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2012 Prius having traction control problems

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Frog, Apr 26, 2020.

  1. Frog

    Frog New Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2020
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    Location:
    North Carolina
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    II
    I have a 2012 Prius 2. I recently had the rear tires replaced due to a sidewall puncture. Front tires have less than 10K miles on them. Rear tires are the same size as fronts. Since that time, the traction control kicks in on curves above 30 mph when I life the accelerator pedal! The ABS kicks in and tries to apply braking which makes the handling get very erratic. If I apply the brakes in a curve it's even worse!

    As a repair shop owner and long time mechanic I've owned many cars in my life and I have to say that this is by far the WORST traction control software ever! AND, you can't turn it off!!! This is a total deal breaker for me. I suppose it might be better if I also replace the perfectly good front tires with the same brand and size as the fronts, but that's just ridiculous. Seriously thinking of selling the car now.
     
    #1 Frog, Apr 26, 2020
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
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    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    shouldn't be necessary. i'd check the tires pressure and go back through my work to look for damage, binding or loose/disconnected wires
     
    #2 bisco, Apr 26, 2020
  3. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

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    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    Techstream will let you retrieve what was happening at the most recent four (IIRC) times the traction control activated: car speed, yaw, g forces, braking forces, wheel speeds, etc. Might spot why it was triggering.

    Some shops can shave new tires to match the circumference of old ones.
     
    #3 ChapmanF, Apr 26, 2020
  4. George W

    George W Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2018
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    Location:
    San Antonio
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    If braking makes your car's handling erratic, have you checked the condition of your rotors and drums?
     
    #4 George W, Apr 26, 2020
  5. joshmuluba

    joshmuluba New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 9, 2023
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    Location:
    New York
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    I just bought an used model as you and also started experiencing the same issue when the ABS is triggered by itself probably from traction control and makes the car undrivable. it makes to car comes to squeezing stop swirling to left and right. It is very dangerous when you have cars behind you. I did a scan with techstream and I had a few codes C1203, C1345, C1392 and C1451 which they were not getting cleared until I did the Linear Solenoid Leaning process via techstream. The codes are all gone but still experiencing the traction issue without Codes. Did you get yours fix and what did you do to get fixed? Thanks,
     
    #5 joshmuluba, Oct 9, 2023
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2023
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