Q: Stabilitrak warning light

asked by on January 08, 2017

Hi. I have a 2013 ATS turbo automatic. 63k miles. Yesterday the service stabilitrak light came on and the car stopped. After turning it off and waiting a few minutes it started again so I was able to do the short drive home. Called mechanic and brought car in for diagnostics. Saying might need new fuel pump. That doesn't seem right to me but then again I don't know. What is your opinion please. Thank you

My car has 63000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

Traction Control Light is on Inspection $94.99 - $114.99 Get a Quote

Hi There, It sounds like you may potentially have two separate issues going on here. The stabilitrak system is your car’s traction control system as you may know. This will generally not cause the car to shut down completely, however it can make adjustments to the control of the car if it senses an unsafe condition. Your car would have come from the factory with ABS and traction control. The traction control system monitors the steering stability of the vehicle and engages when loss of traction has been detected. This is done by the use of electronic sensors at each of the four wheels that communicate with the Power Train Control Module (PCM) regarding steering performance and stability in adverse weather conditions. The traction control system works by reducing engine speed and determining which wheel to apply brake pressure to in order to prevent the vehicle from sliding. The anti-lock braking system and the traction control system work together to maintain the stability of the vehicle. The computer uses this information received from electronic sensors regarding the rotational speed of each wheel, the horizontal motion of the vehicle, and the vertical motion of the vehicle to determine how to direct the traction control system or the anti-lock braking system to best control the vehicle when needed. When this warning indicator light comes on in the dashboard, this could be an indication of several issues such as faulty wheel speed sensors, a faulty steering angle sensor, a faulty rotational speed sensor or a problem with the steering rack. In some cases, the traction control system may simply need to be reprogrammed. I would recommend having a professional from YourMechanic come to your location to properly diagnose your traction control system.

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