maryanne

I took my 1993 Lexus (125,000 miles) to a mechanic for a 2nd opinion on my suspension, they confirmed I had worn struts. When I dropped my car off no lights where lit on my dash, but when I picked up the car the engine and parking brake and ABS light was on and now stays on. I asked them why are those lights on, they weren't when I dropped off the car, they said yes they were. Anyway, I asked them to fix it and they couldn't read the codes. I have taken it to 2 other mechanics and neither can get the lights to come off. Now the battery is not staying charged (new alternator last year). One guy said he could continue to troubleshoot it, but no guarantees, like trying to find a needle in a haystack. I am more than frustrated, I love this car, it's just a baby at 125,000 miles! Can anyone tell me why is it so difficult to fix. Another said they could rebuild the computer board, no guarantees! So frustrating.....

cobalt91

It sounds like it could be two different issues. We need more information on how it runs. How are the brakes working?

timmy0tool

iTrader: (7)

make sure the parking brake truly is disengaged. also check your brake fluid level as the same light is used to indicate low fluid. ABS is a different thing, but could be related to the battery not staying charged. the alternator should be under some kind of warranty i hope. check your battery cables to see if they are tight!

ECU rebuild is common but do those things i mentioned first before tackling the ECU. the mechanics sound like they are taking you for a ride...

maryanne

Brakes work fine.

maryanne

Thanks for the suggestions, everything looks ok. Yes, I agree, the mechanics are taking me for a ride. One of them said they even contacted a lexus dealer, and they couldn't help. It's not rocket science to figure this out.

Someone suggested re-building the computer, they also mentioned a bad coil, bad spark plug, bad injector, etc.

OMAHA

since you dont know any honest, competent mechanics....just take it to Lexus to get it diagnosed, pay the fee, take estimate back to this forum and tell us what it says.....this forum is FULL of Lexus knowledge......literally saved me from selling my car!

YoshiMan

Two shops were unable to pull check engine codes? That's funny, I bet they were stumped trying to find the OBDII port and then gave up when they couldn't find it on a 93 model. It wouldn't surprise me!

What about the engine? Any running issues there?

Yamae

I suspect that the mechanic might damage the harness to the speed sensor and the brake pad sensor when he checked the supension.

maryanne

Ok, will do!

maryanne

No none at all, only other minor repair is a leaking valve cover gasket.

maryanne

I think you're right. Wouldn't a competent mechanic be able to tell if sensors were damaged and realize this was the problem? When I took it back to have them fix the lights from staying on, the owner said he couldn't read the codes therefore couldn't trouble shoot why they were staying on. He also said, we didn't do any work on the engine, we only checked the suspension which wouldn't have anything to do with the lights staying on. ugh!

Yamae

The front wheel hub has the speed sensor and the brake pad wear sensor. If both are disconnected, you will have following lights on.
1, engine check
2, traction
3, brake pad wear

The mechanic might have stressed the harness. You'd better to check it not only visually but also electrically.

dicer

This is a good reason it maybe cheaper in the long run to throw parts at a car than to have a bunch of incompetent techs work on your car. Here where I'm at just to check some prices to have a timing belt done, wife called Lexus dealer and a few independent type outfits. All the independents were about $200 more than the dealer. And not saying the dealer techs are perfect either. I don't want any of my cars etc. worked on by anyone, first they are not fussy and careful. They bang and bump everything under the hood. I know I worked at a dealer (not lexus or cars) one time. Being a tech is all about TIME and not being careful there are lots of ruined cars and car engine stories on the net. For someone not mechanical the dealer is the best bet. They have the info and special diagnostic tools to try to figure things out.

So none of the techs in that shop are ASE certified, they can't even look at service information or go on a computer and see how to read the codes. Sounds like a place to not take a nice car to.

maryanne

I mentioned the ABS wheel speed sensor and harness to one of the mechanics that wasn't able to get the codes, he said the mother ship is not communicating so he doesn't know if it's the speed sensor or not, but why wouldn't you just look to see? I tried and nothing looked disconnected, is it easy to tell if the harness is damaged? Also, he said could be a problem with the ecm or a short in harness "somewhere". Should I purchase a ecu?

I really appreciate your feedback.

maryanne

If I have the wheel speed sensor and brake sensor replaced, could this resolve the lights problem. Can any mechanic replace these sensors, the closest Lexus dealer is 50 miles away and my car is inoperable because it has been sitting for awhile and the air suspension keeps collapsing and the battery will not stay charged. This is so frustrating my car had no issues whatsoever until I took it to a mechanic to have a 2nd opinion on the suspension, unbelievable!