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Preparing for Brake Actuator R&R// complication?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by ipetakitty, Sep 19, 2019.

  1. ipetakitty

    ipetakitty Junior Member

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    Hi all

    I have a few questions and concerns before I get into this, but first a bit of back story.

    I have limited time home on weekends to do this work and am otherwise stuck on an island most the week so currently I’m posting from memory.

    This car (2006 prius base model/230k Miles) belongs to the lady and previously i have rebuilt the Hybrid battery with new cells, repaired the CM, changed transaxle fluid etc.. I’m quite familiar with wrenching on cars and motorcycles and have found a pictorial for the removal of the actuator.

    I do NOT have Techstream and hoping to possibly find somebody in or around Bellingham, Washington willing to assist with the bleed procedure.

    Several months ago the car was driving fine until the front driver side wheel blew out causing some damage to the inner fender. While changing the tire I noticed there were 2 wires which had been unplugged/torn.

    I apologize I do not currently have the photos nor am I very familiar with the anatomy of this car...these wires run along the inside of the fender to the front of the wheel where there’s is a large electrical unit just behind the bumper.
    At first there was a dummy light for the brakes which came on, I switched the wires and it went away. I believe there’s is still 1 connector end without a match and I see no where to plug it in. I am concerned there may have been unknown damage to this section of the vehicle relating to these ’mystery wires’, and possibly a root cause for what followed (though likely coincidental).

    Not long after the blowout we became aware of the ‘barking’ upon braking and noted the more frequent and longer intervals of the pump as well as slight jerking at very low speed light braking. There was no warning lights for a while, but the noises continued to evolve.

    Fast forward to VSC, BRAKE, ! And whatever else that lights up when the actuator begins to fail, which is what my research led me to. I did not heed the warnings at the time(against most people’s better judgement) believing if it failed I would still have manual braking, that I would have to be prepared to stomp harder.. mostly because fixing the car was not an option at that time. The car has gotten worse to the point of the continuous beeping sound and loss of actuator function. Don’t worry it’s parked, nobody’s taking that risk anymore.

    I’m sorry for the long post, to recap;

    Is it possible there is unknown to me damage from the blowout which may have contributed to actuator failure?

    What are those wires in the front left fender? I assumed 1 was a wheel sensor for the abs...

    WHat is the electrical unit in front of the left front wheel?

    Aside from remove/replace and acquire Tech stream, is there anything I may need to know before proceeding?

    If you’ve made it this far thanks for bearing with me and Please help! :)
     
  2. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    My best advice is to get friendly with the manuals (more info).

    The New Car Features manual, in particular, is your introduction to what all the stuff in the car is, and what it's for, and how it does it. The diagrams there will help you with a lot of "what's that thing there?" questions.

    For the ones it doesn't answer, the Electrical Wiring Diagram gives you several ways of making a positive ID, from finding something by location in the Location and Routing section, to identifying it by the wire color codes and connector shapes.

    And then of course there's all the diagnostic and R&R information in the Repair Manual.

    Did you ever retrieve any brake trouble codes when you first had the warning lights? Even the two-digit blink codes, which don't require a special scan tool?
     
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  3. Dxta

    Dxta Senior Member

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    I think the wires you are talking about are the wires that connects to the wheel speed sensor. Its routed from the wheel hub, then straight in the fender, and that's all. It works with the actuator though.
    Have you assessed the wires for any strain in them, that may have caused any opening in the braking circuit, repaired the wires there already?

    Connecting the wires only won't fix it. You need to get a scan tool to clear the codes, and see what happens.

    As regards the barking sound, the actuator isn't working any more. Probably has an internal leak,and that's where you jeep hearing that noise. It's trying to hold and pressurized the system, but its unable.

    PS: you got to test all the fuses and the ABS motor relays at the hood too.
     
    #3 Dxta, Sep 20, 2019
    Last edited: Sep 20, 2019
  4. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    Dont let the car sit too long without at least starting it. Perhaps running stuff to cycle the traction battery a little bit. Lots of horror stories of traction battery’s going bad from sitting too long. You mentioned to replaced the main battery, brand new or used?
     
  5. ipetakitty

    ipetakitty Junior Member

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    Thanks for he responses guys.

    To answer some of your questions;

    No I have not retrieved any codes not even the blink codes.. I suppose I could start there when I get to the car next

    I will have to study the wiring diagram and inspect again closer to the damage done to the wires and identify which they were

    The battery was rebuilt with 2k1toasters kit over a year ago, the 12v was replaced at the same time and the car has been sitting just under 2 months at this point
     
  6. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

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    2 months! I hope you disconnected the 12v. You need to start that thing and cycle the traction battery pack.
     
  7. ipetakitty

    ipetakitty Junior Member

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    So I’ve just finally had the chance to read the blink codes, it appears i needs to be digging into a repair Manual for information in regards to these codes bc I anchor finding nothing on them otherwise.


    ( ! )
    36 41 44 52 57 69


    Abs
    32 42


    Vsc
    43 45


    (_!_)
    24 44 68
     
    #7 ipetakitty, Sep 30, 2019
    Last edited: Sep 30, 2019
  8. ipetakitty

    ipetakitty Junior Member

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    I’m sorry for bumping this thread like this..

    Can anybody out there help me decipher these codes?

    I’ve not been able to find any information searching, it seems I would need a repair manual...

    I don’t exactly have the time or resources to continue investing in This vehicle. Seeing as the car was driving fine until the brake failure, I was anticipating replacing the actuator and having it towed to the dealer to run the bleed procedure.

    Now after having a basket full of (unknown) codes pop up I’m feeling a little in over my head, and doubtful about my original plan. I suppose I’d like to be able to know if there are any major red flags in those codes outside of the things I already know about the car

    For some comedic value and true honesty I will share the fact that this car was supposed to have been gotten rid of months before these issues ever came up, however, due to my partners unwillingness to let it go at that crucial moment i had give up my 1g 4cyl Tacoma which undoubtedly is still running just fine today, tomorrow, next year and possibly even a decade from now...

    Prii....
     
  9. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Yeah, that's where they are. If you get your hands on a searchable PDF of the manual, I usually look for the two digit codes by searching for the two digits with a slash in front, so for 42 I would search for /42

    That works because the manual shows the diagnostic codes as the full five-character code (as you would see in Techstream), a slash, and the two-digit blink code. So searching for slash blink-code usually takes you right there.

    Then you might have to page up a little to make sure which code table you've landed in. There's a separate one for each light that's blinking, so you need to search until you've found the right code on the right light.
     
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  10. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

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    Your car has at least two problems: brake actuator and the left front wheel speed sensor.

    There may be additional faults related to the braking system; the two-digit codes you retrieved are not well documented and it would be better for you to use Mini VCI to retrieve the actual diagnostic trouble codes that the skid control ECU has logged.

    Perhaps the "large electrical unit" behind the bumper which you described in your original post is the engine coolant recovery system canister and pump. This is related to the engine coolant system and not to the braking system.
     
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