ABS, braking power low and drive start control malfunction lights

[JMRussell]

Finally dropped mine off at the dealer

So I just got my call back from the dealer after dropping it off this morning finally. The service adviser said my issue was because I installed an accessorides remote start kit he said the tech unplugged the “little box” I had mounted for the app access. I can’t see how it would play into my issue but if it’s a problem with that then I’ll take my losses. I’m sure as soon as I get down the road I will see the lights pop on again because I doubt they test drove it and I’ll be taking it right back to them. I’ll update when I get a chance to get it back tomorrow. Hopefully I’m wrong and they’re right but we will see!

 

[BlackWorksInc]

So I just got my call back from the dealer after dropping it off this morning finally. The service adviser said my issue was because I installed an accessorides remote start kit he said the tech unplugged the “little box” I had mounted for the app access. I can’t see how it would play into my issue but if it’s a problem with that then I’ll take my losses. I’m sure as soon as I get down the road I will see the lights pop on again because I doubt they test drove it and I’ll be taking it right back to them. I’ll update when I get a chance to get it back tomorrow. Hopefully I’m wrong and they’re right but we will see!

Does this box tap into the CAN lines and/or plug into the OBDII? I've seen a lot of aftermarket stuff ranging from alarms/remote start to those little insurance dangles cause oddball codes and intermittent issues from time to time. I've never gotten a solid answer on why they'd cause issues, I'm guessing it has to do with the fact that those devices aren't "timed" or synchronized in any way with the communication structure of the vehicle. So maybe sometimes they talk on the CAN Bus when they're not supposed to and freak out some modules?

 

[JMRussell]

Does this box tap into the CAN lines and/or plug into the OBDII? I've seen a lot of aftermarket stuff ranging from alarms/remote start to those little insurance dangles cause oddball codes and intermittent issues from time to time. I've never gotten a solid answer on why they'd cause issues, I'm guessing it has to do with the fact that those devices aren't "timed" or synchronized in any way with the communication structure of the vehicle. So maybe sometimes they talk on the CAN Bus when they're not supposed to and freak out some modules?

I’m not sure what harnesses they plug into, it was about three different piggyback connections under the dash and steering column. I got a call from the dealer saying the gateway is bad and it won’t be covered under warranty because of the remote start kit and I’m going to be out a little over a thousand dollars for the repair. That doesn’t include the first repair they charged me 300 for for just unplugging it.

I’m really at a loss of words for this whole situation and am not sure what the best way to proceed is. If I call accessorides I’m sure they’re not going to own up to having their units cause issues like this.

 

[JMRussell]

I’m not sure what harnesses they plug into, it was about three different piggyback connections under the dash and steering column. I got a call from the dealer saying the gateway is bad and it won’t be covered under warranty because of the remote start kit and I’m going to be out a little over a thousand dollars for the repair. That doesn’t include the first repair they charged me 300 for for just unplugging it.

I’m really at a loss of words for this whole situation and am not sure what the best way to proceed is. If I call accessorides I’m sure they’re not going to own up to having their units cause issues like this.

Update, central gateway was replaced out of warranty and the lights are back as of today. $1,300 and no remote start later and my issue is ongoing. Not sure how I’m going to proceed yet.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Update, central gateway was replaced out of warranty and the lights are back as of today. $1,300 and no remote start later and my issue is ongoing. Not sure how I’m going to proceed yet.

I would get Accessorides to either warranty the repair of the gateway per Toyota's documentation that it failed because of their device or get them to state in writing that their product could not be the cause of failure of the gateway ECU and have Toyota (you will likely have to take it up with corporate side, rather than the dealer side) reimburse you for the repair under warranty. Either way someone should be warranting that gateway ECU in my personal opinion. If Toyota is confident that the 3rd party device was the cause of failure then the 3rd Party is responsible for covering the damage their product caused, if it wasn't the 3rd Party device, then Toyota needs to own up and cover it. Either way, it's one of their responsibilities as long as you purchased the correct unit from Accesorides and installed it per their instructions.

As for your issue, what DTCs, symptoms do you still have again?

 

[JMRussell]

I would get Accessorides to either warranty the repair of the gateway per Toyota's documentation that it failed because of their device or get them to state in writing that their product could not be the cause of failure of the gateway ECU and have Toyota (you will likely have to take it up with corporate side, rather than the dealer side) reimburse you for the repair under warranty. Either way someone should be warranting that gateway ECU in my personal opinion. If Toyota is confident that the 3rd party device was the cause of failure then the 3rd Party is responsible for covering the damage their product caused, if it wasn't the 3rd Party device, then Toyota needs to own up and cover it. Either way, it's one of their responsibilities as long as you purchased the correct unit from Accesorides and installed it per their instructions.

As for your issue, what DTCs, symptoms do you still have again?

I understand most newer cars can be very touchy when it comes to their electronics, but if they replaced and reprogrammed the gateway after removing the remote start then I don’t see why I should even reach out to accessorides because it doesn’t seem like that was the root cause. I think my dealer took a shot in the dark and missed the mark just like a couple others in this thread have experienced as well. I’m going to see if they’ll refund the out of pocket charges before bringing it back to them. We’ll see how that goes lol. I don’t want to hold it against them cause I understand this isn’t something like a wheel bearing going bad or something that a shop would see regularly, but I don’t want to be taken advantage of or my pockets being emptied either while it’s being dug into.

My symptoms are “brake power low”, “antilock break system malfunction”, “pre-collision system malfunction” “cruise control system malfunction“ warning messages after about 10-30mins of driving. When the lights are on abs, traction control, cruise control, and any other driver assist functions do not work. The vehicle still drives and stops just fine, it just doesn’t have any bells and whistles when the lights are on. The only noise I’ve really noticed is the break pump every once in a while but I haven’t noticed any pattern to that, it may just be it’s normal operating sounds/vibrations. It’s not a knock or clicking sound like another member mentioned earlier in the thread. Started last year right around the time is started getting cold in my area like another member mentioned in this thread as well. Ive tried the “power break fix” that was mentioned and it didn’t work. I scanned a couple codes with my stepdads scan tool just because I was curious, C1468, C1469, C146A, C146B (solenoid circuits for each wheel), and P1578 (break system malfunction). Other than just scanning the codes I didn’t do anything to dig deeper other than searching the internet for others who might have had similar issues.

 

[4r-4ever]

my brake/gas pedal fix did not comeback since february. we'll see when the cold weather hits again in winter.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

[MENTION=696849]JMRussell[/MENTION]

I was saying that in regards to having some documentation to lean on either the dealer or the aftermarket company to cover the cost under warranty. The dealer/Toyota should be able to prove that your remote start caused the failure, otherwise like you said, it was a shot in the dark that they're technically responsible for. Run into this a few times myself, either because I took a shot and missed or because TAS advised starting with something and it didn't fix it. Either way the dealer and/or Toyota would be responsible for the cost under warranty not the customer unless it was explained before hand, in my experience, having good notes has been key to having Toyota cover components even if it was a "missed shot" because I was following their diagnosis procedures and/or guidance from TAS/FTS.

 

[tpete]

Sorry, was off for a while and just saw your post. So the noise is coming from the brake pedal. When you first put into "D" and begin to move forward, you hear the normal noise, which kind of sounds like a gear grinding, but is normal and I believe it's the ABS pressurizing. However, mine will continue making that noise about every 8-10 seconds and I can see the amps drop on my battery dash gauge every time. I had my brakes replaced recently, but it took about 3-4 months before this started to happen.

 

[YotaTurd]

Same issue. 2022 TRD Pro. Just this past weekend, we're driving along the road when all of a sudden a warning chime sounds and the dash lights up with a bunch or warnings/malfunction alerts:
ABS
Brake system
Braking power low
Drive-start control system
Multi-Terrain select system
AWD system
Blind spot monitor
Pre-Collision system
4-low

Vehicle still drives ok, ABS doesn't work...and of course once you get some of these errors, so many things are dis-engaged.

I tried the brake & accelerator trick also mentioned on this forum/tread, but it made no difference.

Has Toyota actually been able to address what seems to be a fairly common issue or are they still grasping at straws? (ABS module? Wiring harness? Neutral safety switch?, etc). This all happened instantaneously. Never had this issue on my last four 4Runners.

 

[CptMunch]

Having the exact same issue on my 2021 Venture, i recently had the brake fluid flushed at the dealership. Any thoughts if a brake fluid job could have been incorrectly done causing this? Having it towed to the shop and will update here with what they say.

 

[suvman]

Trailer Hitch Wiring

Thanks for all the important information.

I have experienced the same bunch or warnings in my 2021 highlander and the dealer replaced my battery and now wants to replace brake switch. I looked under my car at the wiring for my Curt trailer hitch to discover that the ground wire for the Curt taillight converter had broken off and was dangling. I re attached white wire to ground, and have just driven 30 minutes with no warning messages.

I hope this can help others with this perplexing problem.

I will update if there are any changes.

Two days and still working fine. The Curt trailer adapter module was somehow interfering with the brake voltage when the ground wire came loose.

 

[Foreverunner]

Same issue here
21 orp 40k miles
20 min into my drive in a cold morning at -7 F

 

[Alex412]

Same issue with my 2020 Limited AWD with 43k miles. I purchased it used last year and it does have a Toyota Certified warranty. I'm sure they exclude any brake related parts so this may be a fortune to repair based on the previous comments.

The problem started over the weekend with temps in the 20s.

Antilock Brake System Malfuntion Visit Your Dealer
Braking Power Low Stop In a Safe Place See Owners Manual
Pre-Collision System Malfunction Visit Your Dealer


I attempted the brake / accelerator solution and I was able to get it to reset once. After a few days of driving like this the warnings pop up pretty soon after starting the truck. Randomly while driving they all go away and everything returns to normal operation. Having the problem intermittently is almost worse than consistent. I don't know if I should take it in for repairs or wait it out to see if warmer temperates make the problem go away.

Is there a fix from Toyota for this problem yet? It seems like more people are reporting the issue so I'm hopeful that Toyota will have a solution that is covered by some sort of warranty.

 

[Foreverunner]

My problem went away now that temperatures came up to 37F

so I guess nothing is permanently broken.

 

[Jeremy556]

Same issue with my 2020 Limited AWD with 43k miles. I purchased it used last year and it does have a Toyota Certified warranty. I'm sure they exclude any brake related parts so this may be a fortune to repair based on the previous comments.

The problem started over the weekend with temps in the 20s.

Antilock Brake System Malfuntion Visit Your Dealer
Braking Power Low Stop In a Safe Place See Owners Manual
Pre-Collision System Malfunction Visit Your Dealer


I attempted the brake / accelerator solution and I was able to get it to reset once. After a few days of driving like this the warnings pop up pretty soon after starting the truck. Randomly while driving they all go away and everything returns to normal operation. Having the problem intermittently is almost worse than consistent. I don't know if I should take it in for repairs or wait it out to see if warmer temperates make the problem go away.

Is there a fix from Toyota for this problem yet? It seems like more people are reporting the issue so I'm hopeful that Toyota will have a solution that is covered by some sort of warranty.

Brake booster and ABS system would be covered under bumper to bumper and powertrain warranty. Brake parts that are not covered are wear items like pads/rotors. Let the dealer diagnose and fix your problem.

 

[iiTzDIESEL]

Having the same issue on my 2021 4Runner SR5.

Issues arose about a week ago, again in cold temps (0°-20° for about a week, wind chill much colder than that). Seems like the cold temps are the only constant with this problem.

I had tried all the troubleshooting steps that I found on this forum including accelerator/brake fix.

The lights are on pretty consistently, I have had instances where they wouldn’t come on until I have drove about 15-20 minutes.

Made an appointment with Toyota and first code was a VAPS code that popped up. Which made some sense because I had left the gas cap off for a short drive after refilling. (Dumb mistake, I was distracted by the gas station charging me $120 for $40 in gas)

Went to pick up the vehicle and when I got in. All the lights were on, just like they had been. Now they’re saying a drivers side rear wheel speed sensor is bad and of course it’s on national back order, could be weeks or months they said.

They told me the vehicle is safe to drive, but will continue to update.

 

[Smashbaandicoot]

Same issue

2022 TRD OR.

Same issue here with every malfunction flashing.

What are the exact steps you guys are doing with the gas/brake method that is getting the lights to finally turn off?

 

[YotaTurd]

Same issues popped up again after multiple attempts by Toyota to repair.

I've had a rear-wheel speed sensor replaced because that was Toyota's initial diagnosis. They erased the codes as well, but it didn't last long before the issue popped up again.

It went back to the dealership where they then diagnosed it as a problem with the "ABS Brake actuator." Actuator was replaced and they cleared all the codes again. This appeared to work and things were good for about 5-6 weeks, until the same problem has popped-up yet again.

Right now, it's an intermittent issue. The alerts may come on (which subsequently results in various systems being disabled) but then it may go off and all is good. Sometimes it takes a few minutes, sometimes they are on for days.

Toyota really needs to find a fix to this problem, as we are seeing it more an more. So far every "solution" they have come up with has not been a permanent fix to the real issue.

 

[Blackgoat]

Update:

Dealer called and said a 2021 4Runner came in on Saturday with the same issue and that they’ve already done a wheel bearing and master cylinder on it and still not fixed.

He said on mine they’re going to start with a brake booster and that it won’t be here until earliest Friday. He said on the 2021 the brake booster is backordered and won’t be here until the 25th.

In the meantime I’m driving around a 2020 Rav4.

Thats why I love this site!!
My Wife's 2021 woth 26k just went in the shop on Friday for the exact same thing..
I was going to post because the dealership we are forced to goto is HORRIBLE.
Already they said it was going to be 2 weeks to get part from California. I told them its only a 4 day UPS or a 1 day transit via UPS NDA .
They said thats what they were told to tell us .
Also They tried to force her to rent a car from them.. So I called Toyota and got their opinion ... We picked up the loaner on Saturday..
Then the stealership called with a quote to trade it in with a brand new 2024 just out of the blue..