break system failure / anti-skid service required

[chinapat]

Its a cold Montreal morning - hovering around 5 degrees F.

The car started normally. I loaded the kids in the back, threw the skis on the roof, got in, and there was a red warning light regarding a "break system failure - pull over safely" or something like that. I turned the car off, thinking a reboot might help.

When I tried starting the car, nothing. now the warning is alternating between the the red "break system failure" and orange "anti skid service required".

When I try to start the car, when the key is in position I or II, there is an intermittent clicking sound coming from the front...

Thoughts? Otherwise the car has full power (radio, power locks, alarm, etc.,..) so I guess its not the battery.

Ski day ruined. Kids now comfortably watching tv. Now my attention is turning back to the car.

Thanks in advance. Pat

2007 XC70

[The Landshark]

I think getting it hooked up to a diagnostic system should be your first port of call, could be anything from the bcm to a brake travel sensor, though there seem to be common problems with the soldering on the abs controller.

[billr99]

Its a cold Montreal morning - hovering around 5 degrees F.

The car started normally. I loaded the kids in the back, threw the skis on the roof, got in, and there was a red warning light regarding a "break system failure - pull over safely" or something like that. I turned the car off, thinking a reboot might help.

When I tried starting the car, nothing. now the warning is alternating between the the red "break system failure" and orange "anti skid service required".

When I try to start the car, when the key is in position I or II, there is an intermittent clicking sound coming from the front...

Thoughts? Otherwise the car has full power (radio, power locks, alarm, etc.,..) so I guess its not the battery.

Ski day ruined. Kids now comfortably watching tv. Now my attention is turning back to the car.

Thanks in advance. Pat

2007 XC70

Take a close look at the ABS sensor rings on each front axle. In particular see if you have a crack between the teeth. In high salt environments (i.e. winter road salt or sea air), rust will develop between the rings and the axle in addition to the general rusting of the rings. When it scales bad enough and then gets cold, the now weakened rings shrink with the stress splitting the ring between the teeth. Best way to diagnose is to hook up VIDA/DiCE and see what that has to say. When one of my rings split last year, I couldn't see the crack until I cleared the axle from the hub carrier. VIDA/DiCE, however, was what gave me enough info to at least point me to the correct corner of the car.

Now with all this said, I am a bit confused by your no-start condition if it is related. However, if all of this is battery-related, I'd consider the idea of a shorted plate. A bad plate will still usually allow a battery to produce the correct voltage but greatly screws up the amperage and correct amperage along with sufficient voltage is what all these ECUs are looking for. In any case, a VIDA read would be your best first step in trying to figure out what's going on.

Good Luck,

Bill

[MacNoob]

My first thought was low battery. Check that before anything else.