My ABS light randomnly comes on and off. Ive just had the wheel bearing replaced and the sensor got damaged and the rim of the hub got a little bent trying to remove the bearing. However I fitted a replacement sensor but after driving a few miles it comes back on again. When I switch off and restart it goes off and then again after about 5 mins it comes back on. Any ideas??
Did the ABS ring in the hub get damaged too? It's a round metal plate with lots of rectangular holes in it. I think this is what the sensor reads. If it's damaged it might be picking up a false reading. I'd suggest getting a second hand hub to replace your damaged one. I got one off ebay, collected for £45. There are two Copens being broken on ebay at the moment.
ABS Fault/Bleeding Brakes Having looked into this further I have now swapped the abs sensor and the light is still comong on. The brake fluid has never been changed, My car has done 20k on an 04 plate. I have noticed that on starting the abs light can go off. But then after about 5 mins of driving or the first few times I brake, a funny noise can be heard in the bulkhead area and the pedal will lift slightly as though air has been pushed into the system. The light will then illuminate again. Is it worth bleeding the brakes, can I do this myslef using a kit or do they have to be done using a pressurised system??? Thanks Dan
If your car has never had the brake fluid changed. It really needs doing. I suggest you get a proffessional to do it though. You don't want to mess with the brakes if you don't know what your doing.
Hi Dan, did you try yet to read the error code throughh the ODB2 interface? Could at least help to prove that it really is the ABS sensor you swapped. Andreas
Andreas, Where did you get the lead / /software for reading the codes? I thought there was some thing unusual about the copen odb2 port - it was a couple of years ago when I looked into it. Thanks, Rex.
Hi Rex, well not me, but a Copen-friend very often has the problem of the MIL lightening up. She bought a quite cheap ODB error code reader from the german Lidl and that does the job for her (displaying the error code and deleting the error). So what problems did you have when you tried (maybe in connection with ScanGauge)? Andreas
Did you ever solve this? I have exactly the same symptoms. I can't even get hold of a replacement sensor but it sounds from your experience like that won't solve it even if I do. My mechanic has an error code reader but it keeps changing its mind which wheel the error is on.
It appears this is a rare problem but I've had the same symptoms so I’ll post my experiences here for the benefit of the next person who, like me last July, is searching Copenworld for a solution. In my case replacing the sensor did (eventually) solve the problem. SYMPTOMS The main symptom was the ABS warning light coming on, which these days means an MoT fail. However there was also sometimes an unnerving noise, like a pump running dry. That only ever happened immediately on starting (usually after a 20-30 minute break in a long journey) and never persisted for more than a minute or so. PROBLEM 1: Ambiguous diagnostics It’s well-known that a lot of diagnostic testers aren’t compatible with Daihatsu. My mechanic’s is, and indicated an ABS sensor fault, but it kept changing its mind which wheel it was on. The solution, I’m afraid, is to find a specialist Diahatsu repairer – see below. PROBLEM 2: Parts unavailable A Copen requires specific ABS sensors which are no longer made. My mechanic tried all his suppliers and I tried everywhere I could think of online and we both drew a blank. At this point I was facing the real prospect of having to write off an otherwise perfectly good car for want of one part. Once again the solution was to go via a Daihatsu dealer, and even then it was a close call: there was only one available in the country and if the problem had been on the front rather than the rear there wouldn’t have been any at all. PROBLEM 3: Finding a specialist Daihatsu repairer As you all know, Daihatsu no longer operate in the UK (and Toyota weren’t interested in helping me). There’s therefore no such thing as an “approved” Daihatsu repairer and the Daihatsu website is years out of date so can’t be relied upon. However with a bit of searching and ringing around I found one local to me (Bristol) who I can recommend unreservedly: Hursley Hill Garage Wells Road, Whitchurch, Bristol BS14 0QZ www.hursleyhillgarage.co.uk
