Tire Related Problems of the 2009 Volkswagen Rabbit

Tire Pressure Monitoring System problem

I want to inform you, that there may be a defect in the first generation tpms valve adapters used in the 2009 vw Rabbit, and other similar vehicles. In cold weather, part of these valves can become brittle and snap. This is due to the fact that the aluminum used in these valve stems corrodes over a short period of time, causing the valve itself to weaken. Over time, this has the potential to cause a situation that may eventually cause all the air to escape the tire suddenly - something this system is designed to prevent. In addition to cold weather, in the northeastern united states, where sand/salt are heavily used to DE-ice the roads, this may speed up the corrosion of the valve. I cannot in good conscience, and for my own safety, install these same potentially faulty valves at $60/ea back on the tire. I fixed the problem, by installing a regular valve stem in it's place for $5 including labor, which solved the issue. I had this done on all four tires, removing the faulty valve stems completely, and replacing them with standard stems that will not corrode, and break. The valve failed completely when the tpms light came on in my vehicle, and I went to check one of the tires to make sure it was full with air. When removing the air gauge, the valve snapped, causing all the air to rush out of the tire. The cost of replacing these valves is prohibitive. They cost $60 each, and you need to replace all four valves at once - due to tire rotations, you would never be able to tell which tire had the new valve if you replaced only one. That's $250 each time to replace the valves, which presents a unreasonable, and unnecessary burden to the average working person.