AcePanda

UPDATE

Lexus had to do a point to point check on the wiring because the computer had reported that there was a break in the circuit; this required them to take out the whole harness. If it was mice, insurance would cover it but because there wasn't any damage Lexus covered that part of the bill and took the problem wire to HQ for "research"

the parking brake needed to be disassembled and put back together and the problem was the parking module already recognized that parking brake was off but it actually wasn't. They said something must've triggered it and by passed the parking module causing the brakes to engage on its own. my car was there for a month...

so so after getting it back, fast forward to another month and after coming back from my vacation I see my battery has died. No I see the message, "parking brake inoperable" again. ****. And that's where I am now. I think it could be the battery. Enough for a recall maybe?

PLEASE HELP!

PsykotiK

so sounds like something is draining your battery... i had this problem when i left my radio on to long without the car running.. drained it and got that error code... when i replaced it everything went back to normal

Jonnyle

Parking brake inoperable!!! Any thoughts on how to fix that?

EEnglish

I have a 2013 Lexus GS 350 and last Friday my car wouldn't start and the dash display showed the messages "Parking Brake Inoperable" and "Check Parking Brake System". The word "PARK" is illuminated in red and blinking on the dash display as well. I was able to jump the battery and drive to the dealership where I got a new battery but all the parking related messages are still illuminated on the dash. The dealership was at least able to make the loud chiming sound stop and i was told to wait a few days and see if the messages reset themselves. The dealership was also not able to pick up any error codes when they scanned the computer. Now they want to charge me $195 so they can diagnose the problem. Does anyone have a solution to avoid the $195 because I don't understand why a dead battery should cause the parking brake to fail. I don't think the parking brake has actually failed but rather a communication error between the computer and the parking brake. So how do i fix this without spending $195 at the dealership for them to just diagnose it and then probably spend even more for them to fix the computer?

bclexus

You started out explaining that your dash displayed a problem with the parking brake, but then you stated that you needed to jump the battery and was able to drive to the dealership where you got a new battery. I can only assume that your dead battery, or getting a battery jump, may have caused the parking brake related messages. I'd like to know more about that...

I'm a bit surprised that your dealership didn't come to the conclusion that the two issues (dead battery/jumped battery & parking brake messages on the dash) were related and rectify the parking brake message issue while your car was already there having a new battery installed - especially if the technician had seen it happen before. Maybe there is something you are not sharing about what the dealership said about the parking brake message. Or maybe the technician had never seen the parking brake message come about from having a dead/jumped battery, which would make sense that they would need to diagnose the problem to figure out what is needed to fix it.

I realize that nothing I have posted has answered your question. But, I have a couple of questions that might help you. When did you very first notice the 'Parking Brake Inoperable' message? When you tried to start your car with the dead battery, or when your battery was jumped? When/where did the other message ('Check Parking Brake System') appear? Did it replace the first message? When/where did the illuminated and blinking 'PARK' appear? Did it replace the other previously noted messages?

EEnglish

So yes, I had a dead battery but there was still enough power to display the parking brake messages on the dash. My first thought was that the car wouldn't start because there was something wrong with the parking brake. But then I was actually able to start the car after jumping the battery. So the 'Parking Brake Inoperable' message was showing before we jumped the battery. The technician tried scanning the computer but he said it wasn't finding any errors. So he thought that the messages might reset themselves. To your point, I was kind of surprised that the dealership didn't seem to think that the two issues (dead battery& parking brake messages on the dash) were related especially after i told them that they happened at the exact same time. So the PARK is red and blinks and no other messages cover it up or replace it. The Check Parking Break System and Parking Brake Inoperable show interchangeably. If i pull on the parking brake it will switch to the other message that isn't currently displayed.

EEnglish

bclexus

There is little doubt that the weak/dead battery condition caused the parking brake issue. A weak/dead battery can trigger a number of similar issues to what you are experiencing. (This should be a lesson to everyone to have your battery load tested once a year after it becomes two years old to avoid such issues.)

You are looking for a means to reset the automatic parking brake now that the weak/dead battery has been remedied with a new battery. I would first start with the easiest, which is to temporarily remove the 30 ampere fuse for the Emergency Parking Brake (EPB). The fuse you want to remove is located in the Type A fuse compartment. The Type A fuse compartment is located under the hood on the passenger side just in front of the battery. It will be Fuse #28 identified as EPB (Emergency Parking Brake). [I would remove the fuse, start the engine and move the transmission out of Park and into Drive, and then back into Park, then turn Off the engine. Replace the fuse.]

Type A Fuse Compartment (located in front of the battery on the passenger side, under the hood)


If temporarily removing the EPB fuse doesn't reset and resolve your problem you may want to try to manually release the parking brake (see Page 752 in your Owners Manual) to see if that will eliminate the messages you are seeing on your instrument cluster. You might also try removing the negative cable from the battery for about ten minutes once this is done.

EEnglish

I tried everything you said. Short story is that nothing worked. I tried removing the fuse and then restarted the car and the parking brake messages were still displayed. I tried then disconnecting the negative cable from the battery for 10 minutes. I disconnected the fuse also while the negative cable was disconnected. So after i did this I restarted the car and the engine shut off immediately and the navigation display said it was resetting or loading (can't recall exactly the message) and to not turn off the power. Once it was done, I was able to start the car but all the parking brake error messages were still displayed. I could tell that the parking brake is not engaging because the car rocks a little when i turn it off. It wasn't doing that before this exercise. That makes me think that it was actually engaging and disengaging before. The other weird thing that happened earlier today before i tried all of your suggestions, is I got in the car and the AC was off. I always have it set to auto. After this exerI started the car after disconnecting the batter, the AC was off again. Something is definitely weird with my car.

bclexus

It appears that the dead/jumped battery upset some electronics and caused a few glitches. Unfortunately I think you'll need to take the car into the dealership and have them perform their magic. I doubt the fix is anything more than resetting (rebooting) and maybe updating (downloading firmware/software) a couple of the computer related modules. I have no idea what the cost will be, but with the $195 diagnosis charge it could easily double that figure.

Please let us know what Lexus did to fix it, along with the charges. That will be helpful to others that may be on borrowed time with their own battery.

This should be a good reminder for everyone to have their battery load tested once a year after it becomes two years old to avoid this example of unnecessary, and oftentimes expensive, issues that an unexpected dead battery can cause.

EEnglish

I have an update on my car. I took my car to the dealership and I heard back from the dealership in just about 24 hours. The technician found Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) C13A7 Actuator Malfunction. The assumption is that when the battery died, that there wasn't enough power for the actuator and it threw a code. All the technician did was erase the DTC and everything is fine now. I was charged the $195 diagnostic fee but I complained and the service adviser knocked it down to $97.50. I'm still going to try to get the other half reimbursed by corporate. Lesson learned and I will have my battery load tested after it becomes two year old.

bclexus

Thanks for letting us know.

swat1727

iTrader: (2)

This just happened to me. Bad battery. Put in a new one and it was fine. Make sure you have your key on you when changing the battery. I left the key inside the car, soon as I connected the battery, the car locked itself up. I had to wait for my wife to come by with a spare key...

j2theIzzle

bclexus

Batteries don't usually last long in the Texas heat. You should get into the habit of having your battery load tested once a year after it gets to be 2 years old. NTB (National Tire & Battery), and some other places, will load test your battery at no-charge for you so you'll know its health and won't unexpectedly strand you somewhere, or cause issues that must be fixed at the dealership. It only takes a few minutes to load test a battery and can be done in their parking lot without an appointment.