ES.P. light on? - Smart Car of America Forums : Smart Car Forum

BigWarpGuy · 10-26-2009, 06:04 PM

Lately the yellow triangle with exclamation point has been lit up toward evening. The manual says it is the E.S.P. light to show that the electronic stability program is off or malfunctioning. It usually goes on - the light - toward the afternoon. What should be done? Is this a service center problem or one that can be done at home?

Inquiring minds want to know.

When I first read that it was the ESP indicator and it was off, I thought my car had psychic powers and some how turned it off.

Then I read what E.S.P. stood for.

E.S.C.

Kermit · 10-26-2009, 06:25 PM

Somewhere here there is a thread that is devoted just to what is happening to you.

I get it whenever I go over bumps. I recall the thread having other people have it go on whenever they went over railroad tracks. I get it over railroad tracks and my bumpy dirt road occasionally.

Only way to reset is to stop, shut down and restart the car. After that all is well.

SuperGeek · 10-26-2009, 08:08 PM

It shouldn't stay lit - that indicates a malfunction. When you lose traction, it'll flash while programming and ABS take over, so you know to expect a loss of power or change in behavior. But once you re-establish control, it should return to normal function... that's what it did this weekend when my nephew and I floored it on a dirt road.

BigWarpGuy · 10-27-2009, 11:37 AM

I tried looking but could not find anything. I will try looking again.

The light is not on when at the beginning of the day. It has been raining here in NJ and the roads can be bumpy. Once I have stopped and turn the car off, it is not lit up when I restart my little car.

Kermit · 10-27-2009, 01:26 PM

I have the same thing on both my smarts so I am reluctant to say it is a defect. More so a glitch under very specific conditions, much like my extremely bumpy roads. Most likely my smarts are put through a much more rigorous usage compared to a lot of people here - at least on bumpy roads.

There was only one thread I could find but I am not a search whiz. The thread spoke of the light flickering, not staying on. As I said, a shut down and reboot resets it. Can't hurt to take it to the dealer but recreating the conditions to make it happen may be difficult.

Woody14619 · 10-27-2009, 06:28 PM

If your dealer is a good ways away, you may want to stop in at a local auto place (like Autozone) and see if they have a code reader they can use to check codes for you. Autozone usually provides this for free. Worst case, there are no codes. But if there are, you can figure out whats going on and/or pre-warn the dealership so they have parts on hand if it's something they'd have to order.

Kermit · 10-27-2009, 06:46 PM

Since I have the same thing on my 2 cars I can tell you they aren't throwing codes....both cars have permanently affixed SGII's. There's that theory out the window.

BWG, last time it happened to me my roads were wet too. Had to shut down and reset.

Gilbert's · 10-27-2009, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigWarpGuy

Lately the yellow triangle with exclamation point has been lit up toward evening. The manual says it is the E.S.P. light to show that the electronic stability program is off or malfunctioning. It usually goes on - the light - toward the afternoon. What should be done? Is this a service center problem or one that can be done at home?

Inquiring minds want to know.

When I first read that it was the ESP indicator and it was off, I thought my car had psychic powers and some how turned it off.

Then I read what E.S.P. stood for.

E.S.C.

You are out of your mind if you turn it off it defeat the safety of the car....

if the ALARM SHOWS...then maybe you ran to a banana pellings...

BigWarpGuy · 10-28-2009, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gilbert's

You are out of your mind if you turn it off it defeat the safety of the car....

if the ALARM SHOWS...then maybe you ran to a banana pellings...

I have no idea how to turn it off even if I wanted to. I do not want to. I was just reading the manual that indicated a constant on light meant it was either off or malfunctioning. It seems to be unlit in the morning and lit in the afternoon.

BigWarpGuy · 10-30-2009, 11:12 AM

Since it is on all the time the little car is running, I will contact the Smart Center Edison service center.