Our vehicles can be programmed to the new sensor IDs via a few options. There is no need to go to the dealer, since that appears to be the hang up here.
Note that all PI sensors (genuine Toyota, denso, whatever) must be activated before they will transmit data. This is accomplished by installing the sensor and tire, then raising pressure, lowering pressure, and raising it again. Electronic “waking” of the sensor via an outside device as tire shops are used to does not work.
Also VERY IMPORTANT: for programming these sensors you’ll need the ID code printed on the body of the transmitter, which is what will be programmed into the vehicle. If you don’t note that before install, you’ll have to have a tire shop use their reader/scanner detect the ID after pressure-cycle activation. I personally keep all these numbers in my broader maintenance spreadsheet for future use.
Programming options:
Techstream is the official Toyota diagnostic software, and cracked versions are available on eBay for very reasonable prices. Note that you’ll need two things here.. a PC to run it on, and an adapter cable. TS is often sold with “MiniVCI” cables that will do basic diagnostics but will NOT program TPMS (or do “live data” in TS). The “VCX Nano” adapter cables are a bit more expensive but have given a number of us great results both for TPMS and live data. I personally consider this the most powerful option.. it can be a little onerous to set up, but gives you virtually all the tools a dealer would have to perform diagnostics on a given Toyota, and if you do your own work at home it is extremely valuable.
The Carista smartphone app and Bluetooth OBD dongle is also effective at programming TPMS. There may be other brands but this has been a go-to for many of us when we don’t want to crank up the TS laptop. You’ll need a temporary subscription to their Pro level but it is affordable and effective. You can also do diagnostics.. or use their dongle with another app like OBDFusion which is even more powerful, and can be configured to run custom dashboards for monitoring vehicle vital signs during roadtrips.
There are new handheld Techstream interfaces that require very little setup and no laptop. Great option for many, though do have some quirks due to their non-Toyota programming of the Toyota diagnostic interface.
First off… Huge thanks to @misteracng for bringing this to my attention. Figured I’d share as many will likely benefit from it. I got zero interest in needing a laptop to make tweaks to my truck... Got it to try to disable the auto telescoping steering wheel, figured it was on Amazon, so if...
forum.ih8mud.com
Take it to a tire shop. They can sometimes struggle with this (in my experience and others)
Get an Autel TPMS programming tool.. can program clone sensors and has the great feature of being able to detect IDs if they weren’t noted. This will only do TPMS however, so for many home mechanics I consider this money better spent on other diagnostic tools. But it’s specificity does make it easy to use.
