Tire air valve stem caps... Bad for car?

[Nguyenning]

Anyone look into getting some Tesla version of these? I wanted to grab a set, but the reviews on all of them freak me out! Saying they fuse to the tire and cost hundreds to repair... wtf?

Are these fake reviews or something? Anyone have experience with any tire valve caps?

US85 Tesla Black Chrome Auto Car Wheel Tire Air Valve Caps Stem Cover https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IIPKOUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_IbNVCb2RGAAHY

 

[Kilotango74]

Anyone look into getting some Tesla version of these? I wanted to grab a set, but the reviews on all of them freak me out! Saying they fuse to the tire and cost hundreds to repair... wtf?

Are these fake reviews or something? Anyone have experience with any tire valve caps?

US85 Tesla Black Chrome Auto Car Wheel Tire Air Valve Caps Stem Cover https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IIPKOUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_IbNVCb2RGAAHY

Unless there is corrosion buildup on the actual threads of the stem there should be now problem. However, if corrosion does build up, which is defiantly possible I could see there being a small difficulty removing these as there doesn't seem to be much grip on the cap. I don't see these becoming seized unless someone very rarely checks their tire pressure.

 

[Nguyenning]

Unless there is corrosion buildup on the actual threads of the stem there should be now problem. However, if corrosion does build up, which is defiantly possible I could see there being a small difficulty removing these as there doesn't seem to be much grip on the cap. I don't see these becoming seized unless someone very rarely checks their tire pressure.

Right... this is my thinking as well. But there are a lot of REALLY scary reviews/horror stories.

 

[Kilotango74]

Right... this is my thinking as well. But there are a lot of REALLY scary reviews/horror stories.

Could be what they are made of. Dissimilar metal corrosion is not uncommon which of course of would never see with the stock plastic cap, but then again I think if you check air pressure regularly this wouldn't be an issue. Doing a quick google search brought up a surprising number of hits about seized air stem caps, but I got to fall back on the checking your pressure thing. I would venture a guess that a lot of people don't bother unless their tire "looks" low or the get a warning from the TPMS.

 

[jerry33]

1. With 26% bad reviews on Amazon, I'd pass. That's a really high percentage of bad reviews.

2. The valve cap is the primary air seal. The valve core is a convenience to allow you to check the pressure without losing much air. The OE caps don't seal, the reason OE caps are plastic is because it's easy to put them on automatically (they can just be pushed on). I don't know whether these seal because there's no picture of the inside. Best practice is to have metal or hard plastic caps with a rubber seal.

 

[scrapps]

Hmm do the caps come with the TPMS or tires? Mine are a black painted metal and seem really slim and well made. Excuse my dirty wheels. Tires are Pilot Sport 4S (not the Tesla ones)

 

[destructure00]

The valve cap is the primary air seal. The valve core is a convenience to allow you to check the pressure without losing much air.

This is incorrect.

 

[jerry33]

This is incorrect.

No. It's correct.

 

[destructure00]

Am I misunderstanding your post? You are saying that the valve stem cap is what seals the air inside the tire, and the valve core is a convenience?

 

[Silicon Desert]

Anyone look into getting some Tesla version of these? I wanted to grab a set, but the reviews on all of them freak me out! Saying they fuse to the tire and cost hundreds to repair... wtf?

Are these fake reviews or something? Anyone have experience with any tire valve caps?

US85 Tesla Black Chrome Auto Car Wheel Tire Air Valve Caps Stem Cover https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IIPKOUY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_IbNVCb2RGAAHY

Strange. I have those exact ones on my MS for 3 years now. Never a problem. Not sure what people are talking about. The only think I can think is that they are aluminum and the stem is metal as well. Most original caps are plastic. so maybe there is some sort of metal to metal issue.

 

[jerry33]

Am I misunderstanding your post? You are saying that the valve stem cap is what seals the air inside the tire, and the valve core is a convenience?

That is correct. See page 17 on the Michelin manual

 

[Silicon Desert]

1. With 26% bad reviews on Amazon, I'd pass. That's a really high percentage of bad reviews.

2. The valve cap is the primary air seal. The valve core is a convenience to allow you to check the pressure without losing much air. The OE caps don't seal, the reason OE caps are plastic is because it's easy to put them on automatically (they can just be pushed on). I don't know whether these seal because there's no picture of the inside. Best practice is to have metal or hard plastic caps with a rubber seal.

Hmmm, don't you have that reversed …… core is the primary seal ? I've never had any loss of air pressure with these caps.

 

[jerry33]

Hmmm, don't you have that reversed …… core is the primary seal ? I've never had any loss of air pressure with these caps.

No. The valve core is not to be trusted. The seal is very small and is easily compromised. See the Michelin manual in the previous post.

 

[Silicon Desert]

No. The valve core is not to be trusted. The seal is very small and is easily compromised. See the Michelin manual in the previous post.

Thanks for the info. It just comes as a surprise to me since I never heard this before and frankly never had an issue.

 

[jerry33]

Thanks for the info. It just comes as a surprise to me since I never heard this before and frankly never had an issue.

There are a lot of things people "get away with" because systems are (hopefully) not made to fail. However, when they fail, it's usually at the worst possible time. Extreme weather conditions and contamination are the primary causes of valve core failure. (Being stuck in rural Manitoba in -30 weather with a couple of flats because the air leaked out of the valve core is not much fun.)