Question4WD - 48K miles; This happened 2x. 11/03 and again this weekend (4/04). The VSC, VTRAC & Check engine lights come on, loss of engine power. Finally floorboarded to get 40 mph. After engine shutoff for several hours, the engine power returned, but lights still on. Removed pos battery cable and everything reset o.k. Brake fluid level correct.
The first time it happened right after start up. The last time it happened after driving about 1 mile, stopping and then trying to take off.
AnswerThe VSC+TRAC warning lights come on because of the check engine light, the way the system works is that if there is a malfunction that triggers a check engine light for whatever reason, the ABS,Traction Control and Skid control functions are disabled until the cause for the check engine light is repaired, this is what I need to know before I can be of any more help, I need to know the diagnostic trouble code stored in the ecu, there is a possibility that you erased the code by disconnecting the battery and it won't set again until the computer sees the problem again.
The reason you could not get any power from the engine when going to full throttle is that when certain malfunctions occur the throttle will only open to about 20% no matter how far you push the pedal down, the throttle plate opening is controlled by the computer, this is known as a "fly by wire" system, at that time the engine was in a limp home mode.
You really need to find out what the cause for the check engine light is, this is the starting point, I would suggest having the toyota dealer check it, some components of the system are covered under the factory warranty for 3yrs/50,000 miles and some even longer depending on what part malfunctioned.
