Was just out in Toronto about 30 mins ago driving - its snowing out, and all of a sudden I had 3 lights come on, and 3 warnings one after the other ;

Check Braking System

Check VSA System

Check ABS System

Nothing in the feel of the car changed while continuing to drive - but when I came to a stop at a red light, I tried to turn off the car, and nothing would happen. (I have a 2009 Acura TL FWD Tech).

I then pulled into a parking lot and again tried to push the engine start/stop button to turn off the car, it wouldnt. I then held the button for about 5 seconds and it turned off (so I think the kill switch type of thing the car has).

Turned it back on - same lights/warnings came on again, called Acura Roadside Assistance, the guy on the phone had no clue technical knowledge. While talking to him and driving, all the warnings/lights went off on their own.

Not sure what to do - or if I take the car to the dealership if they will even be able to know or check anything.

Any ideas or help would be appreciated.

 

2009 Acura TL FWD Tech, Auto Tranny - 46,000KM - almost 16 months old - no issues before

 

Take it in!!! Dealer will pull the stored codes and fix the problem.

 

Yup, take it in. Those warnings are basically saying something failed in the ABS system (which VSA is a part of) and ABS has been disabled. Not having ABS (especially in snow) is bad. The fact that the lights went off does not mean everything is magically fixed. It should still be under warranty, so I wouldn't worry too much about repair costs or anything. Just get it looked at ASAP.

As an aside, I had these sorts of warnings come on I think twice in the 9+ years I owned my CL. In one case it was a sensor, I don't remember what the other was. It's usually not a major part that's failed, but as soon as something, even minor, goes wrong, the whole system gets disabled along with everything that uses that system (like VSA).

 

Had the same thing happen to me on new years eve. I was waiting for my wife to finish Working maybe for about half hour with the car off headlights on and radio on.after bout half hour tried to turn the car on and all those alerts came on. Called Acura and told them what happened they said they would send someone to give me a boost and I told them that I did not think it was a battery issue. I just told them to send me a tolltruck.At that point it was a Friday at 9:00 all dealers where closed do to the time and also they were all closed on Saturday.tolltruck got there I just told him to give me a boost and the car turned on and all the warnings disappeard. I learned something that night never leave your car radio,lights, on for maybe not more than ten minutes. I think it being cold and that I had the car off lights on radio on maybe drained the battery enough to mess with the computer. Car has been running true free since then. Take in the car maybe it's the battery.

 

You are right, a drop in the battery voltage below a certain threshold can indeed trigger this situation. This is especially possible in bad winter weather when driving at a crawl with many accessories on (radio, HVAC, headlights, wipers, perhaps the rear window and side mirrors defroster). In these cases the battery is in deficit of power and even a monentary drop in voltage can trigger all sorts of eror codes. Then, even if volateg returns to normal as a result of the engine operating at faster revolutions, the lights will stay on until a full reboot, which Mahmoud performed by keeping the start/stop button depressed for a few seconds. The fact that the stop button was not responding to the normal quick pressure would tend to confirm a series of voltage-related fault codes rather than a localized ABS problem. In any case, a code scan by the dealer will show if the fault codes were intermittent (in whcih case they can be safely reset) or are still there.
As a rule of thumb for modern cars with powerful sound systems and extensive on-board electronics, one should not exceed 2-3minutes with the radio on and engine off.

 

Thanks guys - was due for my oil change anyways so will have it looked at, its good to know they can pull the history of the codes from the car.

 

wmahmud

So whats the dilly with your braking system? The stealership find anything wrong? Curious cause my whole braking system went on vacation as well but came back after a little while...

 

This happened to me when I had a TSX loaner before. I turned the car off and turned it back on and everything was gone. Never saw the warning messages again. I told the dealer when I went to pick my car back up and they said they would check it out. I never did find out what caused it though.

Hopefully, the dealer will find out what caused the warning lights to come like that. Keep us updated.

 

Same thing happened to me a month ago during what for us was a severe snow storm (6 inches of snow). I got stuck on a hill with some ice and the wheel spin caused the lights to come on. I searched around and found out that if you have excessive wheel spin the system can think that there is a malfunction and throws up the lights so you can go get it checked. Well, the next time I drove around the neighborhood without any wheel spin the lights all went away. My searching also found that you can have clogged up the wheel sensors which can cause a genuine fault since its not getting a proper reading.

 

The exact same thing happened to us that happened to wmahmud on January 14th. I did notice that in this default mode we also lost 4wd and just had FWD as there was 6 inches of new snow on the road at the time.
At first the service advisor thought we should have snow tires on the TL and this wouldn’t happen. I told him he was nuts (well that is what I implied as I can’t state exactly what I told him here). Later the Tech confirmed the ABS sensors were overheated (from the codes he read). After the service advisor hosed all the wheel wells off from all the ice and snow the Service tech cleared the codes and we were on our way. To date no more problems. So In a way I’m glad to see we were not the only ones to have this happen but I hope they find a solution to an obvious inherent malfunction.

MARKEV

 

exact same thing was told to me, some snow/ice must have got in the way of some sensor which threw it all off - they didn't bother checking any history of codes no issue since that day, so i just left it

 

Just took it into the dealer for its first oil change at 5,000 kms, asked for synthetic. While we were there asked again about the malfunction and they had no real answer.
KEV

 

I thought you were all required to have winter tires up in canada during the winter months? Hell, I'm quite a bit south in MA and I have winter tires. I wouldn't consider it nuts considering that all seasons significantly lose their ability to work below freezing and in snow/ice.

I was riding with a friend one time who complained about the traction control light going on from time to time. We went for a drive (with snow and ice on the ground) and he didn't understand that light meant that the wheels were slipping as he was on ice and snow. He looked at be dumbfounded and just said "But I have AWD, why would my wheels spin?" I'm not saying you don't understand that, but I would imagine that the dealer gets more people that think something is wrong, so recommending winter tires is not that crazy.

 

Not all of Canada has laws requiring snow tires. But the point I was making is that the service writer stated this would not have happened if we purchased snow tires.
Later confirmed by the tech the sensors were full of snow and the system malfunctioned.

MARKEV

 

Ahh - yea i see now, that is a strange statement made by the SA.

 

So sort of in the wrong forum but I have an 06 TSX that just did the same thing. I believe it's the low battery issue that was discussed earlier. I was sitting in the car talking on my cell phone through the handsfree system in the for a good 20 minutes. When I tried starting the car, it had trouble doing so (like the battery was dead). It did start and showed me all of those error messages (ABS, Brake System, VSA). I drove the car for a block and turned it off. When starting it again, everything went back to normal. Lesson learned, don't do anything to unnecessarily drain the battery!

 

yup just replacing the battery or gettin it fully charged will fix the problem all those lights appeared becuase the battery voltage drops below 5.0v which too low to operate the control units for each system so it triggers the lights on...happens all the time

 

in my opinion,this can be a problem:
My EL400 tires (base model) only have tread for wet driving, and I tried to get it through (kind of a last snow day - Utah)
So when I crawling up a small hill like (20 degree)
I turned off the VSA (snow was there)
and the light turned on like stated above.
I stopped my car.
turn off the engine.
and turn on, then problem was gone.
I think basically just the tires.

 

My 06 Acura TSX was doing all kinds of weird things. Its almost like it had Gremlins. All the electronics would reset-peep almost like a 1-2 second reboot and a few times it almost kiiled the car engine while I was driving in traffic. It seemed everytime I had the radio going and then I turned on the AC/heater is when it would act up. So yesterday after making a LD drive the ABS -VSA error came on and then I knew I had a much more serious problem. Sure enough after reading these forrums I went to find my battery paperwork and I had a 65 month battery installed in July 2009. So I removed the battery caps and sure enough I had 3 cells that looked bone dry. I used almost a full quarrt of water to fill them all up. I started the car up and the ABS-VSA Braking error went away. These full service oil change places are suppose to look at your battery cells. Hopefully all my other Gremlins also go away. I always suspected it was the battery. Thanks for posting!!!

 

i had this issue... i fixed it myself..

let me ask you, did you install anything on your car? hid fog lights? any thing at all?

 

guys, I dont think we need to be so panic. 46'000 miles, did u change your tires. I bought my TL during the end of 2008, tires were so bald during 2010, only 28'000 miles. during winter of 2010 (i tried to get through it) with Bridgestone tires which owners in 4G FWD 2008 to 2010 have suffered to drive. during some snowy days, i used to drive with VSA off, and one time, i got the same problem.i was madly hopelessly "crawling" up at 15 degree angle incline, .my front wheels need to spin like a fan to move. SO, i dont think it is the sensor faulty. it is the tire problem. your wheels have to spin so hard to get some grip from those pricey but cheap Bridgestone. and this leads to the complication for ABS, brake system, and ta da to calculate ( those things cannot recalibrate by themselves, they can only work in certain conditions that they had been programmed). i switched to Eagle GT for summer, Firestone winterforce ( im too in love with it now) for winter. never see that problem again.
and guys, in my opinion, 245 mm width, front wheel only, when they are bald, they set us to the situation that against the rule of winter tire set up which is thin in horizontal, but thick in vertical; apply this theory to Our tires??? thick in horizontal and thin in vertical.
god helps us here. I do the 235/50 r17 for winter tires now. we wont need to turn off the VSA. let me tell you, the stability control system of Acura is one hell of fella compared to those out there. get to know it,and suit yourself with it, u wont never be regret choosing this car.
i owned all of my car previously from Honda and Acura. I never had to say " holy mama this car is suck" its not the car,or VSA. its the matter of tires. trust me, a 1999 accord with 4 snowtires can outtake a lot of high end with wrong tires at wrong time out there.

 

I had the same issue, it turned out to be a bad cell in the battery causing a permanent voltage drop. Battery replaced, problem gone.

 

I have the exact same issue but the car is not turning on. Car was parked and turned off. I came back into the car, had the seat warmer and heating on but nothing else. I tried to turn the car on and it made a 'grrrr' sound and did not turn on. I tried to turn it off and on a few times but no luck. Just wondering if anyone else has had the same issue.

The dealerships are closed now so i left them an online message. I will have to tow the car over to the them in the morning.

Any help would be highly appreciated.

 

^^ sounds like a dead battery.

 

Dead starter ?

 

I can try to boost it and see if that works.

I will know if it is the starter if the boost doesn't work.

 

Thanks gents! The boost worked. Funny enough i just got this car serviced last week and they said the battery was still good.

Should i still drop by the dealership and get some tests done? Should i be worried about the ABS and VSA system lights or were they just turned on due to the battery?

 

^^ it was due to the battery,i would have the battery load tested,it is possible that the battery may need to be changed soon.

Switching off the car and restarting should take care of the check lights.

 

^thanks. lights are gone for now.

 

You are welcome ,keep an eye on the battery ,the TL's are known to have a weak one.

 

hey guys,
i changed my springs and the abs rear driverside sensor wire snapped off. took it to dealer they said $240 to repair it. can't i just get the part cheaper and do it myself? is it a safety hazard? 240 sounds way too much

 

Yes. Pretty much always!

 

yes... one more real case with battery issue cause the same. I have 2011 TL AWD M6. Battery suddenly gave up while in DMV's line. ( my daughter taking driver's license test )

Basically the computer went crazy when the voltage drops. After put a new optima RED 35... all went well.

 

Last night some big light came on (ABS) but went off quickly but would come on again and the car was weird. Wouldn't go, then would lurch. Couldn't see what was happening. Computer screen, etc would go off. I think it flashed ABS SHWA and a big screen of something not working.
Made it home. When I stopped the car, it was as if it was possessed in some zombie film. Lights flashed off and on erratically. I took video of what was happening so I could see what had been happening, but apparently only a couple of still shots that showed nothing.
This morning, the car grinds like a dead battery.
Only unusual thing is that I have been using the CD player for the past week and when I had it on last night, seemed to exacerbate the problem. Also, a month ago I had the tires replaced.
I'm waiting for AAA, but any ideas?

 

I'm hoping the problem is easily solved as above poster with "gremlins" as dry battery cell. It's very hot here in Florida, but I have never had cells dry out in 23 years.
Can I just use any water while waiting for AAA? I teach at 1 so, if I need to rent a car, I'll have to do it soon.

 

This was the most unusual battery problem I've known in all my years. And I'm old <g>
AAA says it was a defective battery and they replaced it. I hope they're correct. But I still wonder about a possible CD drain or problem and/or an A/C problem. Only time will tell.
Thanks to this forum for keeping me calm!

 

I inadvertently ran my battery dead last night listening to my "high powered" stereo. I was listening for at least an hour, then tried to start it to no avail. I needed a new battery anyhow, so I replaced it today. Now I'm getting VSA, ABS, and hill assist warnings. They are not going away, at least not with the vehicle idling. Do I need to drive it around the block to clear them? BTW, I checked all of the fuses under the hood, including the fuseable links, and they are all good.

 

...I also performed the reset procedure, which entails shorting the two battery connections together and switching the key to the ON position for 10 minutes. This had no effect.

 

Did some more searching around online and found the solution. Had to short pins 4 and 9 on the OBDII connector then follow a short procedure to clear the ABS code, then the VSA code. The hill assist cleared itself after doing so. No more codes and all is good. I shot a video of the procedure and will post the link once it is uploaded.