What can disable ESP?

[mfr334 0]

Can someone give me a run down on the different causes that can disable ESP?

 

My 450 CDI has the ESP light that comes on after about 6-7 km's of driving, taking the same route from my house it comes on at the same point on the highway every time, car continues to drive just fine

 

So far:

reluctors replaced (1 was cracked)
reluctor pickups cleaned

all lights checked (1 'side' of a dual filament brake light was burnt out, and bulb wasnt tight in the housing, fixed and working)

 

what else could could explain this? alignment? I notice the steering wheel is about 11 o'clock when driving straight

ABS reluctor pickup sensors - do they ever go bad?

 

Thanks guys

[darren 192]

The reluctor rings can corrode and/or crack, which shuts off ABS above 60 km/h and throws the warning light. If you've already replaced those and cleaned the sensor, maybe bad wiring or connection?

Edited April 25, 2018 by darren

[LooseLugNuts 557]

2 hours ago, mfr334 said:

I notice the steering wheel is about 11 o'clock when driving straight

 

bingo

 

your abs sensors are sending equal signal to ecm but your steering column sensor is saying that your turning

 

the ecm is recognizing this inconsistency and setting a code 

[mfr334 0]

Aweseme, thanks, i'll book an alignment somewhere ASAP

[LooseLugNuts 557]

checking codes would confirm it..if its the steering being off the code will something about a steering angle sensor ..mine does the same thing ..

 

just waiting for better weather to tinker with it myself 

 

tie rods look really easy to adjust with front panel off

 

if it happened suddenly inspect your strut tubes...i find that sudden changes in alignment with no visible worn out parts is usually from a slight bend in strut tube right where the upper strap is at top of knuckle

Edited April 25, 2018 by LooseLugNuts

[mfr334 0]

I have no CEL's and no codes are read with my el-cheapo code reader, only get the ESP light.....I dont have the means to check with a scanguage and as far as I know no one around here has one either

[LooseLugNuts 557]

this code (if its steering angle) would probably only show up in the brake module ..not an engine cel

 

you should have 2 lights...esp and abs..left side and both orange

 

 

 

 

Edited April 25, 2018 by LooseLugNuts

[tolsen 630]

Steering wheel at 11 o’clock is not right. Get that sorted but read up on it as too easy to ruin steering clock spring which also contains steering angle sensor. 

 

 

[Willys 747]

mfr334   where are you? If close enough to me you can check it with my scan guageII   I'm an hour north of Toronto....Pefferlaw area

 

[mfr334 0]

Im in New Brunswick...

 

No other lights no engine CELs nothing at all except the triangle ESP light comes on and stays on anytime I drive highway speed for more then a few minutes... no ABS light

Edited April 26, 2018 by mfr334

[mfr334 0]

I was until recently running stock tires but recently went to 185 60 15s on the rear.... i was getting speed sensor CEL with 185 65s so went down to 185 60s ...not sure if that could account for some of this or not

[Huronlad 186]

If you are running a stock size tire on the front, your rear tire choice is the cause of your issue.

[MikeT 744]

Huronlad is correct, your rear tires have to go.

[LooseLugNuts 557]

the tires could be the reason

 

i know mine is 100% the steering wheel being off a bit due to a bent strut..and both abs and esp lights come on after about 3-4 km of driving ...almost the same spot in highway every time 

 

if you only have the esp light that would steer to something else

 

best check the codes (and also find out why your steering is off)

Edited April 26, 2018 by LooseLugNuts

[mfr334 0]

What would you guys recommend for the front that would match well with the rear 185 60s ?

[Huronlad 186]

Matching fronts to the rears you have will likely lead to rubbing issues in the front.

[mfr334 0]

100 percent they will not fit at all in the front, I tried, is there another size that is close enough that will fit and work with the rears? I dont want to go back to smaller tires on the rear

 

I have both 15x4 and 15x5 rims i can use for the front

[Huronlad 186]

185/55r15 might be close enough, they will fit in the front but will likely rub.  175/60r15 if they fit in the front should be close enough.  165/65r15 if they fit would work.  Let us know what works and what does not.

[MikeT 744]

I think wanting 1 cm more tread width at the expense of ESP issues is not an experiment worth doing.  Either go back to the 1 cm narrower 175/55-15 on the rear or get proper wider rims with smart-recommended tire sizes front/rear.  Also, if the car has 145s on the front and 185s on the rear, it will just increase the understeer.

[Huronlad 186]

I do not think the 185/60 was for 1 cm of extra width but 1" of extra height. 

 

The set of 185/55R16 tires I have for my 451 create a much more comfortable ride, at the expense of rubbing under very spirited driving.  But it is a good example of why not to randomly throw odd sized tires on a newer model vehicle. 

 

On the bright side I found it quite hilarious that someone would do something so foolish and not realize it was the reason for the new issue they were having.

[LooseLugNuts 557]

i have 185/55r15 all around on my 05 450

 

the fronts are rear rims from a 451

 

they rubbed bad until i used 451 front springs to gain a slight lift...now they only rub a bit on turns ...i had the front fenders spaced out a bit with foam but they fell out during my last bulb change and i have to find a more permanent solution

 

in other words i dont recommend 185/55 on front for a 450

[LooseLugNuts 557]

here is a link for an online tire height comparison calculator

 

https://tiresize.com/comparison/

[LooseLugNuts 557]

sort out the problem yet?

 

im curious about the steering wheel..mine is even less than 1 oclock..id estimate it at half that and its enough to set off both abs and esp system lights after approximately 5km of driving