Do valve stems really need to be changed everytime?

[Astro14]

i have a freind that has a tire machine and balancer. he said i could use it anytime . i want to start buying my tires online and installing them myself. i have always had this done at DT in the past. they always replaced the tire valve. i have never had a bad tire valve in the many years i have driven.

So is it really needed to replace them with every tire change?

In other words - you’ve been doing something that works.

And now, you want to change what you’ve been doing?

 

[atikovi]

My Dodge and my zx40 DESTROY valve stems.

Miles ZX40? Are there still some on the road?

 

[Rmay635703]

Miles ZX40? Are there still some on the road?

Yep, sadly no one will insure it.

 

[atikovi]

Yep, sadly no one will insure it.

Huh? Thing wont go over 25 mph.

 

[CarLuver]

ok ordered some valve stems and balancing weights. going to be fun playing with the machine

 

[atikovi]

Did your friend consider the liability? I wondered if it was a smart idea whenever I sell a tire on Facebook to let the buyer use my tire machine to mount it. What if he tears an arm off, does my homeowners policy cover that?

 

[chainblu]

I have my own machine. As easy as it is to replace the stem with the tire mounted, it is my personal policy to replace the stem any time I mount a tire, new or used. It's just cheap insurance, dirt cheap.

 

[ctechbob]

Umm....no. You don't need to remove the tire to replace the valve. Just break the bead and slip in a new valve stem. I've had my own tire machine for 20 years and still have most of the bag of valve stems I bought at the same time. Unless they are obviously damaged, I don't change them.

Good for you?

Not all of us have a tire machine and a leaking valve on the road means a roadside tire change, which in most cases is a big pain in the butt. Then toting the tire somewhere to have the stem replaced and putting the tire back on the car.

 

[SHOZ]

I use full-metal valve stems so I don’t really have to worry about it that much. I hate the flimsy rubber stems because the rubber will eventually crack and leak. It can be subtle where you just air up a little more often. Also, they wobble when you’re trying to put air in the darn things’.

They metal stems come in several styles and sizes. If you go this route, be sure you get full-metal and not just metal sleeved rubber stems.

View attachment 170488

Got a set of them on my Enkies for the last 8 or 9 years. And the the original TPMS metal ones are still going on my '08 Accent. Thought the threads for the caps are pretty corroded.

 

[bernau]

If it’s those rubber bung type, I would change it every tire change, those can dry rot and break or leak.

 

[ctechbob]

Got a set of them on my Enkies for the last 8 or 9 years. And the the original TPMS metal ones are still going on my '08 Accent. Thought the threads for the caps are pretty corroded.

Yea, I used them on my RPF1's, they would last a couple seasons and then I'd have the rubber gaskets replaced with new ones. The heat took its toll on them and after one of them started leaking in the middle of a session I decided to just replace the grommets every few tire changes.

On a street car, they'd last a ton longer.

 

[SC Maintenance]

The three reasons shops want to change the valve stem are A) there low quality tire jockey will invariably break the bead right next to the stem (a no-no) at some point and damage it, B) they usually charge for it, and C) they don't want any coming back because the valve stems leak.

I have had really old ones develop a slow leak where the stem meets the rim, so if I wasn't sure it was fairly new, I would change it.

For TMPS, most you can change the seals.

Funny story, I took a tire into Firestone for a flat repair, when I came back my TPMS was in two pieces. The guy at the register tried to tell me the electronic part was simply floating around in the tire. I told him no, his idiot tire jocky broke it while breaking the bead by breaking it too close to the valve stem. Yep, hard to find good help. My last trip to firestone - or that one at least.

 

[eljefino]

If you buy fifty on ebay the price comes down to about 20 cents per unit, which is the same price, not adjusted for inflation, they sold for a hundred years ago.

Keep them in a toolbox drawer, in the dark, away from ozone and they'll last decades. They have a preservative wax on them, same as tires.

I have had them develop cracks, like a tire will hold air perfectly, but press sideways on a bad stem and hear a hiss.

Back when DTD had decent online sales, a pack of four valve stems at an inflated price was the last gimmicky gotcha at checkout.