Low Coolant/Low Traction/No Traction/Anti-Lock lights on

[Jim Rockford]

I have a 98 alero with 60k on it, Driveing it the other night the low coolant light traction lights and anti-lock likes came on and i have no clue why. i started the car today and none of the lights were on so i figured it was okay but to check my anti-locks i went down my drive onto some ice and hit the brakes and the anti-locks worked fine but after getting it past 40 on the road all the lights came back on and now my anti-locks don't work has anyone else had this problem and if so how do i fix it?

[JTrujillo86]

Are you sure its your red LOW COOLANT light that's on? The other lights being on idicate that you have a bad wheel bearing.

Jeremy

[Ridenour]

This has happened to many people. The ABS / Low Trac lights coming on is very common, especially during winter driving. It could be a bad wheel bearing, but in your case, I'm pretty sure essentially all it is is an ABS sensor freaking out. Hitting ice, having excessive wheel speed, hitting a chunk of ice, or a variety of other things can all cause a sensor to get popped loose or just freak out. I've already it happen several times this winter in my Grand Am. So those lights I would say are for sure just a sensor freaking out.

As far as the low coolant light, are you sure it was the low coolant light that came on? If it did, it might've just been the coolant sloshing enough to get below a sensor and make it think it's low when it's not.

[JTrujillo86]

To Ridenour: You said you have had your lights come on then go out, and you say they're just "reaking out" -- It's your wheel bearing. This happened twice to me, and the dealer shook it off as just that; some sensors freaking out. Then finally they determined it was the wheel bearing that was causing the problem. I would have yours checked out on your Grand Am.

Jeremy

[Ridenour]

well I would believe that as a possibility, except I just replaced all four wheel bearings about 1 1/2 years ago after I rolled my car (shocked the living hell out of them). So they've only got like 15K miles on em so they should'nt have any problems. Not only that, but the times that it did come on, it went away as soon as I restarted my car. Pretty sure that, at least in my case, it was just the sensor.

[EgM]

Originally Posted by JTrujillo86

To Ridenour: You said you have had your lights come on then go out, and you say they're just "reaking out" -- It's your wheel bearing. This happened twice to me, and the dealer shook it off as just that; some sensors freaking out. Then finally they determined it was the wheel bearing that was causing the problem. I would have yours checked out on your Grand Am.

Jeremy

(Thought Jeremy wrote this, turned out Ridenour did ) What's up with ignoring warning lights that pop on? They're not just 'freaking out' there is a problem. If the problem is based on loose contacts or friction problems, hell knows. But to go ahead and just dismiss dash lights as 'freaking out' is plain lame.

I've been the sorry owner of a 99 Alero 3.4 since 2002, since then (If you've browsed the net and found common problems) I've changed both front bearings THREE times, brakes don't last more than 10,000 kms, upon changing bearings, ABS/Traction warning light comes on after 30 mins of driving, not to mention the most common Intake manifold leaks which costs like 500 to 700 to fix) and I have to say that this car is a serious piece of s**t. And to add insult to injury, it's also worth nothing, my best bet? Drive it through a gravel pit, have a heavy rock on the pedal and have it loose in the pit hitting a 12ft rock wall

Back to Honda for me. What the hell was I thinking.

Eric

[Jim Rockford]

Originally Posted by EgM

With all due respect Jeremy, what's up with ignoring warning lights that pop on? They're not just 'freaking out' there is a problem. If the problem is based on loose contacts or friction problems, hell knows. But to go ahead and just dismiss dash lights as 'freaking out' is plain lame.

I've been the sorry owner of a 99 Alero 3.4 since 2002, since then (If you've browsed the net and found common problems) I've changed both front bearings THREE times, brakes don't last more than 10,000 kms, upon changing bearings, ABS/Traction warning light comes on after 30 mins of driving, not to mention the most common Intake manifold leaks which costs like 500 to 700 to fix) and I have to say that this car is a serious piece of shit. (I won't even use **** on this since it totally warrants it) And to add insult to injury, it's also worth nothing, my best bet? Drive it through a gravel pit, have a heavy rock on the pedal and have it loose in the pit hitting a 12ft rock wall

Back to Honda for me. What the hell was I thinking.

Eric

I dunno what happend to oldsmobile, I own a 1992 olds 88 with over 285k on the original engine and tranny thats still running strong and thats gotta be the best car i'll ever own. But this alero is one of the worst (Except the fords i've owned) i'm gonna get rid of it soon as i get an offer. For now i'm gonna stick with the early 90s gms the 3800 motor has never let me down and the body always goes before the engine

[Ridenour]

Originally Posted by EgM

...What's up with ignoring warning lights that pop on? They're not just 'freaking out' there is a problem. If the problem is based on loose contacts or friction problems, hell knows. But to go ahead and just dismiss dash lights as 'freaking out' is plain lame...

Well I don't do this all the time, but I did with the wheel bearing sensor issue when it happened to me - here's why. When I totalled my Grand Am, I replaced all 4 wheel bearing/hub assemblies. I never even had any warning lights from the bearings, but I knew they were bad because I could hear them (rolled my car so shocked em bad) - I replaced all 4, and the noise went away. Now this winter, which it has only been like 15,000 miles since I rolled it, I have had that ABS/TRACOFF/SVS lights come on on a couple different occasions, when I hit ice / rough snow. I know for a fact that it was a sensor getting knocked around and setting a code, due to the fact that it only happened then, went away when I restarted my car, and there sure as hell aint no way 4 no wheel bearings would go bad after only 15K miles of normal driving. In my situation, I knew for a fact it was JUST the sensor, and I justly dismissed as such. I have not seen the lights since, and have had no issues. Since Jim had this happen to him in the winter, from what he described, I recommended that it was probably the same issue. So no, I am not "just plain lame" for dismissing dash lights. I know what is going on with my car. I don't dismiss lights unless I know for certain what the issue is, and with my Grand Am, I knew what the issue was.

I'm not tryin to rip on you or anything, just thought I'd clarify a little bit why I ignored my lights.