Traction Control warning lights coming on

[John B.]

Good Evening All

Firstly,thankyou for allowing me to join this forum, the information and knowledge base by all of you is invaluable. I am a newcomer to this forum and this is my first post. I've been deperately reading these threads alot in the hope of finding an answer, but not to much luck. Hopefully someone may be able to help me.

I own a 2004 Model 3.2 TD Pajero GLS Manual. In recent times while driving, I've noticed the Traction Control On and Traction Control Off dashboard warning lights and the Engine warning light comes on every now and then for some reason. If I stop the car, and turn the steering wheel full lock, open the car door or turn the engine off and restart the car, the lights seem to go off. Sometimes the warning lights come back on again and at other times they remain off. There is no difference in the car performance at all.

This all started a few weeks back when our car battery was starting to die on us. Eventually, the battery was replaced but the problem with the warning lights still seems to persist. We also had the tyres changed recently so I am not sure if this may have anything to do with it. I know nothing about car mechanics and electricals unfortunately.

The car is only just out of warranty, and when we took it to Mitsubishi they ran their diagnostics and said it had to do with the ECU (?). Upon further investigation they claimed that the engine computer is faulty and needs to be replaced. They couldnt give me any specific fault codes though. For this, they want to charge me almost $2000 to replace, possibly less depending on their goodwill service.

So as you can see I am concerned about this and wanted to know whether this seems like a correct diagnosis as I was always of the opinion that traction control related to ABS. That and the fact that the lights turn off when you turn the steering wheel. Therefore, could it be to do with sensors of some sort or maybe loose wiring? Mitsubishi have reset the codes twice but the problem is still there.

Has anyone else had this kind of problem and could you offer any advice on what might be the cause or is there anything I should be asking them to look at specifically.

Many thanks in advance for your help,

Cheers
John B.

[6G74]

I Have never heard of the problem before, be it indirectly or directly... Going off wat you have said, a computer does seem POSSIBLE but your guess on loose contact or sensor seems more likely to me. You have Active stability control yeh? In which case you have a sensor in the steering colum to tell the computer the position of the steering wheel, perhaps an issue somewhere here. Take it to an auto elec or another dealer - even if you have to pay for it...

[Garygls]

Hi John B, Approx 12 mths ago I attached my trailer & plugged it in for the first time to my 05 Paj. The traction control light came on & stayed on. It had popped a fuse under the bonnet, in that happening i had no stop lights working. I replaced the fuse with the trailer off & problem was fixed. I had a look at the trailer plugg & the wiring was correct, & plugged it back in & the fuse went again. I then cut off the plugg, put on a new one & all has been fine since.
Maybe check your fuse or {even just replace it } & see if your stop lights are working still.
Hope this can help in some way. Cheers Gary

[The Last Streetfighter]

I just got my Paj (2005 DiD Auto) and in the owners manual sleeve there is a receipt that I thought was interesting. It is from the 30,000km service.

"Check for engine light coming on and traction lights. Carried out tests on ECU and found the code 16 Air Temp sensor. Carried out tests and found that there was a loose connection at Air Temp Sensor. Repaired connection and cleared codes. Rechecked and found OK"

[Jexhed]

Jexhed

Hi John,
I have a 2004 3.2 DID and have just been through the same problem. I could cancel the lights for a while by putting the car in reverse. Whilst the lights were on , cruise control would not work. I took it to the dealer and they said the crank amps of the battery were down and said it needed a new battery and that would fix it. $300 and 200km down the road the problem re appeared. They said they would charge me to look into it again and if they could not fix it they would take it to an auto electrician. It seems the computer diagnosis can't pinpoint the problem. I took it to the auto sparky who had the car for a week and came to the conclusion it was the MAP sensor but they were not sure and did not want to spend the $300 to try a new one in case it did not fix the problem. They charged me for 2hrs work, $160 , even though they spent a lot more time trying to locate the problem. I rang around and sourced a 2nd hand sensor from a wrecker in Sydney for $110. It took about 10minutes to replace. I have done about 500km since replacement and the problem seems to be fixed. It seems modern car computers are not as smart ( or the techs who interpret them ) as we think they are ? This simple problem was an expensive exercise and I think I was lucky to finally get it resolved. I have attached a pic of the sensor.
Good luck.

[John B.]

Thankyou everyone

Good Evening All

Thankyou very much for your advice recently in helping to sort out my problem with the traction control lights. In the end we spoke to a mechanic friend of ours who has a good rapore with another Mitsubishi dealer. Together they managed to work out the problem within about 10 minutes tops. I gave them a copy of all the threads and 6G74 you were correct about the problem.

It appears that my steering column needed to be recalibrated as from my understanding the ECU does not reset this when the battery is replaced, which was the case. Luckily for me, the guys at Mitsubishi said they cant understand why the original dealer I had taken it to could not diagnose the problem. They also said that there was nothing wrong with the ECU as the error codes were showing it to do with Active Stability Control. They were kind enough to calibrate the steering column for me at no charge and the problem has not re-occurred since.

Pays to get a second opinion at times. Thanks once again to all of you.

Cheers
John B.

[michaelc]

Engine and tractiona control warning lights come on

Dear All,

I'm also new to the forum. I have a 2003 NP Exceed DID auto. This morning for ther second time in as many weeks I had a similar if not identicle problem as discribed. Both times it happened during a stone cold morning start. The first time it didn't notice the lights until I went to accellerate and had very little power and then noticed on the dash the engine and traction contol lights were on. I limped home around the block turned off the engine waited 30 or so second and started it again and the warning lights on the dash went out and all was back to normal. I Did the same thing this morning to rectify the problem.

The low battery make some sense as I know mine is getting sluggish considering it's still the original factory one so almost 5 years old.

Will certainly be armed with this info whe I take it into the dealer to get it checked as I don't want to go through the hit and miss of changing parts that aint broke as that will send me broke.

Re the Battery if anyone can offer an opinion on and Optima Yellow top it would be appreciated as I am considering one to replace the stabdard as I run a fridge but not enough to justify a dual battery system. The Optima should give me some extra capacity over the standard.

Anyway I'm glad I read you post and thanks for sharing the info. Let's keep up the good work.

Will let you know how it works out and once all resolved.

Thanks Michael

[rwmweco]

Hi John,
I have a 2004 3.2 DID and have just been through the same problem. I could cancel the lights for a while by putting the car in reverse. Whilst the lights were on , cruise control would not work. I took it to the dealer and they said the crank amps of the battery were down and said it needed a new battery and that would fix it. $300 and 200km down the road the problem re appeared. They said they would charge me to look into it again and if they could not fix it they would take it to an auto electrician. It seems the computer diagnosis can't pinpoint the problem. I took it to the auto sparky who had the car for a week and came to the conclusion it was the MAP sensor but they were not sure and did not want to spend the $300 to try a new one in case it did not fix the problem. They charged me for 2hrs work, $160 , even though they spent a lot more time trying to locate the problem. I rang around and sourced a 2nd hand sensor from a wrecker in Sydney for $110. It took about 10minutes to replace. I have done about 500km since replacement and the problem seems to be fixed. It seems modern car computers are not as smart ( or the techs who interpret them ) as we think they are ? This simple problem was an expensive exercise and I think I was lucky to finally get it resolved. I have attached a pic of the sensor.
Good luck.

I have the light coming too, will have to see if it is the MAP sensor too, thankyou for your help.

[Easykill1978]

yup mine only appears on cold starts never anywhere else.. will def check..

tho i plan to replace my glowplugs and see... who knows and for $50 i am replacing the fact originals anyway.

[Muzza]

Good Evening All

Thankyou very much for your advice recently in helping to sort out my problem with the traction control lights. In the end we spoke to a mechanic friend of ours who has a good rapore with another Mitsubishi dealer. Together they managed to work out the problem within about 10 minutes tops. I gave them a copy of all the threads and 6G74 you were correct about the problem.

It appears that my steering column needed to be recalibrated as from my understanding the ECU does not reset this when the battery is replaced, which was the case. Luckily for me, the guys at Mitsubishi said they cant understand why the original dealer I had taken it to could not diagnose the problem. They also said that there was nothing wrong with the ECU as the error codes were showing it to do with Active Stability Control. They were kind enough to calibrate the steering column for me at no charge and the problem has not re-occurred since.

Pays to get a second opinion at times. Thanks once again to all of you.

Cheers
John B.

For those who wish to know, to reset the stability control steering sensor
Line the car up and drive in a straight line until the light goes out, if the light goes out before you can position your car, disconnect then reconnect the battery
You will need to drive slowly for about 100m

[nobby64]

Hi Everyone - I am hoping someone could shed some light on the problem I have with my Pajero. Heads up though, I don't know anything about cars, female driver and often get sucked in to whatever mechanics tell me!!

I have a 2006 3.8L GLX, which I purchased from a private sale one year ago in Brisbane. I live in rural SA and driving it down it didn't miss a beat. Two days after arriving my heart sank when the engine light came on. After taking it to a Mitsibishi dealer they told me that it was an oxygen sensor. I knew that one had been replaced already so I soon replaced the other side. All was good until about a month ago. While experiencing ridiculously hot weather my engine light and traction control lights simiultanously came on. After turning off the engine the traction control went off but engine light stayed on. It is luck of the draw now when I start the engine if the engine light stays on or turns off!! If it goes off, both lights seem to come back on if I travel approx 30km if I travel less then this both lights stay off??

I took it initially to the local mechanic and they said not to be too concenrened as the extreme heat could be playing havoc with the sensors. I didn't really like that response so I then took it to a Mitsibushi service dept and after 1hr of looking they commented that they think the problem may be a vacuum leak from the inlet manifold. They have advised that I need a new surge tank which is going to cost approx $1200.

Has anyone else experienced something like this? Looking at the other threads it appears the lights are randomly going on and off - mine seems to be related to the time travelled?? The car seems to be running perfectly fine.

Help please.....

[Shano592]

Hi Nobby64, welcome to the forum.

While I don't have an answer for you, and I am sure that someone will be on here with some possible fixes for you .... first thing you need to do is discount anything the Mitsubishi dealer has told you. Especially if they THINK it may be something!

In the end, they may think it will be everything they have out the back, that hasn't sold recently.

It is possible that your original mechanic may be right, and that higher temperatures may be getting to your system after 30km (about the time it takes to get up to good temperature).

Do check and clean your air filter, as a dirty filter can cause a surprising amount of symptoms.

[nobby64]

Thanks - I don't want to completely disregard as he was quite adamant that there was a leak but definitely and second opinion is needed!! What I am worried about is that due to where we live they may not have ever seen this before (which I am sure is the case), where possibly in the city it may be something they have seen.

It is really frustrating!!

[bigchippe]

Hi everyone i have a 2004 diesel pajero i am having some issues as well along these lines does any one have some ideas, my traction control lights are on my central locking isn't working also my interior lights are not working, my radio resets after the car has been turned off for a while and my clock panel isn't working, i had the battery replaced a few weeks earlier wondering if this could have caused the problem.

Thanks.

[pmgraham]

Hi Everyone - I am hoping someone could shed some light on the problem I have with my Pajero. Heads up though, I don't know anything about cars, female driver and often get sucked in to whatever mechanics tell me!!

I have a 2006 3.8L GLX, which I purchased from a private sale one year ago in Brisbane. I live in rural SA and driving it down it didn't miss a beat. Two days after arriving my heart sank when the engine light came on. After taking it to a Mitsibishi dealer they told me that it was an oxygen sensor. I knew that one had been replaced already so I soon replaced the other side. All was good until about a month ago. While experiencing ridiculously hot weather my engine light and traction control lights simiultanously came on. After turning off the engine the traction control went off but engine light stayed on. It is luck of the draw now when I start the engine if the engine light stays on or turns off!! If it goes off, both lights seem to come back on if I travel approx 30km if I travel less then this both lights stay off??

I took it initially to the local mechanic and they said not to be too concenrened as the extreme heat could be playing havoc with the sensors. I didn't really like that response so I then took it to a Mitsibushi service dept and after 1hr of looking they commented that they think the problem may be a vacuum leak from the inlet manifold. They have advised that I need a new surge tank which is going to cost approx $1200.

Has anyone else experienced something like this? Looking at the other threads it appears the lights are randomly going on and off - mine seems to be related to the time travelled?? The car seems to be running perfectly fine.

Help please.....

I have a 2005 NP DID. Mine started displaying these warning lights after I replaced the battery. It seems to occur more often on hot days. Other threads on the forum point the problem to issues with solenoids linked to the traction control/front diff engagement system from what I can work out. Still working through the possibilities myself. Sometimes the lights disappear if I shift between 2H and 4H. The diff lock light flashes as well on the highway but not at town speeds.