Big news—Tire Pressure Monitoring to become standard
If you read my RV reviews here or anywhere, you know that I feel that any towable RV should absolutely have a tire pressure monitoring system. Often, I’ve read about people happily motoring down the highway while a frantic driver pulls up next to them to let them know that the tire on their travel trailer has given up the ghost.
If you’re driving along and you don’t know that you have a problem, you still have a problem. However, if a tire blows on your towable RV and you find out because you lose control, you have a bigger problem.
Tire pressure monitoring systems typically warn you of low tire pressure, but many of these systems also warn you if one tire is much hotter than the rest. This can indicate a bad bearing or a failing tire. It’s always better to know about trouble before it becomes troublesome.
So I was thrilled to learn that the RV Industry Association has set a new standard that all towable RVs have tire pressure monitoring systems beginning in 2028.
Rather than establish a single, uniform enforcement date applicable to the entire industry, the Standards Steering Committee and the Standards and Inspection Departments agree that having each manufacturer implement TPMS installation at the start of their respective model year 2028 production process will ensure that all units in that model year are so equipped.
By monitoring VIN numbers during inspections and engaging in clear communications with manufacturer members on model year changeovers, RVIA inspectors will be able to accurately review compliance with the program requirement during normal inspection visits in 2027.
TPMS will be standard in 2028 towable RVs
The English translation for this corporate gobbledygook is that you’ll see TPM systems standard in 2028 towable RVs.
Now, do know that there is no standard for these. TPM systems can be simply mounted on the valve stems of tires, and they can be mounted on bands inside the tires on the actual wheels. As with any system or technology, there are good and bad versions.
The best systems tend to be banded systems, which also measure temperature. But these also tend to be more expensive, so you can guess that some RVs will get these, but most RVs likely won’t.
Having a banded TPMS is one of the many reasons I chose the trailer that I did, but you can guess it’s not a Coleman from Camping World. I’m always disappointed in towable RV manufacturers who don’t put a TPMS as standard, but I’m also not surprised.
Again, when we demand better, the RV industry is happy to oblige. But if price is the principal thing we use to choose, we get the Coleman from Camping World, which is the best-selling brand of towable RVs. You can read my thoughts on this here.
Clearly, a lot of buyers should be reading RVtravel.com! Please tell a friend.
Yeah, but will anybody buy those fancy smart trailers?
Something I’ve said and written many times is that the RV industry is absolutely ripe for foreign competition to come in, just as the domestic auto industry was in the late 1970s. There are so very many complaints from owners and prospects about RV quality, we have spotty availability of service, and an industry advocate that brags about quashing consumer-facing legislation.
I also wrote about the Chinese, in particular, with things like the Pebble Flow, Evotrex, Lightship, Aboard RV, and now the Skydream. They all have one thing in common: A lot of overcapacity of Chinese EV components are packaged in a travel trailer with the hopes that you’ll want one.
When Detroit was challenged by the imports, they were cheaper, more efficient, and better made than what we had here. These simple, very affordable, and remarkably efficient cars were a direct affront to what Detroit was up to.
These new, smarter trailers, too, are very different than what Elkhart is up to. But I’m not so sure they’re answering a question anybody is asking. My concern is that, when these companies go bust, their proprietary tech is going to become unserviceable. Now you have a very expensive paperweight in the driveway.
I’ve already written that the RV industry seriously needs a grumpy old guy consultant. These whizz-bang models are further proof of that.
Wow, Escapees is hugerer
A recent news release announced that Escapees has reached an estimated 160,000 members.
“This milestone is a testament to the strength of the Escapees community and the shared spirit of adventure that brings RVers together,” said Joel Holland, CEO of Harvest Hosts. “For nearly 50 years, Escapees has been dedicated to helping people explore with confidence. We’re committing to continuing Kay and Joe Peterson’s mission. We’re really happy that the club has grown to support more than 100,000 RVers on their journeys.”
Escapees was acquired by Joel Holland and the Harvest Hosts team, which has a strong marketing background. While there have been complaints from some as Escapees transitions to new ownership, there has also been growth through leveraging various membership packages.
These RV clubs can be a great resource for RVers, especially those who participate in the gatherings and events.
Starlink is a moving target
If you haven’t read it, Russ and Tiña De Maris shared how some folks renewing their Starlink service have seen a capacity surcharge for turning their service back on. There was also a video about this from the Mobile Internet Resource Center.
If you don’t follow the news, know that Starlink has become very popular as one of the best internet solutions for RVers (we all gotta get our RVtravel.com fix!!), with almost no competition for some.
The service was originally intended to enable people living in remote areas to have service. But now lots of you city folk are getting it, too, and the number of available slots in any given area is filling up in some cases. Hence, ol’ Elon is hitting you with a fee if you want to rejoin the party after parking your service.
There has been more noise from Amazon about their impending satellite-based internet service, but we’re still a ways off.
Unfortunately, Starlink’s head cheese is someone who likes to change his mind and does so without notice. Do know that I found cell-based internet very effective with my own Winegard system, but that doesn’t mean I have kicked Elon to the curb totally. Just yet.
More about Battle Born
Lastly, the Battle Born brand may have a deeper meaning. Our friend Mike Sokol interviewed Dr. Denis Phares from Dragonfly Energy, the overlords of the Battle Born brand, regarding videos about their product’s challenges.
Will Prowse, whose YouTube channel sparked the controversy after testing some followers’ batteries as reported here, has fired back in this video.
So what should you do? There are many good brands of less-expensive RV batteries nowadays, many of which have been put to the test on Prowse’s channel. I think there are enough choices that you can avoid the controversy altogether and save a bunch of money in the process.
To see all recent news for RVers, click here.
RVT1256b
I’m not impressed with RV TPMS currently available. I’ve purchased a couple for north of $500 each & find them to be very unreliable (tires disappearing/reappearing, display units deciding to turn themselves off, leaks with the screw-on sensors, etc.). Irene Iron Travels YouTube channel had an entire tire & wheel come off their rig and the TPMS never alerted them!
I’m changing out my TST Systems TMPS that came on my Brinkley with GM sensors that work with my truck’s main screen. This worked well on my previous Ember.
Tires coming off is a whole different enchilada. You should always check the lug nuts of your tires with a torque wrench periodically – how often depends on when the wheels were removed last. I’m going to say that the tire flying off has nothing to do with the TPMS and is absolutely the responsibility of the owner unless there was a freak catastrophic failure, but these are very unusual. Not checking the lug nuts is pretty common and is a huge mistake.
As for TPMS – there should be a repeater near the tongue of the trailer to prevent these disconnections. Let us know how the GM-spec TPMS works, though!
Interesting “interview” of Mike and Battleborn Batteries which was really a documented case of carefully written questions and answers. The interview was mainly about safety (which we are all worried about). However there is a big difference between something being safe and something actually working well for an application. A parked car is generally very safe compared to one moving down the road but of course we wouldn’t buy a car just to park it for safety. The fact that RVers are having these type failures compared to other manufacturer batteries suggests that BB batteries may not then be the best application for RVers (where we do a lot of our own maintenance and installation).
Its about time for the TPMS system to be mandatory. This will eliminate 90% of tire failures that people blame on cheap tires.
Great comparison of Detroit autos to RV competition Tony. Detroit had been making fantastic autos and then the 70s came with garbage like the Pinto, Mustang II, Pacer etc. We have Japan and other foreign automakers to thank for how good cars are today (recalls not withstanding). The RV industry could use a bit of robust foreign competition to have consumers see what quality actually looks like.
Thank you and I couldn’t agree more – now modern cars are better although the overwhelming tech has become a bigger source of recalls. I wonder how the Slate will do by comparison?
Amen to having temperature available in your TPMS system, having that may have saved me from a bad situation last summer. By the way, Ford’s OEM sensor system is non-banded and does provide both pressure and temperature. Also, please share a link where we can nominate you for the “grumpy old guy consultant” position. LOL.
“Tony Certified RVs” for the win! As Josh the RV Nerd says, R&D stands for “Rip off and Duplicate.” If a better quality RV comes to market in the U.S., the industry will create a faux version (because we consumers are not the sharpest knives in the drawer). Case in point, when Intec created a unique and popular travel trailer design, Grand Design’s R&D released a “new” trailer that mimicked the Intec on the outside. Still, the inside remained decidedly (ahem) “Grand Design,” for better or worse. Pleather, anyone? This will not be fixed until it becomes a matter of survival for the industry. Until then, the Coleman-quality trailers will remain the best sellers.
Tony, As someone who has been around travel trailers my entire life your assessment of smart trailers matches mine. I have seen this many times with the latest and greatest new RV. They will become expensive unrepairable boat anchors growing moss on someone’s back yard.
Even before Battleborn’s issues became headlines, we had chosen Big Battery.com for our system. More KW hours in far less space for far less money.
Smart camper? By whose definition? More complex, harder to fix, digitally dependent features that appeal to the lazy, do not represent progress, just profit. It sounds like the rv industry is going the way of the automotive industry, which seems to be circling the drain.
IRT “smart” RVs: While I’m never too impressed with RVIA, once in a while they do something to help consumers. Years ago they worked to make available an open source system for managing the growing “computerized” operating systems in RVs. Open Source allows competition and aftermarket products and fixes in these control systems so hopefully you do not end up with a boat anchor.
https://www.rvia.org/rv-c
Proprietary systems are what will kill your RV long term. Before you buy a “smart RV” or touch screen controlled RV ask about the protocol system.
Tony: Something to add to your reviews?
I did not know there was an open source for RVs – thank you for sharing. I will absolutely do a piece about this because open source is the best way to go! Thank you Mikal!
“Banded” internal TPMS sensors have two significant disadvantages right now. First, battery life. All of the brands I’ve seen have about a 4-year battery life. Who wants to be dismounting a tire from the rim just to change a TPMS battery if it lasts less than that?
Second, a few only display the tire pressure AFTER the trailer starts moving. That’s to save battery life but eliminates the ability to measure the pressure at any time when parked.
Just go with a “cap” sensor with a standard CR2032 battery and all-metal valve stems. And yes, install the signal repeater.
You aren’t wrong (of course) about banded sensors having batteries where the tires have to be accessed by removing the tire, but the batteries tend to last a good long while. I haven’t had issues with this thus far but, of course, my singular use case is just that – singular.
I love that my own trailer has banded tire pressure monitors and balance beads and Goodyear Endurance tires.
Funny why I keep buying the same brand of trailer over and over isn’t it?
I agree.
That said, the biggest disadvantage of the stem mounted sensors is that they really aren’t measuring the true internal tire temp…just the temp at the end of the stem. Still good enough to compare temps between tires, but it will be less than the true internal tire temp.
While that’s true, I don’t see how it matters. When a tire’s temp changes, so does the pressure. I have appropriate upper and lower tire pressure warning limits set, and I glance at the display periodically during drives, so I always know what’s going on with our tires. I really don’t need to know the tire temps.
Our TPMS saved the day Friday!
Hit a 3″ long Bullet Shaped custom lug nut.
Dead center of the tread!
TPMS alerted immediately was able to get to safe place just off interstate.
Tire remained in one piece.
Hope the SOB that lost this lost the whole tire and rim.
Lippert sources a lot of their parts and components from China so I fear most “American made” RV’s are a whole lot of China source parts cobbled together.
Like others, my fear is when my high tech Firefly G12 croaks, how much harness hacking will it take to replace it with a current generation module, switches or alternative module (assuming such even exists 10 years from now). Anyone who has Belkin WeMo’s in their smart home already understands how fun “sunsetted” hardware is.
Don’t get me wrong, I love what the touchscreens and apps do but I am concerned about longevity of support and parts availability.
My 2025 Ram 1500 came with trailer TPMS (and the in-tire sensors for it). I love it. Displays right on my dashboard screen. My regular mechanic set it up–his first time doing so–and reported it was really pretty easy.
I previously had a TST 507 system with the valve cap sensors. I did not like that part–you had to remove the sensor to adjust the air pressure. And you had to find a place to put the monitor. And it wouldn’t display all pressures at once–only one at a time, sequentially.
We have a 2022 Foretravel MH with a Valid TPMS system. They run off of internal TPMS sensors whose batteries start failing after about 2 years. The Valid system feels the need to notify me whenever any sensor goes online or offline. Battery replacement would require dismounting all 6 tires and rebalancing them. It’s kind of interesting that I never seem to have problems with any of our car TPMS sensors, required for decades now. Anyhow, I gave up on the Valid and we now use the Pressure Pro Pulse FX that works off of my phone and has screw-on, external tire sensors and can easily handle the tow car as well. Other add-on TPMS devices operate similarly.
An issue with the external sensors, especially on towed cars, is that they stick out and on metal tire valve stems, that can be a potential problem. If they get hit by a curb or at an automated car wash, the valve stem can break off. Once you’re at your destination, it’s wise to remove them from your tow car for that reason. It’s easy to forget that you still have them connected until it’s too late.