Any update on a Trailer TPMS system?

[Buyer2021]

Not only do you get TPMS but also it monitors tire temperature which in the event of impending failure would be the canary in the coal mine.

Just FYI, the Ford Accessory integrated TPMS also provides temperature data

It really is a nice system, I like not having external sensors on the tire stems.

And yes, it gives an audible alarm and dashboard warning message for low pressure even when not showing the display pictured above.

YMMV, choices are good, I'm glad you're happy with yours, as mentioned I ran a similar aftermarket system for years, no worries!

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[Suns_PSD]

TPMS was mandated by the feds as an easy way to minimize under inflation that results in poor fuel economy - nothing more. It is not a safety feature.

Big rigs pulling heavy trailers do not have a TPMS and the expectation is that the driver will check tire pressures as needed.

OT: Commercial truck owner here.

Even great drivers can't tell when a tire is slowly losing air throughout the day, due to the miles done in a day and the jobsites, tire damage is a pretty common occurrance.

Tires overheat and come apart when they are under inflated. I don't know how much money I've lost over the years due to Commercial truck tire issues but it's mid 5 figures between lost loads, road call service, paying top dollar for tires on the road, & truck damage. On the other hand, a nail hole causing a slow leak can be fixed for $18 and quite quick at most Commercial Tire repair facilities. Semi tires, depending on sizing/ application/ etc. and so forth cost about $500 on the low end up to about $1400 installed, each.

I've added aftermarket TPMS to my last 4 commercial trucks that I have bought (only own 2 currently) and frankly it's the absolute best investment I've made on any of my trucks. I have not lost a single tire, load or had damage in the 2 years since, when before TPS it was about an every 90 days occurrence. The driver's love TPS as well because it's a huge time saver for their Pre-trips.

My RV trailer will 100% get TPMS on it as well.

 

[Calson]

This is about Trailer TPMS and not truck tires. A TPMS is not going to eliminate damage from nails and other debris on the highways.

I agree that that is a great gap between the competency of many truck and tractor rig drivers on the highways.

 

[DadBald]

Alright, got my bumper harness in tonight. Everything on the harness works, except I'm still getting a blue screen on my aux camera on the center display :/ Guess I have a bit more troubleshooting to do.

Wanted to mention a few things from my experience for others though. The job took me a couple hours, but I like to putz and take my time so I don't damage anything.

The backup sensors were tough to get the connectors off of at first. I was pushing on the wrong side of the latch lever. Slide the white part as described, then press on the wire side, not the sensor side, to move the hook. After doing 4 of them - sliding the white part took more force than pinching it to open the clip.

I found it was easier to just remove the license plate lights with the wire harness attached, then remove the harness clip and replace the light. The light just twists and pulls out, but the clip on the harness was tough for me to press to release.

The big connector above the spare tire was by far the worst. It wasn't clear to me that I had to depress the top of the clip before the hinge latch would open, and it took quite a bit of force to do so. Then, when swinging the latch up, the toe of the molding hits the frame underneath it, so you have to pull up on the connector to angle it a bit for the latch to move fully. Also, it does swing a full 90 degrees between closed and open. Here's a pic of what I mean:

 

[DadBald]

As for my camera malfunction, I'm pretty bummed, but I'll get it working with some more research and troubleshooting. Here's what I know:

2021 PB with max tow, tow tech, 360 cams. No aux cam or trailer TPMS in my menus, but I was able to enable them in FORScan. From what I've read, I *should* have all the wiring back to this bumper harness. But I understand there may be some to check up front yet, though I thought that was for trucks without 360 cams.

Everything on my new bumper harness works except for my camera (haven't tested the 7-pin either, but I presume it's fine). License plate lights work, all 4 backup sensors work.

I plugged in my trailer kit (Camera + Yaw) with only the 12-pin in the truck and the camera at the other end. No dice, just a blue screen for aux cam. Do I need to have the Yaw sensor installed for this trailer wire harness to work right? I wouldn't think so. I jostled all the new truck harness connections, the 12-pin connection, and the camera connection, and still no luck.

I have another trailer kit (Camera + TPMS + Yaw) that I'll try tomorrow, just ran out of daylight today. This camera feels really cheap, perhaps it broke in shipping or something. If anyone has any other ideas I'm all ears. Otherwise I'll post back if/when I get it working. Thanks!

 

[Buyer2021]

Do I need to have the Yaw sensor installed for this trailer wire harness to work right?

If so, yours will be a first. There's many of us using the TPMS and / or cam without a yaw sensor in-play at all. I strongly suspect your issue(s) lie elsewhere.

Good luck with the troubleshooting!

 

[DadBald]

I think I figured it out... My trailer harness was one big mess of wires. I opened the other kit I had and the main harness fell apart from the camera extension... The mess of wires from the first kit is probably both the main harness and camera extension knotted together - and not connected.

I was wondering what those two extra connectors were for... Too many wires for today

Oddly my first kit had no instructions, and the camera box was opened. So this was clearly a returned item at one point. It's all there though. It all clicked when looking through the instructions I found in my 2nd kit. Always helps to RTM...

I'll try it with the camera actually connected tomorrow.

 

[DadBald]

Ok, I fixed it. The problem was... the dense raisin between my ears malfunctioned.

In exchange for my watering down this thread, here's a bit more information for everyone. Maybe it'll help somebody.

I ordered trailer kits LC3Z1A189C (camera + yaw) and LC3Z1A189A (camera + TPMS + yaw). There are new part numbers for these kits. I received LC3Z1A189CH (camera + yaw), and LC3Z1A189AJ (camera + TPMS + yaw).

To my surprise, the main trailer harness for both kits is the same. The one with only camera + yaw has a TPMS connector on it. It's odd Ford includes a few extra wires here, presumably for simplicity, yet leaves out the 12-pin wires on the truck itself... but I digress. I presume all the "with Pro Trailer Backup Assist" (a.k.a. with yaw sensor connector) harnesses are all the same between the 3 available trailer kits - just the bundled sensors are different. I am unsure if the "without Pro Trailer Backup Assist" kits actually have the yaw sensor connector, but the prices are exactly the same so it wouldn't surprise me. The 3 non-yaw versions are probably all the same too, except for the bundled sensors. Speculation here though. Considering all this, I wonder if it would be cheapest to get the camera + yaw kit and find the TPMS transceiver and wheel sensors elsewhere. Food for thought.

Anyway, when I opened my 2nd kit, the wire harness fell on the floor in 2 pieces. NOTE: there is a main harness, and a secondary camera extension harness. You have to use the extension harness because the extension connector and the camera connector are different.

The reason I was confused was because I think the first trailer kit I opened was a returned item. The main harness and camera extension were co-mingled, and it just looked like there were 5 connectors on it. NOTE - the camera extension connector on the main harness has a cap on it. Just depress the latch and pull it off and it becomes clear that the camera extension harness plugs in here. ALSO, the TPMS connector appears to have an adapter on it, and the instructions show it can be removed with a small flat head screwdriver. I haven't hooked up my TPMS transceiver yet though to know if that's necessary. If your transceiver doesn't line up with the connector this is probably why.

So I just connected the camera extension to the main harness, and lo and behold, the camera feed came up right away. Plug-and-play just as described by everyone else!

The kit is super convenient. I can't wait to have it installed on my trailers. One of the trailers is shared, and the other owner has an F150 as well. We'll have to check how setup he is with features, etc, but it'll be really nice to have this just on the trailer, connect it right up when you hitch up, and be good to go with all the sensors. IMO, despite the wiring shenanigans by Ford, this system's convenience is top-notch. IMO, worth the price!

 

[DadBald]

One more thing. My first trailer wiring kit did not come with instructions. It might have been an opened/returned product, not sure. But my 2nd kit I opened did have instructions, and they were pretty helpful to at least skim through. I'm not sure if this has been shared here before or if this is available online somewhere, but if it helps anyone, I'm attaching my scan of that instruction booklet for the Camera + TPMS + Yaw kit. Enjoy!

 

[Suns_PSD]

Guys, I'm ordering a new RV trailer and the manufacturer is saying that it includes a backup camera. I have to imagine it uses some wireless protocol.

Will this system link into the OEM screen through BT or some other manner, or should I have them just remove their system (to save the money) and add my own? I don't want to add a second screen to the dash of my truck.

Please advise.

PS. sorry for the OT

Also, what's the difference between the 'yaw' vs. 'the stickers'?

 

[DadBald]

I do not believe I have read of anyone getting anything to work on the integrated center console screen other than Ford's own camera. There may be other cameras with the same protocol that might work, but they would need to be wired the same way. There is no wireless interface for the integrated Aux cam input in the truck, unfortunately.

 

[Bobcatou]

Is this something required to get if you get the $1000+ Ford TPMS/Camera system?

 

[DadBald]

No, the TPMS trailer wiring kits come with 4 sensors in the kit (LC3Z1A189A or B, for example). I think the system is capable of up to triple axle trailers, but you'd have to buy 2 more sensors in that case.

I did not get an activation tool with the kit though. I was planning to bring them to a shop to have them installed and I figured they could activate.

 

[DadBald]

Also, what's the difference between the 'yaw' vs. 'the stickers'?

The yaw sensor is a brick you mount on the tongue of the trailer and it wires into the truck. It gives feedback on trailer angle for the pro trailer backup assist. It does the same thing as the stickers, except the stickers use the tailgate camera and line of sight to determine the trailer angle. The stickers are easier and less intrusive, but I have read if you have a lot of junk on the tongue like with a coach trailer (propane tanks, etc), line of sight can be broken at certain angles and the system will stop working. Or in inclement weather. The yaw sensor does not have these issues.

In 2021, apparently Ford did not have the sticker system working yet, so for a period of time they shipped trucks with the yaw sensor kit. Once the software updates were available, they stopped shipping it and just included the stickers. You can find the yaw sensors on ebay from people who never used them if you need/want one. Otherwise technically it achieves the same thing as the stickers.

 

[Suns_PSD]

Very helpful guys!

Thanks!

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