VSC cutting in - couple of scares this week

[Nick W858]

Hi all - would appreciate your thoughts. 

On  a few  occasions this week when setting off, the car (MK 4 98 LS400) has been really slow to set off and pulling out at roundabouts has on two occasions left me exposed. I have noticed the VSC light has been flashing during these occasions but the roads have been bone dry. Also on pulling up in the final second of braking the car does a little skid as if the ABS is just kicking in for a moment - not sure if the two are related.

Car otherwise seems to be ok, was serviced a few months back, it is overdue the cambelt service but not sure if anything related to that would be contributing to the VSC issue.

Any thoughts welcomed.

 

 

[Beejay55]

Do check that all tyre pressures are as they should be.

[DaKa]

I'm not the expert here, but I would refer you to some previous posts in this subject including those on the SC430 section as the ABS/VSC problem is almost certainly related.

I can however confirm that the cambelt is not anything to do with your braking issue.

It seems that the car has sensors that can corrode making the car think it is in a skid or that one wheel may not be turning?

[runsgrateasanut]

Being ignorant of VSC I looked it up and maybe you've read this item or it could help?  http://www.engine-misfire.com/toyota-vsc-light/

 

[Newbie1]

Ruling out your alternator, Battery and earths is probably a good start.

[Nick W858]

Thanks guys, tyre pressures are fine, Battery was new not do long ago, will read the link and I did think it could be sensor related, at almost 20 years old, things like corrosion coul cone into play. In the meantime while the roads are dry and I'm just pottering around, the VSC is switched off so I will see how that impacts things.

[Beejay55]

From experience, I can say that this is a heavy car, and without VSC, cornering can be exciting - when you don 't want it to be.  Be careful.

[steve2006]

At end you feeling a pulsing from the brake pedal accompanied with a groaning noise just as the car comes to a stop?

[Flytvr]

Never had this on a Lexus, but did have something similar on a Golf. Was due to the fact that the steering wheel wasn't aligned correctly when track rods were adjusted. With the VW, the traction / stability control calculations were made using the input parameter of the steering angle. Of course, this could be a complete red herring! 

Good luck!

[Nick W858]

1 hour ago, steve2006 said:

At end you feeling a pulsing from the brake pedal accompanied with a groaning noise just as the car comes to a stop?

No nothing through the pedal just a very low speed little skid as car comes to a halt

[Nick W858]

45 minutes ago, Flytvr said:

Never had this on a Lexus, but did have something similar on a Golf. Was due to the fact that the steering wheel wasn't aligned correctly when track rods were adjusted. With the VW, the traction / stability control calculations were made using the input parameter of the steering angle. Of course, this could be a complete red herring! 

Good luck!

Thanks Dav - that sounds very technical! Have emailed my service manager at Lexus Hull to see if he has no thoughts although I'd prefer playing to have it fixed at my local garage - the LS is so old now it does not do dealer visits wherever possible.

[Yoda400]

On 5/29/2018 at 11:38 PM, Nick W858 said:

Thanks Dav - that sounds very technical! Have emailed my service manager at Lexus Hull to see if he has no thoughts although I'd prefer playing to have it fixed at my local garage - the LS is so old now it does not do dealer visits wherever possible.

Hi Nick, did you get any further with this?

[Nick W858]

Hi - thought I'd email my service manager at Lexus to pick his brain, he suggested that it might be a fault with one of the ABS sensors or the ring that the sensor takes it reading from. I have booked it in for a quick diagnostic check at the dealers on the 22nd June.

[Yoda400]

Sounds sensible. My ECU isn't communicating with any readers so looks like the caps in the ECU are shot, so i'm trying to get those sorted then I can read my codes. My symptoms are the VSC light flashing when setting off every now and again (and slow too), when it happens it's only for a second or two...