Traction/ABS/Power Steering lights turn on and engine loses power?

ELMANUEL

MEMBER
2013 SUBARU BRZ
2WD
MANUAL
140,000 MILES

A few days ago, my power steering light started turning on while driving and after about a minute it would turn off. Then my ABS, Traction Control, and Power Steering lights all came on at the same time. Then after a minute they would all turn off. The next day the same thing happened but this time my stereo and all of my dashboard turned off. I was able to keep driving and then all my lights came back on. A couple minutes later though it happened again so I pulled over and then my car turned off and wouldn’t turn back on. I had to have my car towed back home. Put a new battery in and the car turned on just fine. Next day on my way back home after work the same lights came back on but turned back off within seconds. I took my car and had the alternator and battery tested and they both passed. Today on the way home the same thing happened again. The car started to lose power until I hit the brakes and slowed down under 50 MPH and then it would regain power. Pulled over and car was fine while parked. Started driving again and had no issues for the remainder of the drive home which was another 25 minutes.

1 Reply

JACOBANDNICKOLAS

MECHANIC
109,644 POSTS

Hi,

This is an interesting one. I will say that if the ABS, traction control, and steering light all came on at the same time, it could be something as simple as a wheel speed sensor. However, without a proper diagnosis, it will become a guessing game which usually results in a lot of wasted money and time.

So, here is what I suggest. What needs to be done first is to have the can-bus scanned. CAN stands for controller area network. Basically, the different modules are tied together via a few wires.

In most cases, a traditional scanner will not retrieve codes other than powertrain codes. In this case, we need to check the ABS module, PS module, and so on. If you perform this type of scan, it will retrieve codes regardless of the module storing them.

Here is a link that explains how it is done:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/can-scan-controller-area-network-easy

I could provide basic testing for the wheel speed sensors, but since it seems to be an intermittent issue, it won't be reliable. There should be codes stored in the modules related to what you experienced.

Let me know if this is something you can have done or if you have other questions.

Take care,

Joe

Traction/ABS/Power Steering lights turn on and engine loses power?

1 Reply

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