Red Triangle and beep for 1 second or less

Try a place like Autozone or similar that offers free code reading. There may be a code stored

 

If the fob battery is dying, you will hear a long beep when you turn the car off. There will be no dash warning lights. The red triangle is indicative of something else. Only the codes will tell.

 

Is it the same beeping as when you open the door with the car in drive? Maybe its a bad contact or >>>???

 

Very LOW OIL LEVEL !!!!!

Replace oil level asap, or engine failure will result.

 

So, what did we find out? Problem with a sensor, or critically low oil level??

 

So you *were* low on oil??

 

Hello. Just wondering if this ended up being the problem or if anyone else has experienced this.

My 2007 Prius is doing the same thing. It will beep once, the red triangle will light up for a second and the screen will say "Problem" momentarily.. It's happened 3 times, once when I stopped short while turning left, once while turning left tightly into my parking lot, and another time turning left into a gas station. All of which were tight turns.

Come to think of it it's never happened while turning right (not yet anyway). I'll probably have to go get the codes read at Autozone or something - but while I'm at work I figured I'd get some expert opinions from here.

Thank you

 

Does your car have Smart Entry / Smart Start? If so, I suggest that you start by replacing the fob battery.

I doubt that any trouble codes will exist if you don't see a warning light on at all times.

 

i do have the smart entry / smart start. both of my fobs light up when i hit the buttons (from another forum post here, i thought the red light wouldnt light up when the battery is dying)

 

I had a similar experience w/ my 04 prius at 163k miles and I panicked and went to the dealer and it was a leveling sensor for the headlights. the cost was about 780.00 and i refused to do it as long as the car was driving fine. it ended up self correcting.
all the best

 

Since it only costs ~$5 or less to replace the fob battery, I think you should start with that, to rule out a marginal battery as the cause.

 

I started with that and replaced the batteries just to be sure. I just so happened to go down a winding road and as my car was 'turning left' for quite some time, the beep and red triangle appeared again (this time for longer), followed by the low oil sign.

Immediately I pulled over and threw some oil in the car to hold it over for a couple days, and I have yet to see the red triangle again (24 hours).

 

So does it burn oil/leak oil?

 

Thanks for the update. How much oil did you have to add to bring the dipstick back to the full mark?

 

I had this same problem! Couldn't figure it out till I found this thread. When I checked my oil, it was off the dipstick!!! It took 2 full quarts to get it back to the middle of the two dots. I bought a 3rd quart for when I know check my oil EVERY time I fill up as suggested in the manual.

It's intersting that I was due for service about 1000 miles ago.

My 2004 has 211,000+ miles on it and is going strong. I just had to replace the 12V mini battery in the back...but that's another story!

 

I hate to say it, but anyone who has had this problem, a brief red triangle with the oil light, the damage has quite likely already been done. This situation does seem to happen mostly on a Prius that is two quarts low and going downhill or during hard braking, as the oil pickup is no longer submersed in the small amount of oil sitting in the pan. From here on out, monitor your oil levels very carefully, as the consumption will only get progressively worse.

 

Over 300,000 and mine just did the same thing. 2400 since oil change and it was 2.5 qts low! Glad I found this thread! Guess I'll start checking the oil more often

 

Geez people. This is not a LOW OIL Level light! It is a LOW or NO OIL PRESSURE LIGHT.


The cause of the light to come on, is often due to insufficient oil level or the oil pump failure. Insufficient oil could be due to a leak, or excessive oil being burnt and never replenished. Since most of you never check your oil level, you never notice your car telling you to add more oil before it gets too low.

Pay me $2000 and I will be happy to drain 3 quarts of oil, out of your oil pan, and let you drive your merry way, to a shortened engine life due to excessive wear, due to insufficient lubrication, due to low oil. $2K+ is what you could expect to pay for a used replacement engine installed.