessarily the height of the sensor that was the problem, but the width; if the sensor had been the same height but not as wide, it would have worked fine. I'm willing to give the TireGard a shot, since I ordered the FOBO from Amazon and they gave me a no-questions-asked refund (minus ~$5 for return shipping), and I'd imagine they'd do the same if the TireGard doesn't work out.

 

I was curious about the rise in front tire air pressure you mentioned after 15-20 miles of riding...could this be caused by the tire warming up? Have you looked at what the temperature rise was during that interval? Or is this attributed solely to the system taking time to "wake up?" Thanks!

[Michaelr11]

"Thank you for that info.

...........

I was curious about the rise in front tire air pressure you mentioned after 15-20 miles of riding...could this be caused by the tire warming up? Have you looked at what the temperature rise was during that interval? Or is this attributed solely to the system taking time to "wake up?" Thanks!"

 

When I say "wake up", I mean turn ON and communicate to the display module. The rise in PSI - which happens both front and rear - is what normally occurs when a tire warms up from use. That's why PSI settings are specified for "cold tires". Actual tire temperature will depend on ambient temperatures, road surface temperature and speed and ride style. If you use the 10% rule of thumb, then starting at 38 PSI cold, your "ideal" warm PSI should be around 42 PSI. If your rear tire starts cold at 40 PSI then the warm reading should top out around 44 PSI. In the middle of summer, I've seen my rear tire go up to 45 or 46 PSI.

 

Tire temperatures will always start out at ambient temp. The rear will rise more than the front because the front tire is in wind and the rear is more enclosed and next to the exhaust. I don't usually check temperature, figuring that the PSI reading will tell me what I need to know. If something odd causes the tire to heat up then the High Temperature limit setting should trigger the same warning to appear on the display.

 

TireGard reports actual PSI and leaves it to the rider to decide what the High and Low warning settings should be. Some TPMS systems use algorithms to consider the starting PSI and then the rise in temperature and pressure and walk the numbers back so the tire pressure shows level and the system only reports when the PSI goes out of range. I prefer seeing the actual PSI at any time. When the PSI hits either High or Low limits then the display lights up the background light and buzzes and beeps.