Help! Emergency Brake left on for 30 miles, and warning lights on!

[DaveLev]

HELP!
My wife and kids are on a road trip from Los Angeles to Seattle. They stopped for gas in Portland, but when she left, she left the parking brake on and drove for about 30 miles before 3 warning lights came on - take to dealer immediately, engine warning, etc (don't know specifics).

She stopped the car, shut everything off, looked at/sniffed the brakes, and doesn't notice any problems.

She called a dealer in Portland, who recommended she limp it back to them on the side of the freeway with hazards on.

She fired up the car, and only one light - check engine? - stays on. She is driving it to the dealer right now.

Using the 'information' view on the display, it shows that her gas (ICE) engine is firing up, as it should, and everything else looks, sounds, and works like it should.

What do YOU guys think, good or bad, about this? Please post responses...and be kind.

My wife and kids are trying to make it to a family reunion in Seattle in the next 3 hours, so I'd appreciate quick responses.

No jokes needed about leaving the parking brake on, please...that's oblivious and doesn't fix the situation.

[DaveLev]

Wife is at dealership; they're checking the brakes to see what happened.
The lights came on were "check engine", the red triangle with exclimation point, red check brakes, and the VSC light.
After she shut it down and let it cool for 10 minutes, when she started it back up, the check light was on right away. Within minutes, the original lights came back on - the VSC light and the (!) take to dealer light.

She is in Salem, in the waiting room, looking for cartoons for the kids to watch.

[David Beale]

My guess is most of the warnings were triggered by the unusual situation. They will reset them, check the rear brake shoes for excess wear, and she will be on her way. It's pretty hard for the e-brake to "damage" anything else, unless they catch fire. It's rear only, BTW.

[Mormegil]

Brake pads and maybe even the drums might be in need of servicing.

[wsmac]

I can't say much about what this might do to a Prius, but I did this many years ago to a company van.
I drove with the e-brake on from Las Cruces, NM to El Paso, TX, the whole trip being probably 40 miles? (can't remember the exact mileage between the two... 35+ miles?).

While it did smell, and the wheels were hot to the touch, I apparently caused no major damage to the system/vehicle itself.

Hopefully your car will be alright without needing major servicing.

I would think it might matter how tight she had the brakes applied, not to mention time and speed.

What else could go wrong in this scenario other than heat buildup and wear to the rotor and pads?
Since it is the mechanical side of the brakes... could the heat from that reach the brake fluid in the hydraulic system?

I have to say... I'm glad your family is alright... meaning, I'm glad nothing happened on the drive other than the warning system reacting.

[DaveLev]

Emergency brake was on for 17 miles. She was going about 75 MPH.

She is at Capital Toyota of Salem. The Service Manager is out to lunch. The car is in the queue to be seen. They are closed tomorrow. "We'll get you in as soon as we can - we're slammed right now with people trying to get their cars worked on before the 3 day holiday".

The kids are being good, knock on wood.

The man at the counter in the service department - not a manager - assured me that they have no less than 5 prius-certified master mechanics. I think this means they are ASC certified, and probably took a prius class to learn about them. I am nervous that once they get it up on a lift - whenever that happens - they will not know what to do with the codes.

[Sufferin' Prius Envy]

Three hours from Salem OR to Seattle WA? Won't happen. Sorry.

Not to say the obvious that she shouldn't have left the brake on . . . but this is a good example of why NOT to put the brake on in the first place. For safety reasons, building codes EVERYWHERE in the USA do not allow gas pumps to be built on a hill. Even a car left in neutral with brakes off at a gas pump will not roll away on its own.

[McDonald]

Wow, can't even imagine trying to drive with the emergency brake on. I notice the force pushing back while driving, i.e. sluggish movement, etc. if I leave it on for 3 feet while I'm rolling back out of a parking space.

[DaveLev]

Dealer looked at codes, reset it, and sent her on her way. She went 8 miles, and alert came on again - all 3 same lights came on. Now air conditioner is humid - hot - not blowing cold, and the brake light came on for a few blocks and just turned off.
Dealer told my wife that the 2004 Prius had a known issue around 60,000 miles, but they don't have the part to fix it. Sound fishy to anyone?

[Tenebre]

Originally Posted by Sufferin' Prius Envy

Not to say the obvious that she shouldn't have left the brake on . . . but this is a good example of why NOT to put the brake on in the first place.

If you don't use the "emergency brake", it'll eventually stop working. The best way to keep it in shape is to use it. I don't know about the US specced version, but my euro specced prius has a red warning light on the dashboard telling the driver that the "emergency brake" is engaged.