Audi Case Study · 48

Audi A1 wheel speed sensor, replaced.

An Audi A1 came in with a warning light on the dash. A failing wheel speed sensor was behind it. Replaced on the affected corner, the warning cleared and the ABS and traction systems back online.

Job done

Mechanical Repairs Brakes Audi Specialist
Audi A1 parked at the workshop, in for a wheel speed sensor diagnosis.

The brief

The A1 had a warning light on the dash, the kind that comes on as you drive when a wheel speed sensor starts failing. He brought it in. The wheel speed sensor, also called the ABS sensor, monitors how fast each wheel is turning and feeds that to the car's computer. The ABS uses it to apply the right brake pressure when a wheel locks, the traction control uses it to catch a spinning wheel, and it feeds the speedometer too. When a sensor goes faulty, the computer can't trust that wheel's reading, so it shuts ABS and traction control down and lights the dash. A failed sensor doesn't recover, so it needs replacing.

Diagnostic scan on the Audi A1 pointing to the failed wheel speed sensor.

The diagnosis

A diagnostic scan pulled the fault straight to a wheel speed sensor on one corner, no clean signal coming from it, which is exactly what trips the warning and deactivates ABS and traction control. The other three sensors and the brakes themselves checked out, it was that one sensor. That's a sensor replacement on the affected corner, you don't repair a failed speed sensor, so the call was a new genuine sensor, fitted and the codes cleared.

The old ABS sensor removed from the hub.

The work

The wheel came off, the failed ABS sensor was removed from the hub, the mounting cleaned up, and a new genuine Audi-spec wheel speed sensor fitted and routed properly so the wiring's protected. The system was scanned to confirm a clean signal from all four wheels and the stored fault codes cleared. A road test confirmed the warning light stayed off and the ABS and traction control were active again.

The new genuine Audi-spec wheel speed sensor ready to fit.

The outcome

No warning light, ABS and traction control back online, and a clean signal from every wheel. The A1 went home with the safety systems working again. A failed wheel speed sensor takes ABS and traction control offline until it's fixed, so changing it on the affected corner and clearing the codes put the braking systems back where they should be.

Got something similar?

ABS or traction light on your Audi?

If your ABS or traction control warning light is on, the team can scan it, find the faulty sensor, and put it right. Drop us a message.

← Back to Audi case studies