Since the introduction of the tubeless tyre, we no longer suffer from the notorious ‘blow out’. There are situations where we may experience ‘rapid deflation’, but true blowouts simply can’t occur. More recently we tended to notice that one of our tyres looks a ‘little bit low’ and surmise that we may have what we all refer to as a ‘slow puncture’.

Step forward a few more years though, and cars are heavier, wheels are larger, tyres have slimmer and stiffer sidewalls, and it’s much harder to notice when the pressure is low, either visually or even when driving. Put simply, punctures are harder to spot.

Low tyre pressures and ‘slow’ punctures are detrimental in many ways, including fuel consumption, emissions, handling, stopping distances, and they can ultimately lead to irreparable tyre damage, so vehicle manufacturers introduced Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems to keep the motorist advised at all times.

Furthermore, TPMS has been mandated on all new cars since 2014 and a TPMS warning light became and MOT failure in January 2015. Put simply, if TPMS is fitted then it has to be functioning correctly in order to receive an MOT test pass certificate.

All of our GTC Tyres and Autocare branches carry TPMS testing devices, as well as a full range of service and repair kits so you no longer have to go to a man dealer, and we can service your valves and sensors at any of our depots.

Our TPMS Service kits start at £12 (depending on the model) and replacement TPMS sensors start at just £72.