Urgent:

[Flav]

Well, Im in Quebec city right now and drove about 11 hours from my home to here with a fried and right as we pulled into the hotel my ABS and hand brake light went off...but then i drove the car around later and no lights came bak on..fluke?
Also seeing a mechanic here is something I really don't think we could do (money money..)

 

[MaxPower]

The brake light could have turned on due to just-barely low brake fluid. I would check the brake fluid and see if it's borderline low. You can top it up, if it is. However, if the brake fluid is low, it most likely indicates a leak which needs to be addressed (probably a leaking caliper).

 

[CheeseHelmet]

Well, Im in Quebec city right now and drove about 11 hours from my home to here with a fried and right as we pulled into the hotel my ABS and hand brake light went off...but then i drove the car around later and no lights came bak on..fluke?
Also seeing a mechanic here is something I really don't think we could do (money money..)

I'm guessing it's just one of your wheel sensors acting up, nothing to worry about.

If you're really worried, you can pull the code from the ABS computer by following this procedure.

 

[Ride92]

The brake light could have turned on due to just-barely low brake fluid. I would check the brake fluid and see if it's borderline low. You can top it up, if it is. However, if the brake fluid is low, it most likely indicates a leak which needs to be addressed (probably a leaking caliper).

Listen to this guy. Check the brake fluid it's probably a bit low which is causing the light.

 

[SocialStealth]

From my experience its normal for stock calipers to start leaking after 100k miles.

Defiantly check the fluids. My ABS light came on once, it was a loose wire under my passenger's seat (side air bags)

 

[StealthWyvern]

The brake light could have turned on due to just-barely low brake fluid. I would check the brake fluid and see if it's borderline low. You can top it up, if it is. However, if the brake fluid is low, it most likely indicates a leak which needs to be addressed (probably a leaking caliper).

or low brake pads.

 

[wildo]

From my experience its normal for stock calipers to start leaking after 100k miles.

Defiantly check the fluids. My ABS light came on once, it was a loose wire under my passenger's seat (side air bags)

Are you positive on that? I also have side air bags, and they have a dedicated light in the dash. When you unplug either side connector under the seats, the air bag light comes on- not the ABS light.

 

[Ty07allstar]

or low brake pads.

Will low brake pads really trip the brake light? My brake light kept coming on then I would top off the brake fluid and it would go away. Mechanic told me he couldn't find a leak. Then the rear caliper started leaking and I got that fixed but the other day the brake light came on again, it will come on then it will go off randomly. I checked the fluid and it seems fine, not sure where it was to begin with. Hopefully it is low brake pads. What do you guys think?

 

[fred_spitfire]

I'm guessing it's just one of your wheel sensors acting up, nothing to worry about.

If you're really worried, you can pull the code from the ABS computer by following this procedure.

i would guess this, my abs does the same because i have a bad sensor sometimes lights comes up some time it doesnt.

 

[Flav]

Yeah it's def not a leak. It has to be the sensor..but i guess I'll just learn to live without abs for awhile (not that I ever use em lol)

 

[CheeseHelmet]

Yeah it's def not a leak. It has to be the sensor..but i guess I'll just learn to live without abs for awhile (not that I ever use em lol)

If you get the code you'll know exactly what's wrong (see the link I provided above, it's really easy to do). I was experiencing the same problem as you and it turned out that one of my rear abs sensors was really dirty. After cleaning out all the rust chips around it, my abs started working again.

 

[Flav]

Oh yeah, i forgot you posted that. I must had forgot cuz I was so worried my car wouldn't make it back to Ontario lol.
Ps. I see ur from Montreal..man I gotta say, the highways over there are insane compared to what I'm used to! Glad I made it out alive LOL.

 

[Flav]

Oh yeah, i forgot you posted that. I must had forgot cuz I was so worried my car wouldn't make it back to Ontario lol.
Ps. I see ur from Montreal..man I gotta say, the highways over there are insane compared to what I'm used to! Glad I made it out alive LOL.

 

[CheeseHelmet]

Ps. I see ur from Montreal..man I gotta say, the highways over there are insane compared to what I'm used to! Glad I made it out alive LOL.

You're lucky you didn't die in one of our bottomless potholes

Motorists from Ontario generally don't fit in well with the aggressive Quebec driving style, you people are too nice.

 

[Flav]

LOL..typically.
I actually loved driving in Quebec. My type of drivers over there.
Also a lot of mazdas and Subaru's. My 2 fav cars

 

[CheeseHelmet]

Come to think of it, a few months ago I was heading home from Toronto and about 200km in my CEL turned on. The proceeding 400km were rather nerve-racking but I made it home, the code was for my stupid downstream O2 sensor. I learned my lesson though, now I always keep my OBDII scanner in my car's toolbox.

I believe it was after that trip that my ABS started acting up as well... P5s don't like long road trips

 

[Flav]

Apparently!
So you were saying your sensor was dirty, u cleaned it off and that was that? I think I'll take a stab at that.
Is the sensor hard to get to? I need to search up on where it is and what it looks like LOL

 

[CheeseHelmet]

Apparently!
So you were saying your sensor was dirty, u cleaned it off and that was that? I think I'll take a stab at that.
Is the sensor hard to get to? I need to search up on where it is and what it looks like LOL

First you need to know which sensor is causing the problem (if it is in fact a sensor), by pulling the code. Once I knew which one it was, I tested the sensor from the giant abs connector in the engine bay (you just measure the resistance across two contacts, and you can check it's output voltage by spinning the appropriate wheel). Once I knew the sensor and wiring harness was still good, I just used some compressed air to clean around the wheel speed sensor, I didn't even have to remove it from the car. I suspect that some rust from that metal disk that protects the brake rotor somehow fell off and messed with the sensor.

All of this information is at the end of the 04_BRAKES.PDF file in the service manual.

 

[808mazdap5]

You're lucky you didn't die in one of our bottomless potholes

Motorists from Ontario generally don't fit in well with the aggressive Quebec driving style, you people are too nice.

HA! you should come to hawaii and go for a drive