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Traction control light wont go off after crash

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by DirkG, Dec 14, 2017.

  1. DirkG

    DirkG Junior Member

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    Last Friday my car slid sideways in the ice hit a curb. We replaced the rim, the axel, the strut, and the lower control arm which was really bent. The traction light stays on though. The mechanic tried turning it off with his computer but it came back on as we drove down the road. What could be the problem with this? I was hoping it might go off on its own but its been a couple of days and hasnt. The alignment people told me not to get it aligned until after this was fixed and that an alignment wouldnt help with the traction control light.
    The rear tires didnt hit the curb, on the front passenger so nothing was fixed in the back.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    probably the speed sensor was damaged, or the wiring to it.
     
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  3. DirkG

    DirkG Junior Member

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    Is that the wiring going from the the fender, around the strut, and down to the hub? It was pinched between the spring and frame but didnt look damaged.
     
  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    idk, you'd have to look at the service manual, unless someone else here chimes in. there are a few threads here on the subject, if you can find them. might be easier to google.
     
  5. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Any chance the axle may have also gotten something damaged in the transaxle?
    If the axle got bent, could the splines or other components gotten damaged? Did they have to do any servicing to the brakes?
     
  6. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    That's the wiring to the abs wheel speed sensor @bisco is referring to
     
  7. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    In my view, since you've got the traction lights on, and the mechanic tried erasing it, it then came back, this tells me you've got a problem with the traction control system circuitry problem(s). If the fault isn't identified and fixed, no matter what scantool would be used to erase it, its sure gonna come back.

    Could you ask the mechanic for the specific codes on the car right now? And if possible, could he provide the freeze frame data(FFD: when the fault happened, and under what parameters).

    After clearing the codes, did you drive some cycles, to see what happens?

    In summary, postvthe code(s) here.

    Dxta
     
  8. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Given the circumstances, I'd put my money on the wheel speed sensor or wiring, far ahead of anything else. You can read in the repair manual all about how to pin down a problem and fix it. The circuit isn't complicated.

    There is also a dedicated wheel speed sensor test procedure (also described in the manual). You find a nice, empty street with enough clear distance to drive straight at around 30 mph for several seconds. You activate the test mode, make your nice straight run down the street, and at the end the blinking on the dash tells you whether all the speed signals passed or not. (If not, you get codes saying which ones didn't.) That's an easy test that should have been performed after doing anything like the kind of work done after your crash, and you can do it yourself after you find the issue, to confirm that you've fixed it.

    -Chap
     
  9. DirkG

    DirkG Junior Member

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    Thanks guys. I the axle wasnt so much bent as the control arm was and it was pushing it up against the frame cutting a quarter inch deep grove in the metal about 3 inches wide as the driver drove it back from the accident. Mechanic did the front brakes at the same time once we had it off the ground and saw there was just 2mm of pad left. Ive driven the car a couple hundred miles in the last 2 days. Ive noticed a very slight whir-whir-whir sound that makes me think the wheel bearing was damaged also. When it gets back into the shop next week, Ill send him this thread to see if he wants to post the codes if he did figure out the problem already. Ill also try googleing that sensor test and try driving around tonight and see what it says.
     
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  10. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    bad bearing can cause the sensor to act up.