Honda Freed Key Battery

[Doris Joo]

Ofcourse one repair option is to take the vehicle to a dealer to clear/reset the fault, but that is going to cost $50-$100 or more based on various reports I have seen. After fooling around with advice from various sources and checking fuses and disconnecting the battery negative cable for several hours with no success, I found the following procedure which worked perfectly:

Please note that if the ABS/VSA code has illuminated for some more serious reason than a discharged battery (such as a bad sensor or failed hardware) this procedure is probably not going to work and you will likely need to visit a dealer.

Glad to be of help! Not sure, but I might not totally lay blame on Honda, I think it is just a glitch that happens from time to time on the CAN (OBDII) network, Honda may be somewhat at the mercy of the third parties that supply that standardized software/hardware environment.

If the reset procedure does not work, your problem is likely more serious than a glitch and you may need professional help. Often the problem will be related to ABS sensors but could be a few other things as well.

ROHAN here from JAMAICA,he was not telling you about second ignition,he was just saying when you insert the key turn it two times and you will get ignition, the marks on the switch will show( I II III )so with your push button your first push is accessory,second push is ignition then hold to start.

Had the vsa and abs light on after driving about an hour with abs always being applied softly when driving under 40 mph and hard abs when stopping. Had the abs sensor replaced 4 times. Finally Honda found the problem, the old abs sensor had broken inside the brake ball bearing. The rotation of the wheel grinded the plastic abs part into the metal surface groove of the bearing and coated it and grounded it down not allowing the new sensor to receive and maintain the vsa signal to do its job. Pass this on. It will solve many an abs vsa problem.

My 2012 Honda Civic DX sat one day and battery was dead. Jumped it and it had ABS/VSA/power steering lights. After replacing alternator and battery the lights were still on. Thought it was a bad abs modulator that was constantly running draining the battery. Did this and it fixed my civic and car is perfect. I feel like I owe you money now.

Rob, thanks for sparing me a Saturday at the dealership + the min $79 Svc charge. Took 3 attempts of pushing through my increasingly challenged dexterity, failing eyesight and creaky old bones, but finally cleared the low voltage code in my 2012 Odyssey. ABS and VSA lights restored to normal and power doors open with ignition on!

Worked well on a 2016 Honda Odyssey Touring. Like many others, I too did not get it to work in first few tries but the rapid brake release did the trick. Thank you to the OP. Saved me a bunch of money!

This worked for my 2015 Honda Accord. My ABS, VSA and Tire Pressure warning light stayed on after I replaced my front rotors and pads. I had turned the car on to use the power steering while the brake calipers were unbolted. I think this triggered the indicators. This video helped me to reset the indicator lights.

Could be, but it would seem unlikely that a fuse would blow during this process. First make sure the switch for the sliding doors is turned to the on position. The switch is above the two sliding door buttons on the left side of the dash, see last photo in the blog post.

Next, open and close all the doors, then start up the car and try again. Seems to me, immediately after the reset, or a battery disconnect, the door motors would not work, but after a couple of ignition cycles they went back to normal.

Sir rob this is my problem right now for my honda odyssey 2015 im lucky because honda shop is already close,i replaced new battery then i try to drive backalley my dashboard same thing problem again,i read your article in the comments section is helpful for me tomorrow, thanks rob

Has anyone tried this on a 2012 Honda Odyssey Touring Elite. Lights are on for us after we had to jump our battery. Read in another thread that someone blew fuses trying this method on a 4th Gen Odyssey.

Need help attempted this procedure and apparently has completely messed something up after doing the pin in the OBD my brake pedal has no vacuum to it my van will not start and I cannot get it to shift out of park. What have I done what do I need to do to fix this I have too many kids to not have my van

The procedure only worked temporary for me. It clears all the lights but they come right back on as soon as you pull off. I have already changed the sensor. But I had changed the hub barrings because they were bad.

Kevin, thanks for the report. Good for others to take note that the posted procedure will reset the issue if caused by a random glitch, but an actual mechanical or electrical failure will require that the problem be repaired.

Pete, sorry to hear that. The procedure will fix the problem if it is just a random glitch, but you may very well have an actual mechanical or electrical failure. Others have reported issues with the ABS sensors and even bearing issues that cause the ABS sensors to malfunction. Good luck!

A little additional information on my pin 5 to 16 faux pas, the engine appears not to run due to the system not being able to recognize the ignition key. Also, my CAN OBDII reader does not power up when I plug it in.

Question before I have my hisband try this, my lights came on after I was sitting in bumper to bumper traffice for an hour, accelaroration went to heck . Made it home and when I turned on Van light was aoff but came back on a few miles down the ran. Do you think this is the same as the issue you addressed

My 2016 Accord had the ABS, VAS, EPS & TPM lights on the dashboard due to low voltage battery last night. Battery changed but those said lights remain on. Short pinning 4 & 9 on the OBD connector using a paper clip did the trick for the ABS, VAS & EPS. For the TPM, tried another method by resetting the TPM button and worked. Did not have any tire pressure issues prior to low voltage battery but will go to shop to make sure tire pressures are all intact. Thank you for this suggestion and cost me NOTHING which was the awesome part. THANK YOU!!!!

Recently had front and back breaks put on my 2012 Honda Accord. When I picked up my car, the VSA and ABS lights came on and stays on. Also the Brake light comes on and goes off after I stop. Everything worked fine before I put breaks on the car. What do you think could be wrong?

Hello Sir,

Your instructions were crystal clear and perfect. I had a low battery problem and after fixing the charged battery, I found out these ABS and VSA lights. My car never moved, so these problems should not have been there (so was sure, it is just a computer glitch).

Just followed the instructions as mentioned and in the second trial, the lights had gone.

Just for information, my car is Honda Accord 2.4L, 2011 model (Right Hand Drive for India).

2016 Honda CRV: Had Tire Pressure, VSA, ABS and Power Steering lights come on after sitting in 30 min of traffic. Took it to honda and it was the left front wheel speed sensor that needed replacing. That one sensor feeds information to all these systems

Another successful reset. 2nd Try. Although, after the double blink, the light did come back on for a second, then went off and stayed off. Tested starting up the car it it stayed off. Love free fixes!

Wow Rob you are genius. Not sure how you figured this out. Worked first time. I had quite a scare when this happened as I had my family in the van and could not open the sliding doors. Just by chance I shut the engine and removed the key that helped open the sliding doors. What a relief it was not a major problem.

Thanks it worked for me on Honda Odyssey 2013XL lights went on after original battery failed

and it was replaced in Honda Dealer . I noticed lights an my way home from dealership.:( Call them next day They said bring the car back for investigation.

What is important during the procedure is released the break pedal immediately after the ABS light goes off .

Did this just tonight on our 2013 Odyssey EX-L. I had to jump-start it this morning after the key was left on overnight and the ABS/VSA lights came on after starting. Thought I had maybe blown the ABS module during the jump-start. The sliding doors were acting weird too (not wanting to open) and it turns out that was tied to the ABS glitch. This reset procedure seems to have fixed both problems. Thanks for posting this!

That said, I do appreciate this advice and post, and am glad to have tried it out. And it almost worked, no problem! I think if someone is completely rock solid they are in the right holes and have the brake-depressing down, then go for it.

I am so thankful that I found your writings here. That really worked for my 2011 honda odyssey 174k miles.

You released the stress from those lights on not only save money. Thank you ao much. God bless you.

This year I also had this problem and the indicated procedure worked for me but the error came back fairly quickly and kept coming back in higher and higher frequency until the lights no longer went out. Installed a new battery and changing the brake oil did not help. Eventually the ABS pump turned out to be defective. After a revision of the pump (260 Euro) the problem is completely gone. The procedure had to be carried out one more time to get the lights out. Then I also felt a difference in the brake pedal. The pressure in the brake pedal changed during the procedure. I had never felt this before. Fortunately, the Christmas tree is now out on my dashboard.

Greetings,

Jan

Just had to replace the alternator on our 2011 Honda Odyssey that had caused the battery to completely drain. Once replaced and the battery recharged the abs and vsa indicators would not turn off. Used your procedure using quick brake pedal releases and lights turned and have remained off first time. Thanks!

BADA BING SIR. Fixed me, only no abs light , just the check engine, now abs /vsa/f/a problem gone. Going to drive it a few drive cycles to be sure, but the proverbial light came on when you mentioned low battery, which we replaced a few months ago. I was messing around at the fuse panel and noticed a missing fuse which I replaced only to be nailed with the tdcs. Very astute observation and remedy. I am a mechanic of 30 years , but you saved me potentially spending way too much time messing with it. Thank you one final time, good to find a fellow who knows his s#&t. Cheers

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