Help! Emergency Brake left on for 30 miles, and warning lights on!

My guess is most of the warnings were triggered by the unusual situation. They will reset them, check the rear brake shoes for excess wear, and she will be on her way. It's pretty hard for the e-brake to "damage" anything else, unless they catch fire. It's rear only, BTW.

 

Brake pads and maybe even the drums might be in need of servicing.

 

I can't say much about what this might do to a Prius, but I did this many years ago to a company van.
I drove with the e-brake on from Las Cruces, NM to El Paso, TX, the whole trip being probably 40 miles? (can't remember the exact mileage between the two... 35+ miles?).

While it did smell, and the wheels were hot to the touch, I apparently caused no major damage to the system/vehicle itself.

Hopefully your car will be alright without needing major servicing.

I would think it might matter how tight she had the brakes applied, not to mention time and speed.

What else could go wrong in this scenario other than heat buildup and wear to the rotor and pads?
Since it is the mechanical side of the brakes... could the heat from that reach the brake fluid in the hydraulic system?

I have to say... I'm glad your family is alright... meaning, I'm glad nothing happened on the drive other than the warning system reacting.

 

Three hours from Salem OR to Seattle WA? Won't happen. Sorry.

Not to say the obvious that she shouldn't have left the brake on . . . but this is a good example of why NOT to put the brake on in the first place. For safety reasons, building codes EVERYWHERE in the USA do not allow gas pumps to be built on a hill. Even a car left in neutral with brakes off at a gas pump will not roll away on its own.

 

Wow, can't even imagine trying to drive with the emergency brake on. I notice the force pushing back while driving, i.e. sluggish movement, etc. if I leave it on for 3 feet while I'm rolling back out of a parking space.

 

If you don't use the "emergency brake", it'll eventually stop working. The best way to keep it in shape is to use it. I don't know about the US specced version, but my euro specced prius has a red warning light on the dashboard telling the driver that the "emergency brake" is engaged.

 

and her car was doing none of this before the brakes episode?

 

Just wondering....did the dealer check the condition of the speed sensor in the rear wheel? The heat that generate from the rear brake might damage the speed sensor. And I'm guessing the VSC light on because of that (since the engine/VSC computer can't read anythign from the rear speed sensor if it is damaged).

About the a/c, I'm just guessing (maybe I'm wrong about that, the following is just guessing) because you have your check engine on, the engine computer think there is some problem in the engine so it just disable the a/c pump so that it won't have additional "damage" to the engine.

I'm totally agree that, and it also help to extend the life of the engine/transmission mount since if you just let the transmission to hold the car while you park, all the weight of the vehicle itself will rest on the motor/transmission mount.

 

I just remember my ex-boss's son do the same thing in his 91 corolla, and it end up melting the rubber on the wheel cylinder and the brake fluid was leaking all over the place. So if they just look at the code and reset it without actually took apart the rear drum, I think it's a little bit risky to drive. Also, you said the brake light was on again after she drive a few block, I think she better pull over and see if the brake fluid is getting low.

 

My guess is that the inverter coolant pump failed. This caused the inverter to overheat, which shut down the air conditioner, affected the DC to DC converter, and turned on the brake warning lights (since the brake system is extremely sensitive to low voltage on the 12V bus.)

If my guess is correct, this has nothing to do with the fact that your wife left the parking brake partially engaged while driving at 75 mph.

 

With luck they will fix the handbrake warning light and alarm.

 

Do a Google search....your suggestion runs contrary to the opinion of every "automotive expert". There are several reasons why this is not advisable.

 

right on gator, but then again his suggestions are contrary to everything in the universe..he still believes the earth is flat, harleys are a bad investment and gw was a good pres..lol..

 

Well I use my e-brake ALL the time, when the car is not moving of course. I've left it on twice, and the car gave me a constant beep until I disengaged it. If it's noisy in the car or outside, you may not hear the beep, but it's constant until you release the brake. I think it didn't start until the car was moving. Noise masking this warning beep is one more reason I refuse to have the radio on or a CD playing while driving. When I'm driving that's what I'm doing, not listening to music, talking on the cell, shaving, reading a newspaper, etc., etc., etc.

Note that unless you really press the pedal hard the e-brake is not very "strong". Pearl has moved on a slop with the e-brake engaged "firmly". So now I apply it a little harder.

BTW Pat, since it's foot activated, I guess we can't call it a "hand brake", but instead a "foot operated e-brake".

Having a hand operated lever for the e-brake is one thing I would change in the Prius if I could. They are much more useful.

 

wheel speed sensor, wheel cylinder, brake shoes, drums, wheel bearings... any of the whole nine yards could be affected by driving like that. can't say much more knowing what we know right now.