Hi all,

I took my XK (4.2 2006) for a spin yesterday and after a while, it felt like a sudden break (not very strong, more of a sudden slow down for about 1 second, then back to normal) and the message "ABS fault" appeared, followed by alternatively "DSC not available" or "Cruise not available".
The car continued to drive normally though.
I googled the fault and found it could either come from faulty speed sensor or battery problems (at the leat the main ones).
Now, I rarely use the car these days and the battery runs out on occasion so thought the battery might be low...
However, when I drove back yesterday, I noticed that the engine icon was also on 😬 (In addition to ABS/DSC/CRUISE), although the car still drove normally.
I am charging the battery fully today to check if the problem doesn't come from a low battery first but my question is, if the problem doesn't go away after a full charge, doe the fact that the engine icon is lit indicate something else than an ABS/sensor fault?
Anything else I should/could check before sending it to my dealer?

Thanks

Thanks

 

In a word, yes. The icon implies that a number of codes have been thrown and that they should be inspected.
You are correct, these are common issues that can arise from a inadequate battery... however, there also could be more at play.
Incidentally, these systems you mentioned are tightly integrated. That is, the thrown code in the ABS system does immediately disable DSC and Cruise. Don't be alarmed. Its a safety feature.

 

I had exactly the same happen a couple of weeks ago. I decided to replace the battery anyway as the voltage was low and it was in the car when we bought it so its provenance was unknown. The fault did not go away so I ran the ODB scanner to find a right rear speed sensor fault code. We also noticed that the speedometer had become unstable so I would guess that it gets its speed from the right rear sensor .... or perhaps an average of more than one sensor.

I didn't notice whether the engine light is on although it may well be.

It's not always the battery. 🙃

Richard

 

Thanks all.
@Richard, I have a generic scanner, so can check, not sure if these type of messages will appear though.
Did you get it fixed or is that something you can replace yourself?

Thanks

 

Update: I connected my ODB reader (thought for these types of faults it required a more advanced reader than a generic one):
I have 2 messages: "P0500 Vehicle speed sensor "A"" and "C 0037 Left Rear Wheel Sensor (Subfault)"
So I guess I found the culprit!... 🤷‍♂️

 

I had the same issue the last few weeks and I replaced the front speed sensors due to C0035 code. Problem solved.

 

It's an easy replacement, particularly if you remove the wheel first although it would be possible to do it even with the wheel in place.

The part is plentiful on eBay as so many cars use it ..... £15 upwards.

Richard

 

I had the same problem. It was not the battery, not the ABS, not the alternator and not a bad ground. It was a faulty speed sensor in my right rear wheel that was causing all the errors.

Hope this helps.

Ken

 

Hi all,

After a few month without driving my XK, I decided to replace the wheel sensor so ordered the part.
Took the rear wheel off and the sensor is just there right behind the brake disc so easy enough too unscrew.
My problem however is that somehow I can't unplug the existing sensor from its plastic connection! 😬
I am not sure if there is a clip or something that needs to be lifted in the connection casing and I don't want to risk ripping it apart as the connection casing is attached to 2 fine leads that seem easily broken.
see picture here:




Does anyone know if on the XK150 (I believe they were slightly different on X100 with a metal clip above) it is just a case of puling it or is there is a some sort of clip to be lifted to disconnect it?

Many thanks

 

Right, solved first hurdle which was to change the sensor, now that's done...

Unfortunately , when switching ignition on, it still said ABS fault...
Got my DTC reader out and it still showed Left rear wheel speed sensor fault... so I cleared the DTCs and then it said not fault present.

Ignition on it still shows the message so I thought maybe the car needs to drive to recognise the new sensor. I try to start the engine and it just does a pshit and shuts down... bon start!!! :-(
Tried a couple of times, same thing ...

Tried reconnecting my DTC reader, it shows no fault present...

Thanks

 

The Workshop Manual might help. It's in the Stickies at the top of this Forum. Good luck!

 

@tek_uk Try disconnecting the battery cables (Negative first and then Positive). Hold the two cables together for 30 seconds - just the cables touching. Reconnect positive to the battery and then negative. See if that clears it. There may be a module still holding the code and this could clear it.

What code are you still seeing? Both?

 

Hi Sean,

do you mean that I touch the red and black cable together for 30 seconds?
And then reconnect the battery?

I tested the battery, it said 10.2 approximately.
I drove the car about 25 miles on Wednesday and same on Thursday.

I switched ignition again a moment ago (not starting engine) and it went a bit berserk... i.e central screen restarting multiple time etc... 😬
Didn't think changing a speed sensor could cause so much havoc! 😬 Everything was fine before (apart from the ABS message)
Here's the code I was seeing before I erased it:

 

If the battery says actually 10.2V then that is totally shot. It sound as if one cell has gone down and the car will never operate properly at that voltage.

Richard

 

Quick update: Charge the battery back up to 12V. Car started (phew...) took it for a spin and all ABS/DSC error messages disappeared! Mission successful :-)

 

It's (nearly) ALWAYS the battery.
Richard is probably right also that the battery is not long for this world. Maybe change it out before you get stranded somewhere.

 

Glad you sorted it and yes for future reference, disconnecting the cables and holding the cables together discharges the capacitors in the car and is referred to as a hard reset. You have to reset your windows and if your country require a radio code, you will want that to to reset your radio.

As others have said, 10.2 volts is equivalent of a dead battery. 12 volts is as well. 12.6 volts resting voltage is tested @ the battery using a voltmeter. No ODB readouts. That just addresses voltage, not amps. I dunno if you have this service available to you where you live but here in the US you can go to any auto parts store and they will load test it for you at no charge.

 

Battery should read 12.6 volts or greater, regardless of age. Any thing less than that can case all sorts of glitches and errors.