RX300 VSC and Engine Man. Light

PCM · March 12, 2019

My apologies in advance, I have seen this thread somewhere but cannot find it ...

Driving home tonight in my beloved RX300, the amber engine management light came on and the VSC light.

Stopping and starting made no difference.

Once home I did undo the petrol cap - - no whoosh. I'm not sure if that's significant or not.

Happy to take it to the garage but are there any obvious checks an incompetent DIY'er can do?

Regards,

Piers.

😧

Jaystar77 · March 16, 2019

Unfortunately the first step with warning lamps is normally to check the logged fault codes and go from there so without an OBD reader it's a bit of a guess for the average DIY'er.

Still well worth your time casting your eye around the engine bay wiring and components in case something is visually suspect. Hope fully it's something obvious (and cheap!)

In some cases I think the VSC is tripped if the engine throws a fault so it should just be one initial fault rather than two separate issues.

PCM · March 16, 2019

Update... I hope.

Borrowed a reader from a colleague. The 1 code mentioned a Knock sensor. P0330 I think ...

Car was still driving but in limp mode I think. ( Never happened to me before...! )

Having 'researched' on the internet, I tried a 'reset' by disconnecting the Battery for a few minutes.

Reconnected the Battery ( found the Battery strap that secures it very loose. ).

No amber warning lights. Driving normally.

On its first re-start I need to hold the throttle pedal down as it idled, but having now driven about 30 miles, it's all back to normal.

Fingers crossed it is.

Why? I DID go through a large flooded puddle too fast. Water ingress?

Don't know. So fingers crossed. Limpness gone.

BachelorDays · March 16, 2019

Hope it's not because of the puddle because that means a likely exposed wire. I think the knock sensors are pretty hard to access on your engine so not easy to check connectors.

I'd still do a bit more with the fuel filler cap. A clean around the filler neck can help too. Do check the rubber seal ring inside the cap as well. You never know.. Just be extra careful not to drop any dirt down the filler pipe.

Hope it stays away. Gave me a scare when the dash lights lit up on my first real motorway run after buying the RX.

PCM · March 16, 2019

2 hours ago, BachelorDays said:

Hope it's not because of the puddle because that means a likely exposed wire. I think the knock sensors are pretty hard to access on your engine so not easy to check connectors.

I'd still do a bit more with the fuel filler cap. A clean around the filler neck can help too. Do check the rubber seal ring inside the cap as well. You never know.. Just be extra careful not to drop any dirt down the filler pipe.

Hope it stays away. Gave me a scare when the dash lights lit up on my first real motorway run after buying the RX.

Yes, I 'did' the filler cap this morning, as an extra...

PCM · March 17, 2019

23 hours ago, PCM said:

Update... I hope.

Borrowed a reader from a colleague. The 1 code mentioned a Knock sensor. P0330 I think ...

Car was still driving but in limp mode I think. ( Never happened to me before...! )

Having 'researched' on the internet, I tried a 'reset' by disconnecting the battery for a few minutes.

Reconnected the battery ( found the battery strap that secures it very loose. ).

No amber warning lights. Driving normally.

On its first re-start I need to hold the throttle pedal down as it idled, but having now driven about 30 miles, it's all back to normal.

Fingers crossed it is.

Why? I DID go through a large flooded puddle too fast. Water ingress?

Don't know. So fingers crossed. Limpness gone.

Limpness back :(

( Off to Japex soon )

PCM · March 24, 2019

Had a C1201 also.

All reset at the garage.

50 miles and all clear but if it comes back it'll go into the garage next month ...

BachelorDays · March 24, 2019

All of a sudden going through that puddle becomes more relevant. You can upset a speed sensor with even a high speed car wash spray. This sensor will also cause a limp mode (which the fuel cap/o2 sensor et al faults won't).

I hope the garage did look at the sensor for any broken insulation etc. Also a quick visual of the wheel hub.

BachelorDays · March 24, 2019

Do you have the full list of codes they got from the car?

PCM · March 24, 2019

2 hours ago, BachelorDays said:

All of a sudden going through that puddle becomes more relevant. You can upset a speed sensor with even a high speed car wash spray. This sensor will also cause a limp mode (which the fuel cap/o2 sensor et al faults won't).

I hope the garage did look at the sensor for any broken insulation etc. Also a quick visual of the wheel hub.

The garage took a quick look when I took my wife to collect her car.

They checked the code(s).

There were 2 in total, the P0330 and the C1201.

They cleared them and the plan is hat it goes back in if the issue occurs again.

We shall see.

If it does go back in I'll mention your points.

Japex are very good.

PCM · April 14, 2019

Car back to me tomorrow.

New knock sensors and wiring loom.

PCM · May 6, 2019

Well...

After 2 new knock sensors ( had both done ) and a related wiring loom, and had the plugs done whilst my engine was disembowelled,

and about 400+ miles later, all sees fixed.

Fingers crossed.

Not cheap but I feel worth it. Love my car.

ColinBarber · May 6, 2019

Glad it is now okay. P0330 is typically a knock sensor fault rather than wiring or ECU so you shouldn't have any more issues.

The-Acre · May 6, 2019

9 hours ago, PCM said:

Well...

After 2 new knock sensors ( had both done ) and a related wiring loom, and had the plugs done whilst my engine was disembowelled,

and about 400+ miles later, all sees fixed.

Fingers crossed.

Not cheap but I feel worth it. Love my car.

I'm glad you've got things sorted, but being nosey, how about an "approximate" repair bill figure?💰🔧

PCM · May 6, 2019

1 hour ago, The-Acre said:

I'm glad you've got things sorted, but being nosey, how about an "approximate" repair bill figure?💰🔧

About 1k in the end...

( A lot, but worth it to me ).

PCM · May 6, 2019

Just now, PCM said:

About 1k in the end...

( A lot, but worth it to me ).

Genuine knock sensors at not cheap!

The-Acre · May 6, 2019

39 minutes ago, PCM said:

Genuine knock sensors at not cheap!

Tell me any genuine part that is! Much better to spend that sort of money on a vehicle you've had for a while and that you're familiar with than giving up and buying something else that could be a Pandora's box!