The causes of an ABS light to come on and go off are malfunctioning ABS, bad wheel speed sensor, loose or bad wiring to the ABS sensor, low brake fluid, bad ABS module or even a bad wheel bearing.
ABS sensors and wheel speed sensors go bad due to vibration and sometimes accidental damage such as when changing the brakes or tires and wheels.
ABS sensors can also simply wear out over time and stop working and they are usually built into the wheel bearing hub and you would sometimes need to replace the wheel bearing hub to replace the wheel sensor.
The life expectancy of an ABS sensor is around 8 years or 96,000 miles.
Some ABS sensors will last the life of the vehicle and can last 10 to 15 years or sometimes longer depending on how often you drive and how many miles you put on your vehicle.
When your ABS pump and ABS system is working the brake pressure should be temporarily reduced and your brake pedal should feel like it's pulsating when you brake hard.
When the ABS is working the ABS temporarily reduces your braking pressure on the wheel and prevents wheel and brake lock up and helps to maintain steering and control of the vehicle.
When you brake and your ABS is working you will feel a pulsation in your brake pedal and it indicates that the ABS system is working properly to improve control and safety of the vehicle.
You can reset an ABS pump and ABS system by disconnecting the battery for a few minutes or by using an OBD2 scan tool.
Disconnect the positive cable from your car battery, then let the electrical system's residual power drain by activating the headlight switch. This method can sometimes reset the ABS warning light.
ABS affects driving by helping to keep the vehicles wheels from locking up and allowing you to stop smoothly and help you steer in emergencies when you need to stop quickly.
A failing ABS or non working ABS can cause your wheels to lock up and cause you to skid in the event you need to suddenly stop.
ABS failure will feel like you're trying to brake and stop on ice as the brake pedal starts vibrating for a second and the brakes are grinding or pulsating when braking as when you try to brake the brake pads will have trouble stopping the vehicle as it will take more effort to push the brakes and the brake pads will be braking and not braking several times per second which makes it difficult to stop the vehicle and the wheels will usually eventually lock up when braking hard with faulty ABS.
Pulsating brake pedal and brakes is the most common symptom of ABS failure.
If you don't fix your ABS then it can cause you to have trouble stopping the vehicle fast and safely in the event you need to suddenly brake hard.
It could then cause you to possibly lose control of the vehicle and it can take longer to stop the vehicle.
You can still drive with ABS and traction control light on but your ABS and traction control will not work and you may not be able to control the vehicle properly in the event of you needing to stop quickly or when on slippery or icy roads.
It's best to get the ABS and traction control light and system checked out and fixed as soon as possible but the vehicle is still okay to drive with the ABS and traction control lights on.
An ABS light that comes on after changing a tire is most often a result of accidentally disturbing or damaging or bumping a wheel sensor during the removal or installation of the tire.
The wheel speed sensor relays information to the ABS and anti lock braking system so you should check the wheel speed sensor and see if it became loose or moved around or the wire became broken or disconnected.
Although in some cases the ABS light may come on for a short while if you changed a tire or put on a spare tire that is smaller and eventually the ABS light should go off.
Changing brakes can also affect ABS and cause the ABS light to come up.
Common reasons for the ABS light to come on after you change brakes or replace brake pads are low levels of brake fluid, broken or bad wheel speed system, the ABS system being turned off or a malfunctioning ABS module.
The new brakes may also need time to adjust and sometimes the ABS light will eventually go off but in some cases you may need to reset the ABS light.
Also worn brake pads can also affect ABS and cause the ABS light to come on as worn brake pads deplete the brake fluid and cause the brake fluid to be lower in the brake fluid reservoir and triggers the ABS light.
When changing brakes and brake pads, brake shoes etc or working on the brake system including changing the brake calipers you should always check the brake fluid.
If you ever have the brake lines open to air you must also bleed the air out of the brakes or the brakes won't work properly to stop the vehicle and the ABS light can also come on.
To reset your ABS control module and turn off the ABS and traction control light you will need an OBD2 tool.
To reset your ABS control module and turn off your ABS and traction control lights first power on the OBD2 tool and then enter the make and model of the vehicle.
Next select systems or control unit to pull up the different vehicle systems.
Then find and locate the TCS/ABS system and select erase codes or reset codes to clear the ABS and TCS warning light and reset the system.
The difference between ABS and Traction control is that Traction control is engaged during acceleration and prevents wheel spin and loss of traction, especially on slippery roads and ABS is more for braking and prevents skidding of the vehicle during hard braking and ensures you have steering control.
Traction control though does not work alone and during traction control your ABS will also engage and the ABS light should also come on during traction control.
The anti lock braking or ABS for short stops the car from skidding but in a different way than the traction control.
When your ABS and traction control light come on it can mean that the brake system is malfunctioning or your brake fluid is low.
The ABS and traction control often share the same module as well so the module could also be bad.
The problems that ABS can cause are loss of traction under heavy braking, hydroplaning, and skidding and loss of control.
You can tell which ABS sensor is bad by checking the resistance across the signal and the ground leads which generally should read 800 to 2000 ohms which is a good reading if it reads steady in this range and indicates the ABS sensor is good.
If the resistance reading constantly changes or increases on the ohm meter then the ABS sensor is faulty.
An ABS light does not mean brake failure if the ABS light is the only light that is on and not also the red brake light.
If the red brake light is on along with the ABS light then it means brake failure or a problem with the brakes.
The ABS light being on by itself means there's an issue with the ABS system.
The most common cause of the ABS light to come on is a malfunctioning or bad ABS module or faulty wheel speed sensor.
An ABS light is not very serious if only the ABS light is on.
However if both the ABS light and the brake light are on at the same time then it's more serious and means the vehicle is not safe to drive unless you get the issue fixed.
The ABS system helps with stopping distances and vehicle control and is an important safety feature that should be fixed and maintained.