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Yellow brake warning light

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by TimmyZ, Dec 10, 2016.

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  1. TimmyZ

    TimmyZ New Member

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    A months ago, I started getting the yellow brake warning light on my Gen 3 2010 Prius III.

    I did not notice anything abnormal with the brakes. The light went away a couple days later by itself, but came back after a week. The light always comes up as soon as I start the vehicle and is not intermittent. I checked the braking fluid, it is between Max and Min and slightly below a middle line. There are no other warning lights on.

    I wonder if there are any diagnosis/test I can do before I go to the Toyota dealer and find out what is the problem( which I am reluctant to do because it costs 95 bucks to run the diagnosis there).

    I did notice the MPG went down from 45 to 41 this year. Maybe it is just the cold weather, and I have been driving less (~30 miles a week)

    Any help or advice is much appreciated!
     
    #1 TimmyZ, Dec 10, 2016
    Last edited: Dec 11, 2016
  2. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Have you done the brake recall?
     
    #2 JC91006, Dec 10, 2016
  3. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Welcome to Prius Chat :)!!

    How many miles on your Prius? Owned since new? Do you have a scanner or acces to one other than at a dealer? Any other maintenance done recently? Accidents or run over anything? What about the 12v battery?

    Keep us posted(y)!
     
    #3 Raytheeagle, Dec 10, 2016
  4. TimmyZ

    TimmyZ New Member

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    Thank you for your question. No, I have not done a recall on brakes. I went to Toyota recall lookup site to check, and there is no recall for my VIN. I have done two recalls on my prius in the past, one was a software update, another was on the air bag.


    Merged


    Thank you for checking out my post. My Prius has 83k miles on it. I bought it from an owner in 2014 when it had 57k miles. Only replaced brake pads and tires.

    I actually bought a ODB2 Scanner for this warning light but found nothing. No issues.

    3 months ago I did a Oil change with the dealer. A months later, had a problem with rattling noise, went to the dealer, found out it was just the heat shield was loose, it tightened it up and the noise went away . Also did an airbag recall and NYS inspection along the way. NYC roads are pretty bumpy, but I did not recall ran over anything. I did not have any accident with this car. I haven't replaced battery on this car for the past two years.
     
    #4 TimmyZ, Dec 11, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 11, 2016
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  5. tankyuong

    tankyuong Senior Member

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    You need techstream
     
    #5 tankyuong, Dec 11, 2016
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  6. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    How long ago did you replace the brakes? Did you replace them yourself? Did this issue coincide with the oil change at the dealer? Any other servicing performed as part of the oil change or the snugging up of the heat shield?

    What scanner did you buy?
     
    #6 Raytheeagle, Dec 11, 2016
  7. TimmyZ

    TimmyZ New Member

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    the brake pads were replaced at a local service shop in the Jan 2015. This warning light issue came up after the oil change (8/27) and the heat shield fix (10/8). I also did an air bag recall ( which installed brackets) and a annual inspection at the dealer shop.
    I bought the Veepeak Upgraded WiFi OBD2 Scanner OBD II from Amazon
     
    #7 TimmyZ, Dec 11, 2016
  8. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    If it is intermittent, it might be worth pulling a wheel off at a time and ensuring the connections are good and nothing is jarred loose. If the roads you travel have rattled the heat shield loose, it may have gotten to other things.

    Keep us posted(y).
     
    #8 Raytheeagle, Dec 12, 2016
  9. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    Can you post a picture of the warning light?
     
    #9 JC91006, Dec 12, 2016
  10. TimmyZ

    TimmyZ New Member

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    Sorry about the late reply, the picture is attached
     

    Attached Files:

    #10 TimmyZ, Dec 17, 2016
  11. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    That light means you should add some air to your tires
     
    #11 JC91006, Dec 17, 2016
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  12. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Or there is an issue with your TPMS sensors and there is a communication issue from them to the car.
     
    #12 Raytheeagle, Dec 17, 2016
  13. RRxing

    RRxing Senior Member

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    As mentioned, that is the Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) light, meaning it is sensing low tire pressure. Use a good quality tire pressure gauge and pump your tires up to your desired pressure. Recommended tire pressures and the TPMS light reset procedure are all in your owner's manual.
     
    #13 RRxing, Dec 18, 2016
  14. TimmyZ

    TimmyZ New Member

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    OMG that is it! Just added the tire air pressure and the warning light went away. I feel so stupid now by misinterpreting the warning light. Thank you so much for helping me figuring this out. THANK YOU
     
    #14 TimmyZ, Dec 22, 2016
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  15. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Are you sure, it being a 2010? Maybe double-check: contact a dealership, let them verify the VIN.

    Good you solved the mystery, btw.
     
    #15 Mendel Leisk, Dec 23, 2016
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