Pontiac Repair: abs and TCS off, grand prix gtp, wheel bearings

Question
My daughter has a 1999 Grand Prix GTP and the abs light is on and the TCS is off. Her car handles poorly on wet or icy roads. What could it be and approximatly what would be the cost to fix it.

Answer
Hi Julie:
It's hard to tell you what's wrong without looking at the car and knowing what the trouble code is that's turning the ABS lamp on. The most likely cause is a bad whell speed sensor there are 4 of them on this car and they are part of the wheel bearings. The bearings are not cheap about $200.00 each + labor. If the light goes on right away when the car is started and doesn't go off that would indicate that one of them has a definate problem or it could be in the ABS control valve or module. If the light goes off after a few seconds during the bulb test and then it comes on while driving it's a really good indication that it's a speed sensor issue. The TCS off light is the same issue if the ABS doesn't work then the traction control will not work either. Hope that helps. as far and it not driving well in the snow and ice In lue of fixing the abs right now make sure the car has 4 good treaded tires on it that will make it handle better in the snow and also not so heavy a foot on the gas pedal :) Happy holidays and good luck :}