Extreme Cold - Check ABS and Check Brake System

How is everyone's truck doing in this extreme cold weather? My 2017 TRD Sport has to be parked outside since I only have one garage spot since moving to Chicago.

I drove it 30 mins on Sunday and no warnings came up but this morning my wife left for work in another state and she said it is showing "check anti-lock brake system and check brake system" message in the center digital instrument cluster. I assume it's because of the extreme cold. This was an east coast truck for first 6 years of its life so never had such cold weather.

Anyone else have this issue before with extreme cold? Thoughts on whether she should continue to drive it or take it to dealership when she gets to her destination? She's been driving it for an hour and it hasn't turned off.

 

I’ve had no problems. Drove many miles yesterday in temps as low as 19 below. I did put the cardboard in front of the radiator - about 1/2 covered. Temps were maxed at 183 and usually around 175

 

Have not heard of that or experienced that. I am in Spokane WA and we have had subzero temps the last week. Truck is parked outside. No ABS issues so far in my 2018 over the years. Maybe when the truck warms up have her shut it off and then restart. Might just be a sensor issue. Assuming that the brakes work? If issue persists then might be a good idea to take it in.

 

I've parked my truck outside for years up here and no issues with brakes or warnings

 

Check your tires pressure. My pressures did drop but ok - if your were a bit low they could now be low enough to cause an issue - maybe.

 

Scan it and check the codes. If you don't have a scanner (shame on you) take it to Autozone and they'll scan it for free.

 

Possible with all the road salt and grit your sensors are dirty. It is also possible if you had a lot of ice under the wheel wells you broke one of the ABS wires. If you had a scanner that does ABS it would tell you which wheel in question (unfortunately autozone does not scan ABS). Generally though you can still drive, but just don't have antilock capabilities. At least once a year after hunting season (mud) in my old Silverado I would get that error and have to remove and clean the front sensors. Broke the wire once on my Corolla. A single little screw holds the sensor in. You can follow the wire to the back of the hub. Takes about two minutes to check. Replacements are pretty cheap if you need one.

 

Most home scanners can’t read abs codes.

This is likely a low voltage code but needs to be checked. Auto zone might be able to read it.

 

Almost every scanner over $70 does ABS, and there are options under $40 that will do it if you can manage 5 mins of research. If your scanner doesn't do ABS it's because you were a cheapskate or uninformed.

 

Thanks all, she stopped to get gas and when she turned the truck back on all the warning notifications were off. I figured it had to do with the extreme cold weather since it hadn't been driven since I drove it Sunday and it was fine then.

 

Your solution is to leave Chicago as fast as you can. Drive south until the warnings clear.

 

Why not be more constructive and share said scanners.

I haven’t seen a decent abs scanner in a store under 100$ and the cheap Chinese ones online are terribly unreliable including the Bluetooth ones. I’ve had 2.

I have techstream so I have no further experience with the aftermarket anymore.

 

My 2018 SR5 has performed well. (garage kept) We've had -35 wind chills for the last 3-4 days. No ABS issues, or any other issues. Ice and snow as well.

 

Ughhhh -27 overnight tonight. Thank Fuck I'm parked in the garage.

P.S. Op, could you have gotten snow/ice buildup under the truck? This might be the problem. A carwash with underspray might do the trick!