RE: Smartire system
There is no flaw! If the pressure drops the alarm goes off. Plus Doran does it 2 ways where the others only 1. First, most if not all will go off when the pressure drop 12.5% and the Doran does that, but is also has a rapid loss alarm if to start losing like 2 lb per minute it want wait to tell you when you get to 12.5% it will give you a rapid air loss alarm. Your smartire does not do that! I don't have to wait on 10lb loss and do not want to if it is coming out fast and the Doran will let me know that.
There is NO flaw in this system, in fact NO other system has the rapid air loss alarm.
Also another problem with smartire is if you use internal tire balancing powers or liquid in your tires like a lot of people do, you can not use this system.
SmarTire gives you warnings if your tire pressure does any of the following, which are all user programmable. It does not rely on a % drop. You as the owner set the warning levels.
-Falls below the critical low pressure level. Usually set 10psi below cold inflation pressure (CIP).
-Temperature raises above the critical warning level (preset at 194 degrees, but can be changed by the user).
-Deviates more than 10psi from where the pressure should be for any temperature and driving condition.
A bit of an explanation on deviation and temperature compensated pressure, a SmarTire exclusive. If you have a tire that is set at 100psi cold, cold means at 65 degrees F. If the temperature is 90 degrees outside and you fill to 100psi, you are actually already low.
Now, take that tire and as you roll down the highway, the temperature rises, as does the pressure. On an average 85 degree day, at highway speeds, seeing temperatures in the 150 degrees range is normal. Your 100psi tire should now be running at about 118 psi. With any other pressure only system, how do you know if 118 psi is correct, or are you off? The SmarTire system knows what the pressure should be given the CIP, and the current temperature of the tire. It will let you know how far from the perfect pressure you are at. And if you deviate more than 10psi from perfect the alarm will sound, even if it is above the CIP.
Internal balancing products have no negative affect on SmarTire transmitters. None of those products will void the warranty. I have even tested them with liquid "fix a flat" type products and a liquid balancing product called "ride on" and neither had any problem.
Battery life is realistically in the 10+ year range for RV tires.
RE: Smartire system
The SmarTire system is the only system to give you temperature and temperature compensated pressure (deviation) in addition to just the standard tire pressure. This allows you to check your tire pressure hot or cold. While having just the pressure is good, having all the data is much better.
Battery life is designed to exceed 7 years at 50k miles per year. I intentially modified one of the transmitters on my SmarTire motorcycle kit to not go into sleep mode. That means the transmitter remained active and transmitted all the time. It lasted 3 years and 7 months. The motorcycle kit uses the same low pressure transmitters as tow cars.
Ever leave the steering column locked on a toad? The SmarTire system will notice when the tires start getting too hot before a blowout occurs, the competitors will not. Same goes for a dragging brake, or a wheel bearing going out.
