1998Civic

Just had a big rain storm here in Toronto a few days ago. During the storm, my ABS light came on. About the last 20 ft. before coming to a stop my brakes started pulsating. Tires not slipping! Now that the rain is gone, my ABS light goes off an on randomly... still getting the ABS kicking in every now and then in the last 20 ft of braking... no idea what's going on... it's random, but very annoyying and can't be good for the system. Thoughts?

D.T.P

Get it scanned so you would know what it is, maybe there is a loose connection that causes on/off and with moisture on the connector it causes the light to be on.

1998Civic

Does it still store a code even though the light goes off? I used to have a scanner for check engine codes.. is this the same type of scanner? Shops want $50 just to check... :/

D.T.P

Most cheap obd scanners wont be able to read that. I know part soirce will scan it for free. Worth a shot.

1998Civic

Checked with a few PartSource stores, some don't scan at all, others just scan engine codes and not ABS ones. However, I noticed that the problem only occurs when it's raining. After a few days after it rained, the problem goes away. Next time it rained, it's back again. Leads me to think connection problem, but have no idea where to look?

D.T.P

It would help if you knew which wheel was the problem. Look for corroded plugs and wires. There could be a break in a wire at one of the wheels, and water going on it would create higher resistance, thus abs light going off.

Btw, after looking this up, i realised that the paperclip trick in the 2p dtc connector will also work for abs. Look under the glove box, i believe ek is same location as eg, it will be a blue connector
On the right side of the dash. Stick a paper clip in it and turn ignition on. Watch the abs light blink. Long blinks are 10s and short blinks are 1s. So if it shows one long blink and 3 short blinks its code 13. Then after you get a code, google for a list and report back.

1998Civic

So on the right side of the dash, I found a connector that was yellow but sitting in a blue 'holster' so to speak. I unplugged it, put the paperclip in, put on the ignition and nothing happened. Btw, my ABS light has been off since it hasn't rained. Does the light need to be on for this to work, and do I even have the right connection? I didn't see anything else that was blue.

HOWEVER, now, my SRS light is on...

D.T.P

If you look at the plug, you could plug it into a wrong set. Try doing it again. If abs light is on, it will flash when you connect the paperclip.

1998Civic

The ABS light now off. It doesn't stay on all the time. It goes off and on. Tried the paperclip again, nothing happens. My SRS light is still on (it wasn't on before I disconnected this plug). I've attached a pic to show you what I'm doing.

D.T.P

Wait, you disconnected that plug?? Nooo its not it. The plug where you put the paperclip does not have anything connected to it. Yellow plugs are usually srs. If you have passanger air bag, it was probably what you disconnected.

1998Civic

Yup - disconnected that one... that's the only one I could find there. I don't see any blue ones? Where else might it be?

So what do I do to re-set the SRS light so it goes off?

D.T.P

I swear its behind glovebox on the right side. May have a rubber boot over it.

As for srs, i have no idea. Maybe disconnect the baattery and pull out the back-up fuse.

1998Civic

Found it... yes, it was in a green boot, behind the plastic cover!

Codes are: 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, 54 and 61..... this is not sounding good.... :/

D.T.P

11 - front right wheel sensor open/short to ground
12 - front right wheel sensor electrical noise
14 - front left wheel sensor electrical noise
16 - rear right wheel sensor electrical noise
18 - rear left wheel sensor electrical noise
54 - fail-safe relay
61 - ignition voltage

Inspect front right wheel sensor fir cide 11. For next 4 i am leaning towards the abs module. Not commkn for all 4 sensors to be fluctuating differently at the same time.

1998Civic

Gottcha. You wouldn't happen to have a picture of what the sensor looks like, do you? I'm not very familiar with ABS systems, so when I take off the wheel, I'm not really sure what I'm looking for.... I tried google imaging it, but it's not very helpful.

D.T.P

Sorry it took a while to respond. If i recall correctly, there will be an electrical line running behind the arm that connects to the upper control arm. Follow that line down, you will hit a sensor


. It will be right by the driveshaft. The driveshaft has a gear type looking right that the sensor reads, off of. Inspect for damaged wires along the suspension, also you can check to see if there is anything stuck to the sensor. Since the sensor is magnetic, it could create electrical noise as its reading the ring spinning by it.

Hope that helps.