I was driving along and all of a sudden the speedo needle dropped to zero and the steering got stiff and stayed like it for a while then the HICAS warning light came on. Has anyone else had anything like this. And what does HICAS mean.

 

Cheers :confused:

I was driving along and all of a sudden the speedo needle dropped to zero and the steering got stiff and stayed like it for a while then the HICAS warning light came on. Has anyone else had anything like this. And what does HICAS mean.

 

Cheers :confused:

 

Sounds like you stalled her :rofl:

a duff speed sensor makes th needle do that but in combination with heavy steering i'd say speedo convertor playing up

(High Capacity Actively Controlled Steering) 4-wheel steering. Means the rear wheels turn slightly in the opposite direction from the front wheels, then in the same direction, to improve stability in fast lane-changes, or make you face the wrong direction if you catch it out and it catches you out :D

 

power steering fluid is linked to hicas, and would also help to make your steering stiff, but not intermintently, and the speedo dropping to zero :???:

I've the same problem, and have picked up the following info. Hope it helps.

 

The speed sensor (on the gear box I believe) is wired up to the back of clocks. The speedo converts the signal so a) it can display the correct speed and b) so it can feed the converted signal to engine management and anywhere else that needs it including HICAS system.

 

HICAS as explained above does some clever rear wheel steering under certain conditions (i.e. where you turn more than a certain angle at more than a certain speed). In order to do this, it needs to know 2 things - what angle you are turning and a what speed you are doing ;) . If the system detects that either of these inputs may bne corrupt in some way (i.e. steering angle permanently 270 degrees or no speed input), it switches the system off as a safety precaution. Unfortunately you also lose the power steering as it is part of same system.

 

To fix it, ideally get someone to hook up a Conzult system as this will show you what speed and steering angle the HICAS system is getting. You should then see straight away where the problem is.

 

Your needle dropping to zero, however, would tend to indicate that something is wrong with your clocks, probably on the sensor to clocks link. It could be a faulty aftermarket kph-mph speed convertor if there is one fitted or a dodgy connection somewhere between the sensor and the clocks or the clocks and the HICAS unit.

 

I haven't had a chance to fully get to the bottom of mine yet, but I did disconnect the speed convertor. It then worked fine (although displayed the wrong speed!) until the other day when I had the clocks out again for a different reason. It now works intermittently (i.e. sometimes needle stays at zero and hicas problem returns).

 

I suspect that it is a dodgy connection where the speed convertor had been spliced into the connection to the clocks (they have used crimp connectors and I suspect they are the problem). Knocks and vibrations could be causing a poor connection to make and break intermittently. It could be more serious though as these are replacement second-hand clocks and there could be an internal problem. I'd never have guessed that the speedo was such a fundamental part of the car's operation!

 

Hope it helps

Rich

cheers rich was really helpfull will check all the wiring. if i get to the bottom of it will let you know

If its a jap, I would go with the speedo converter, more likely than the speed sensor, easier to sort and a damn site cheaper

Mines a UK model and it's playing up all the time especially in wet weather!! On the way to work this morning I went from 40MPH to 190+ in .1 of a second - beat that!! Then it shot back down to 60MPH even though I was original doing 40!! No HICAS light came on though and the power steering was fine.. It's defo the speed sensor though and not the clocks!!