Reactor

I believe the stock cap can only click once anyway. And getting it on too tight def can't cause CEL to be on.
Are you saying that since you got the car you've been driving with the light ON most of the time?

Slade

Pull the 12 fuse for 1 minute. All 3 lights gone and stayed gone. Yay.

FLYBOYJ

Well folks - over two years since my last post. Been dealing with the P0012 since then, until...

About a month ago I was tightening my alternator belt when I snapped off the connector on the camshaft position sensor actuator. I had previously checked this and it checked good. Ordered a new one and no more light, no more P0012. Just had to share, maybe this will help someone else still dealing with this.

_greysasha

Hello all ... I registered just to post on this thread. I purchased a 2006 Scion xB back in January, and the 'three stooges' (VSC/Trac Off/Check Engine Light) graced my dash on day 2 of ownership. This forum helped me troubleshoot, and in the end the P0012 code pulled amounted to replacing the camshaft position sensor actuator. I haven't seen the 'three stooges' since.

To add lib, after all the troubleshooting, I drove into my local Toyota dealership and pointed at my dash/lights. The service tech. immediately said 'it's going to be the camshaft position sensor, but we'll confirm it'. My VIN didn't qualify for a TSB, but I'm going out on a limb and saying that the part for my year/gen might've been faulty?

btnewhouse

My wife and I have a stock 2005 xB. A few years ago when we were visiting Florida, those three lights illuminated (VSC/Trac Off/Check Engine). My wife & I went to an auto parts place, borrowed a code reader and pulled the codes. Armed with that info, we went to a Scion dealer/shop to get it repaired. The repairman however noticed a loose wire to the Air Flow Mass sensor. He soldered it (with the disclaimer that it wouldn't last forever), cleared the codes and we were good for a couple years. The code came up again right when we took the xB in for the warranty-covered Rear Hatch Handle replacement. The dealer ran codes and tried to sell us on a $600+ charcoal filter repair/replacement. We noticed the loose wire and said "No thanks." We took our xB to a local Houston mechanic, explained the issue and he re-soldered the wire. Well, it's loose again (broken really) so I think it's now time to replace the AFM sensor connection (is it a switch?). It seems that the air filter housing vibrates a lot and one of the 2 wires into the AFM just can't handle the vibration. Hope our experience may help.

bB2NER

Great info to know for future reference. Thanks

HardLuck5150

Had this happen to me this morning after filling up at the gas station......the first thing that happened after filling it up----


3 minutes later acceleration was interrupted with engine sputtering, and then the dash lit up with the engine lite, VSC, and trac off...I immediately pulled over and tightened the gas cap......no dice...same issue. I get her home and try once again with the gas cap ...again no dice.


I was on a time constraint and just grabbed my keys to my accord and got on the road,...I cant take a look at it til tomorrow...But seems funny how this is a common issue,..my 2005 is all stock and has 122,000 miles on it,...all I've done is replaced the belts and pads.

AnalogXB

Ive owned mine since I drove it out of the lot in 2006 and its pretty much solid.
Ive encountered this issue about 3 times so far, one of my testimonies is actually on this thread I posted a few years ago.
Anyhow, after owning this car for some time now, you tend to know all the common problems so well and fixing them on your own.
- So the first culprit on the dreaded Trac/Vsc/Abs lights is probably the Cam Oil Control Valve (OCV) aka the Cam Actuator.
Ive had to buy this Twice now from the dealers as the Valve/Actuator would stick, and although I tried to reclean and oil the mechanism, somehow areas inside the valve that is not reachable seems to be gummed up and sticking. In 2010 Toyota made a revised OCV (appearantly) to deal with this issue. I havent had a problem ever since.
- The next common culprit is the MAF sensor, the harness and the vaccum tubes. Weather it may be a stock or Cold Air Intake that you are using, Ive found the dreaded lights will come on if the harness isnt connected properly, wires are damaged to the harness, dirty pins or corrosion, bad MAF sensor, Vaccum Tubes arent fitted on properly or not on at all. So keep that area very clean.
- Another common culprit is the Charcoal canister, when people fill their gas tank up, people dont stop after the first click that halts the pump from filling more gas. Instead people continue to pump until gas starts overflowing a little bit. I understand if people want to round off the dollar but to over-do it is another thing. What happends is the Charcoal Canister starts to fill up, when that happends the process of the recycled fumes and so forth cannot operate, tripping out the sensors and turning the lights on. This can also damage the Canister as well.

The not so common culrits are: the Cam Gear itself moves out of place so much that the timing gets out of wack and will throw codes off like crazy. expect your dreaded lights to show up.
Air filter gets so unbelievably clogged that the Maf sensor says: I CANT BREATH , CODES CODES lol! Expect the dreaded lights to show up there too. Coil on plug pack might malfunction, throwing off the timing, making the computer trying its best to work in limp mode, which you will also see the dreaded lights.
The o2 sensor is somewhat hit and miss, as although it helps with the grand scheme of Air/Fuel mixture, it can sometimes be working half way and you will not be getting no codes.

I have been told by a few of my Toyota mechanic buddies that a 5w/20 oil is better for the older 1nzfe engines, being the Cam Oil Control Valve/Actuator can flush out and recirculate oil much better. There is an area that appearantly gums up and it is hard to get at, hence the sticking phenomenon. The appearant revised version of this Cam Oil Control Valve (cam Actuator) has resolved this issue!

Take care

HardLuck5150

I am getting P0304 cyl 4 misfire. ....What are you guys thinking for troubleshooting this code? Least expensive to most expensive !!!!!!! hahaha

bykemike

I got the CEL and the others today (VSC, Trac Off), I was just starting to develop
a rough idle and loss of power.


I went to an Autozone and they read my computer and I got the "Misfire on #3 cylinder"


Almost ashamed to say..I have had this car since new, have about 170,000 on it and have never changed the plugs. I put in a new set of plugs and the misfire went away but the engine lights did not, I pulled the fuse to reset them and, so far, all is back to normal. FYI the old plugs, burned down to the insulator were running an effective gap of .085 and I just returned from a 1200 mile highway trip, running 80 plus MPH with no issues (until today)


Mike

BlingSlade

My 2006 xB had been running a little rough and loud lately, but I thought it was the transmission. I didn't get the Check Engine/Trac/VSC lights until yesterday. I started my car, it kind of hesitated and shook and then sure enough these lights popped up. I guess it had to get bad enough for the sensor to detect.

I went to Autozone and their gauge detected a P0303 (cylinder misfire)code. I swapped coil packs 3/4 and the gauge then detected P0301/02/03/04 code so I knew the swap didn't solve anything. In the parking lot I put in new NGK spark plugs to replace the expensive iridiums I installed last year. I disconnected/reconnected the battery and all the codes went away and the xB sounds normal again.

A couple of notes:
1. When I pulled the used iridiums out they were gapped around .50, way more than the .44 when I installed them last year.
2. I gapped the new NGK's at .44 per Autozone's recommendation.
3. Lesson learned. From now on stick with the basics, especially on a ten year old car.

BleuMag

***i have a 05 xB that I've had since mile #1. All my xB problems started in June of 2016. I had a cracked head gasket that was DIY replaced, heads resurfaced, replaced radiator, replaced thermostat (stuck open - which was the reason the car started overheating & guzzling water), replaced radiator cap, replaced 4 spark plugs with iridium plugs, and did a an oil change while it was easier to access. Let me just say I have 3 non professional mechanics in my family that all due repairs to multiple vehicle types and are quite good at it do the repairs on my car. My car ran afterwards, but never the same as before. The idling was very rough with my RPMS going up and down, my car would buck when I stopped a a relight/stop sign, and I would loose the coolness in my AC when driving under 25mph. At the end of June and after engine work I went to Auto Zone to see about any codes showing up. I got the P0011 and P0016 codes showing up. Checked the MAF sensor to be on the safe side as well. I replaced the Cam Shaft Position Sensor aka Oil Control Valve....and the timing over-retarded for an extended period of time was checked with my family mechanics. Timing was good and set. Flash forward months of time I'm still having problems and both of those codes were thrown again today (4-5-17). I've also since replaced my battery, positive terminal, replaced engine & cabin air filters, oil filter as part of my regular maintenance. Now the car is shaking pretty roughly from engine compartment when accelerating and slowing down under 40mph. It drives better above 45mpj with only minor notice of some engine vibration. Auto Zone has ordered a replacement part for the Cam Shaft sensor, but I'm concerned that I'm still not finding the real problem with the car. I'm a single parent who's been out of work for 6 months so funds are tight and I honestly cannot afford a repair shop. I've finally gotten a "phenomenal" job for the government and start in 2wks. I need to make sure that my 1 hour commute to work doesn't leave me unable to get home to my child as I really cannot afford a car note at this point.

caliscion83

Had the same error code, but car runs like new. Anybody coming across this, you may need a new gas cap. I noticed after fill up that the lights would come off momentarily. So it appears there was a leak. I've been filling up the gas tank to the brim, so that may have caused the leak.

bB2NER

Yeah, stop filling the tank to the brim. I always stop after the pump clicks off. Your charcoal canister will thank you.

douglasinct

I wish someone had told me this earlier...
Or...
How I spent my 4th of July weekend Saturday...
on my back,
under the car (on ramps),
removing and replacing the Charcoal Canister with a new one from AutoZone.

I was so proud of that accomplishment (about 4 hours of fiddling with picks and hose connectors) that I had my wife take pictures of me posing next to the car holding the new part prior to installation.

jct

I managed to get a free charcoal canister assembly from AutoZone due to human error. I used that money for Xmas gifts so win-win for me.