Vauxhall Cavalier (1988 - 1995) - 1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on?

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
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Tue 6 Jan 2009 15:43
1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on? - moon
Hi there, I am not motor minded at all and today I changed my first battery! - but since i have done this the ABS light on the dash board has come on and stays on, with this cold weather I don't want to risk driving it if there is a potential problem with the brake system - but I am sure it has something to do with the battery change as it was fine before - does anyone know of this happening or how to cure it? I am a single mother and would really like to avoid spending too much money on a mechanic!

thanks in advance for your thoughts and advice.

(ps I don't know the engine size so I just wrote anything!)
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Tue 6 Jan 2009 17:59
1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on? - Peter.N.
If you don't have a history of the ABS light coming on it may be something to do with the battery change. Try disconnecting it for a minute or two. Your brakes will still work without the ABS although it will give you added protection when driving on ice. I doubt that the cold would have anything to do with it. Well done for having a go!
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Tue 6 Jan 2009 19:06
1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on? - Dynamic Dave
If both brake light bulbs aren't working, then the ABS light will come on. Total guess, but maybe one bulb had already blown, and by co-incidence of changing the battery the other bulb may well have also now blown.

Failing that, as suggested, disconnect & reconnect the battery to see if the system will reset.

You could also try reading out the fault codes to see what the problem is. I've never used the following, so no idea if it works or not.

www.akirwan.freeserve.co.uk/akhow2/diag_no3.rtf

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Tue 6 Jan 2009 19:33
1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on? - elekie&a/c doctor
Whilst changing the battery did any leads/cables become detached from the main battery terminals or is it possible that one of the thinner wires(usually with a black outer sleeving)has been put on the wrong battery terminal?hth
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Tue 6 Jan 2009 19:32
1994 1.6 New battery, now ABS light is on? - injection doc
what make of battery is it? Did you jump start it before changing the battery? Did you have the key's out the ign when you changed the battery/
I doc
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