Where on this almost 2 year old thread did ANYONE say the driver is doing something to cause this? What is the code that is set on your car? Is it a speed sensor, yaw rate sensor or some other problem? The code is NOT cleared, it is stored in the system and can be read.

Find out the code and let us know and someone on here should be able to help or at least point you in the right direction.

 

Since we are discussing this issue can I get a clarification on the terms used above?

Back up braking, "the back up braking is sudden and sharp"?

Drive Braking, "the drive braking is hard and too the floor"?

ABS
The primary sensors are the ABS wheel sensors which allow the ABS computer to compare wheel rotational speed. The brake pedal sensor also detects how you hit the pedal.
The proper way to use brakes on a car with ABS is to apply constant heavy pressure. Don't pump but use constant heavy pressure. You will get feedback (pulsating) through the brake pedal that the ABS is managing hydraulic pressure to the calipers to control wheel spin.

VSC
Vehicle Stability Control is a combination of ABS and engine control. The computer takes inputs from the steering, brake pedal sensor, ABS sensors and the yaw sensor to judiciously or carefully apply brake and manage engine power to stop wheel spin and correct speed in the interest of assisting the driver to regain control of the car. The yaw sensor is definitely important. The Toyota service manual actually includes a procedure to calibrate the yaw sensor after a wheel alignment. Your corner garage is probably not going to be aware of that one.

Being the adventurous sort I have forced the VSC to take action by entering a corner too quickly. I don't recommend that you intentionally attempt this type of manuver but the system does a good job of saving your backside. The lightest or unloaded corner wants to lock up in the rear and VSC system reads the ABS sensor and yaw to stop the wheel lock and reduce speed.

Here's some important information from the owners manual, always good to do a pre-flight check and know the status of all the lights:













When the yellow warning light comes on, the regenerative brake system and/or electronically controlled brake system is malfunctioning.










The red warning light does not come on even if the parking brake is applied when the hybrid system is on.






The red and yellow warning lights may stay on for about 60 seconds after the hybrid system is started. It is normal if it turns off after a while.










The red warning light does not turn off even after the parking brake is released with the hybrid system turned on.

The red warning light stays on with the hybrid system turned on.

In either case, this can indicate that the brakes may not work properly and your stopping distance will become longer. Depress the brake pedal firmly and bring the vehicle to an immediate stop.

The red brake system warning light remains on together with the “ABS” warning light and “CHECK VSC SYSTEM” warning message. In this case, not only the anti−lock brake system and vehicle stability control system will fail but also the

vehicle will become extremely unstable during braking.

So it's normal for the lights to come on breifly under certain conditions but if they stay on you had better heed the warning/s.

 

Back up braking, "the back up braking is sudden and sharp"?

I have had this happen many times, but I don't treat my case as a problem, just a bizzare programming choice.

When I start my car, I put it in neutral and coast out of my garage and onto the street. Since we have 2 cars in a narrow garage, I ride the brakes out of the garage as the passenger mirror is too close to the garage door opening for my liking. since I am very lightly on the brakes, every once in a while the car seems to slam on the brakes. I think this is part of the programming for emergency stops. I'm guessing that if the car senses an emergency stop, and you have not applied the brakes hard enough, the car will.

 

Possibilities

ABS has not fully initialized, how long do you wait before rolling backwards.

Rotor corrosion, is the rotor shiny or does it appear to have a light coating of rust? When mine sit in high moisture conditions they grab until the pads remove that light coating of rust.

Brake pedal sensor, there are 2- switches on the brake pedal one for the brake light and another that measures rate of pedal travel. I would recommend that you explain the scenario to a Toyota technician and have them verify that the 2- brake switches are adjusted/functioning correctly. It could be that this switch is sending the signal to the computer to apply more brake than is necessary. That would definitely cause issues with the VDIM system.

 

Two days after Christmas I was in a parking lot and all of the sudden, I put my foot on the brake to stop and the car flashed VSC light came on and my brakes were not working. I turned the car off and then back on and put the car into neutral and had my son push me into a stall. I turned the car off and back on and the same light was illuminated as well as ABS, Brake Warning and that triangular warning sign. My husband came down to pick me up 1/2 hr later and of course, the car worked fine. He thought I did something until it happened two more times for me and once for him. Each time the warnings came up and the brakes were not working very well (hit them to the floor and the car finally decides to brake.) We took it into the Toyota Dealer Service and on the way the light were up but after he turned it off the light did not come back on. They told us that because the codes are not coming on and they see nothing wrong when they look at it there is nothing they can do. BTW, it had been raining around the time that this was going on and is no longer raining? We have not hydroplaned or made any sudden movements...2 out of 4 times it happened I was going slow in a parking lot. Anyone have any ideas on what to do now?

Thanks!

 

Did the brake pedal go all the way to the floor?

 

“CHECK VSC SYSTEM warning message. GET THE RIGHT CODE and look it up on the internet.
If you are getting a C0210 code (right Rear speed Sensor Circuit (or left, diff code)then the problem is most likely in the wiring harness directly in front of the speed sensor. This harness, part # 89516-06039, about $45.00 (connector especially)is both inside and outside of the vehicle and subjected to the elements. The speed senor is pressed into the wheel hub so it is unlikely to get "fouled" as the dealership would like you to believe. Hub and sensor...$8-900.00. The magic word in the code is "CIRCUIT". Check the wiring harness first. Good reading is going to be about 4.6 volts. Less than that is why your code won't reset.

 

I think he got this fixed or sold the car sometime in the last 4 years since his post...... Just saying.......

 

Hello guys , i have camry hybrid 2008 , I had this problem for approximately 6 months , i went to alot of car mantaince stations all of them agreed that the abs accumulator should be changed costs ~ 1000$ .. today i bought brake fluid and the problem just vanished.. so check your brake fluid before doing anything good luck

 

First off, lets assume you are referring to the Brake Actuator. There is warranty extension on that component and a couple of others if you car is affected. That extension is for 150,000 miles or 10 years from date of mfr.

If adding brake fluid solves your problem, then you may have not had the Brake Reservoir replaced under a TSB/Recall.

There is well known TSB/Recall on the Brake Fluid Reservoir. On some vehicles Brake Fluid was not moving between a filter in the chambers fast enough to keep up with the actuator pumping. This would result in throwing a code.

If you have never had any of the above done and you say you just added Brake Fluid, then you are saying that your brake system was very low on fluid. This points to a more serious problem somewhere else down the line.

You or a qualified tech should carefully inspect every component in the brake system to find the leak, if that is the case.