How to: retrofit indirect Tire Pressure Monitoring in 5 minutes. (7K6)

[brad]

tried enabling indirect TPMS on my 11/2007 Skoda Octavia but no luck

Revisited this today & it appears I've been successful. Mine has a MK60 ABS controller (not MK60EC1). There was no long coding helper in the ABS Controller - it requires you to add up the option numbers and do software coding. The tickbox for ""tyre pressure monitoring 7K6 installed is in the Instruments Module (IIRC).

I'll drive it about & test it for a few weeks & post my how-to in the Skoda area & link back here if it works properly

[sergio279]

Hi, I have a Polo 6C from 2016 which i changed the original radio/screen, so now i cant reset tpms alert.

Do you know if its possible install the set tire Pressure button in the glove box? Or any retrofit kit?

I know that others Polo 6C wich does not have touch screen, have a switch in glove box... But my car not.

Thank you.

[sergio279]

Retrofit fully functional 7K6 Indirect Tire Pressure Monitoring, (No TPMS reset button required).

This may be of interest, if like me; you have a lesser MK6 variant without TPMS. If your car came without the system it will not have a reset button. The rest of the hardware for the system to work, including the warning light, is already in your car. It is just not activated.



Benefits: Enables option [7K6] TPMS in cars shipped without TPMS [7K0].
Does not require a Reset button to be fitted.
No additional hardware required.
Cost: Nothing, provided you have access to VCDS
Target: Mark 6 Golf without factory TPMS button
Requirement: Car with MK60EC1 ABS controller and access to VCDS
Time involved: 5 minutes
Downside: Requires access to VCDS again, to reset a Warning light, OR to re-teach new values.

On the basis that it is free and considerably better than nothing, I have activated, successfully tested and intend to use it. Usual caveats - All modifications and changes are done at your own risk.

What is 7K6?

7K6 is the second version of the VW indirect Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS). It uses the ABS system to deduce and warn you when a tire is going, or has gone flat. VW appear to have renamed it “Flat tire indicator” to differentiate it from the several “direct measurement” TPMS systems that it has also produces.

I have found that it will detect a problem tyre with a 5psi (15%) pressure drop from 32psi and start error counting. It will trigger the warning at 6psi or ~ 19%. The System is quicker to detect a rapid drop than a gradual deflation. Letting 6psi out in one hit will be detected in ~ 2 minutes and trigger a Warning in ~ 8 minutes. Letting out 3psi followed by incremental 1 psi drops to 6 psi will take longer for the Warning to develop once at 6psi.

Short Instructions.

Activate TPMS 7K6

1) Check you tire pressures are correct. At least even Pressures laterally.
2) In VCDS VagCom go to your ABS controller > Coding > Long Coding Helper > and toggle byte 16, bit 2 ON.


ABS controller [Coding - 07]


Coding


Long Coding Helper


TPMS OFF


TPMS ON

3) Confirm system is active by turning IGN ON. Observe momentary TPMS light beside 180kmh on the speedo.



END

Reset the System
(Emulate the missing TPMS button);
- to clear a Warning.
- to teach system after reconfiguring tires.
- to teach system after modifying pressures from previously calibrated state.

1) In VCDS VagCom go to your ABS controller > basic settings > enter 042 in block field > GO > That’s it.


Resetting System. Showing EEPROM Reset message to confirm it has reset.

2) Chime and Orange TPMS light will go off (if it was ON).
END

De Activate TPMS 7K6
(Perhaps when Selling your car)

1) In VCDS VagCom go to your ABS controller and toggle byte 16 bit 2 OFF
2) Confirm system is inactive by turning IGN ON and momentary TPMS light no longer appears.
END


Note: After activating or resetting, the 7K6 system will need at least an hour of driving including highway speeds to fully adapt and correlate wheel speeds with correct tyre pressures before you can rely on it to give a Warning. Do not partially deflate a tyre in this period to test the warning. The system will not have learnt sufficiently to trigger a warning and it will invalidate the teach in process.



Request

It would be good if we can keep this thread on the topic of activating and using the 7K6 indirect system. The direct system is undoubtedly better - that is not what this thread it about.

If you want to debate the merits of the various TPMS systems or think this system is rubbish, go to the Tyre Pressure Monitoring thread which discusses this. If you want more detail and opinion on the merits of TPMS systems or are interested in how Mavericks supposes it works, go to his TPMS thread. Although I have found the assertion that it “will only alert after 25% of pressure has been lost” is incorrect. I have found it to be between 15% and 20%. Splitting hairs here I know. The speed of which the system learns is as much related to the speed at which you drive as the straightness of the roads. It will not learn anything at all after a reset, if you do not at some point get it up to highway speeds. I believe you could drive around town indefinitely and it will never gain enough information to calibrate itself. So a Highway drive at some point is essential if you want the system to function as designed.

Anyhow I hope this info will be of interest to some of you.

Hi, when i try to access to "Basic Settings" the widows wichs opens is different for me. You can see:



How can i solve it? Thank you

[GTD80Y]

Can someone help me with this. I have a 2012 MK6 GTD DSG. No tpms button or anything and no light comes on the dash when i have a really low tyre. I tried activating through vcds and accepting the coding but when i turn ignition on and off there is no tpms light that comes on? i have the correct abs module mk60ec1

[Lucas_R]

Can someone help me with this. I have a 2012 MK6 GTD DSG. No tpms button or anything and no light comes on the dash when i have a really low tyre. I tried activating through vcds and accepting the coding but when i turn ignition on and off there is no tpms light that comes on? i have the correct abs module mk60ec1

Have you got a TPMS button in your glovebox to set your pressures? Im not sure what is fitted to your car as its a UK spec and this is predominantly an Australian based forum, therefore its quite possible that UK spec cars have some differences to AUS spec cars.

But in Australia, a Mk6 should have a button in the glovebox to set your tyre pressures. The rims/tyres themselves do not have TPMS sensors in them, rather the car uses the ABS wheel speed sensors to detect differences in wheel speeds from an underinflated tyre, and uses that info to signal a warning on the dashboard to check tyre pressures. Its a pretty basic system, and its slow to react (unless you have 0psi in the tyre), but it does work....eventually.

The issue with the Mk5 and Mk6 Golf, is that the ABS wheel speed sensors are a very common failure item, and the sensors need to be replaced (should be about £20 for each sensor). Once replaced and working again (assuming no other issues) then your ABS will be functional again and your tyre pressure system should work.

Have you scanned the car for faults? Do you have faults for the wheel speed sensors?

[GTD80Y]

Thanks for your reply. The car doesn’t have a TPMS button, when I have a flat tyre , no light appears on the cluster either. Scanned the car with vcds and there are 0 fault codes. Iv been told it can be activated as it detects it from abs/wheel speed, and I have the correct abs module, when I ticked the box on vcds, it accepted the coding and the light should appear on ignition but it doesn’t - any ideas?

[Lucas_R]

Im no expert with electronics, but it sounds like you are missing some of the components to make the system work (eg the button in the glovebox to set the pressures + possibly more).

Someone like kamold who is the electronics retrofitting king on here might be able to offer some guidance.

[Somi]

Thanks for your reply. The car doesn’t have a TPMS button, when I have a flat tyre , no light appears on the cluster either. Scanned the car with vcds and there are 0 fault codes. Iv been told it can be activated as it detects it from abs/wheel speed, and I have the correct abs module, when I ticked the box on vcds, it accepted the coding and the light should appear on ignition but it doesn’t - any ideas?

Hi,i had the same problem,you need to activate TPMS Warning/Monitoring in Instrument Cluster 17,then the light will work when you put IGN ON.