Orange Electronic P409S Retrofit Tire Pressure Monitoring System

Monday, April 16, 2012

Orange Electronic P409S Retrofit Tire Pressure Monitoring System

Product Details

Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
ASIN: B002DYH586
Item model number: P409S

By : Orange Electronic

Product Description

The Orange Electronics Retrofit Tire Pressure Technique continually monitors tire pressure in all 4 wheels, and helps deliver a safer ride. This kit has been created for vehicles that did not come with a factory tire pressure monitoring kit. The sensors function a military specification lithium-ion battery with a projected five to 7 year battery life. All sensors come total with a distinctive valve stem assembly which incorporates a ball joint fitting allowing the sensor to be positioned in the optimum location to avoid any possible harm in service. All sensors are assured 100 percent compatible with the automobile.

Orange Electronic P409S Retrofit Tire Pressure Monitoring System

Customer Reviews

I have found this to be the best of three different after-market TPMS that I've tried. This valve attachment location has proven more durable than the band technique. The simultanous four-time readout is more user-friendly than those readouts that require a button to be pushed repeatedly to change among multiple tires. This unit has proven appropriately sensitive to low tire pressures on multiple occasions. Economical. Highly recommended.

After having read reviews and researched Hella TC-400 and Orange Electronic P409s kits, I decided on the P409s because it is less expensive, less complicated to install, displays 4 tire pressure readings simultaneously and has one small display unit (vs a display unit AND receiver that the TC-400 requires).
I installed the sensors myself onto brand new 18" BMW aluminum alloys and had my shop use a dial-type torque wrench to torque the valves (included in the kit) down to 4 newton meters (~35 inch pounds), exactly as the Orange Electronic P409s manual states. If you don't have a dial type torque wrench (not clicker), then you'll need one to install this kit. I then had them mount the tires on and as soon as they pressurized the tires, the sensors turned on.
The kit includes absolutely everything you need: valve cores, valve stems, valve stem caps that say (sensor inside), and sensors. The only thing you need are wheels and tires.
Finally, it takes about 5-10 seconds every time you plug the head unit in for the sensors to link up to the head unit. And the digital readout is very accurate, providing the identical reading that my handheld digital tire pressure gauge gives. What an awesome kit, from the cockpit of my BMW 850i (which has a lot of insulation, I was concerned about wireless reception), I can get the signals from all four sensors. There are no reception issues to report.
You can manually set the high and low (pressure and temp) alarm thresholds, and upon trigger of an alarm, the sensor in question lights up red on the display and it starts beeping. If you pressure the top button once you can silence the beeping. It's amazing to watch the tire pressures as you drive, you can watch them rise and see how high they really do go, this helps a lot because I use monitor my pressures closely to equate to the amount of grip I'm get during some of my performance drives on curvy country roads. Having this kit has allowed me to tweak my optimum cold tire pressures in order to properly balance tire life and grip.
I highly recommend this product, especially for high performance sports or luxury cars. In my humble opinion, the P409s is the way to go for after-market TPMS.
IMPORTANT NOTE: It is useful to note that when you buy the kit, if you plug in the head unit, the sensors will NOT LINK UP to the head unit UNTIL you install them and pressurize the tires. They have a sleep mode that goes into effect when there is no pressure in order to preserve battery life while the unit is sitting on a shelf. So if you buy the kit and want to "test" it prior to installing it with tires/air, it won't work until you actually pressurize the tires and then plug the head unit in.