2004 Won't go into Drive

Beautiful reasoning. I hope you are right, and the fix is easy and inexpensive.

 

Since your mentioning brake pedal/brake light issues I thought in addition to the brake pedal switch on the back of the brake pedal there's also another switch there thats tells the ECU that the brake pedal is indeed pushed all the way down and then will allow the ECU to shift into D when commanded. But my Chiltons does not mention another switch. Just a rudimentary adjustment of the brake light switch which the ECU must also use for trans shifting.
That adjustment is to lengthy to post here and most end with the dealer scan tool neeeded but pick up a Chiltons and check it out.
It may be as simple as that.

I do know there's a lot of brake sensors there and any possible malfunction of the brake system as you mentioned would clearly throw a DTC so I doubt the water but I would at least have the dealer change the brake fluid asap as you are way overdue.

BTW, brake fluid change is not a DIY in your driveway deal. You can't bleed the system without Toy's scan tool system. In fact if you open the hydraulic system it will immobilize your car and result in a FB tow to the dealer. The brakes are really involved on our cars. We have:

Pedal stroke sensor
Steering angle sensor
Skid control ECU
Pedal stroke simulator
Wheel cycinder pressure sensors
Wheel speed sensors
Brake actuator
Yaw & deceleration sensor

Yikes...

 

A few questions for you to consider:

1. Is the car READY?
2. When you say brake light, are you referring to the red BRAKE light (or the amber circle with !)? Any other warning lights on, such as ABS or VSC?
3. Do you hear a warning sound when the car refuses to shift into D?
4. What happens if you hold the shift lever in the D position without allowing it to return to the resting position?
5. Has the 12V battery been replaced, and if so, when?
6. Since your car is a PHEV conversion, is it possible that there is a fault with the conversion which results in the symptoms that you noticed?

Assuming that we are talking about the red BRAKE light coming on, what is the fluid level in the brake fluid reservoir? If there's no obvious issue, then the appearance of that light means that the hydraulic braking system is impaired and mandates an immediate dealer visit (if/when you can get the car into D) as the car is not safe to drive in that condition.

Brake fluid is hydrophilic, so it will mix with any water that happens to find its way into the system, which results in a reduced boiling point for the brake fluid. I doubt that is the cause of your problem.

Regarding your not being able to shift into D, my guess is that the shift selector mechanism is faulty and has to be replaced. Maybe the transmission control ECU thinks you are trying to shift from P into B instead of D, and this is not allowed. The ECU will shift into N instead.

 

Well, if the car is not READY, then clearly it will not shift into D.

If you can make the car READY and all of those lights are on, then I would say the problem is more likely to be that the DC/DC converter within the inverter is not producing 13.8VDC, so the skid control ECU is having a fit.

 

I had a similar problem. There was also a red led in the center of the power button. A lot of other posts point to the emergency brake light switch. I put the emergency brake on, then off, and it solved the problem.

 

Evan's reasoning is sound.

Tom

 

12V same thing happened to mine

 

I had these problems and it was because the starter battery was not holding charge. I could get the car to start if I turned off all interior lighting, radio and climate control, reset the computer by disconnecting the negative terminal of the 12V battery for a few minutes, reconnect the terminal, turn off the smart key mode and insert the key fob directly into its spot below the dash board. Push the start button once, push the park button once , engage the parking brake and then push the start button . Car would start and I could measure 13.85 volts DC at the 12 volt battery posts. In my case the 4 year old battery was done and getting a new one was the trick . Have you checked the Voltage on the battery? The on board computer needs 12 volts otherwise it is a mess and will not let you get into drive mode. Even new batteries can discharge. 12 volts is a must.

 

Note that when the car is in Ready (ON), the voltage at the terminals and the jump point is essentially the output of the DC-DC converter, not the output of the battery. To measure the unloaded battery the car must be OFF, or in ACC to measure the battery with a modest load (headlights, etc.).

For the built-in battery test procedure see
http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/73400-weird-stuff-happening-mpgs-dropping-test-battery.html
If the battery is too close to dead the self test won't work.

 

Thanks for the update, hope you have a chance to charge up the original 12V battery, before you install it.

 

Yes, they are reliable, but did over fill the oil change twice, even after the service guy wrote in big letters "DO NOT OVERFILL!".

I THINK PATRICK IS RIGHT-THE SWITCH HE IS TALKING ABOUT IS BY THE FOOT BRAKE PEDAL, NOT THE EMERGENCY BRAKE.

Good Luck!

 

It's part of the same switch assembly that runs the brake lights. While mechanically linked, the same electrical contacts do NOT run the brake lights - in other words, functioning brake lights do not guarantee a working switch assembly.

Tom

 

What does the ScanGauge read usually? I am interested because yesterday when I checked the battery with the ScanGauge it was 11.9V with the car OFF and 11.1V in ON mode with headlights ON. Someone posted that these readings may be 0.7V lower than actual. Yes at some point I need to dig up my multimeter...

 

I read 0.7V lower on the Vehicle Service Menu than I did at the actual battery terminals and the jumper bar under the fuse cover. So, I would recommend actually reading the voltage at the battery terminals with a multimeter, to verify the readings that you are seeing on other devices, before trusting them. Especially if you plan to make a decision on whether to replace the battery or not.