Q: My Traction control Light Comes on and the car stops accelerating After cutting the car off for 15 to 20 minutes it starts back up

asked by on February 02, 2017

I have a Chevrolet Tahoe 2007. My TCS light keeps coming on. When it comes on it causes the car not to accelerate After cutting the car off for 15 to 20 minutes and restarting it it works. then it repeats over and over a again. What typically causes this?

My car has 182000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

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Hi There, It sounds like you may have a faulty traction control module. When the car shuts off and sits for 15-20 minutes as you describe, this gives the module time to reset itself which then allows you to drive again with normal functionality until it detects the problem again. Once it does, this process repeats itself. The traction control system monitors the steering stability of the vehicle and engages when loss of traction has been detected. This is done by the use of electronic sensors at each of the four wheels that communicate with the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) regarding steering performance and stability in adverse weather conditions. The traction control system works by reducing engine speed and determining which wheel to apply brake pressure to in order to prevent the vehicle from sliding. The anti-lock braking system and the traction control system work together to maintain the stability of the vehicle. The computer uses this information received from electronic sensors regarding the rotational speed of each wheel, the horizontal motion of the vehicle, and the vertical motion of the vehicle to determine how to direct the traction control system or the anti-lock braking system to best control the vehicle when needed. When this warning indicator light comes on in the dashboard, this could be an indication of several issues such as faulty wheel speed sensors, a faulty steering angle sensor, a faulty rotational speed sensor or a problem with the steering rack. In some cases, the traction control system may simply need to be reprogrammed. I would recommend having a professional from YourMechanic come to your location to properly diagnose your traction control system.

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