Can a Bad ABS Sensor Cause Vibration?

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Can a bad ABS sensor cause vibration? Basically, When a sensor goes bad in a car, it could trigger many unusual occurrences, and vibration can be one of them.

ABS sensors are pretty important in a car because they play a vital role. The role is to transmit wheel speed information to the ABS console where it’d be processed to regulate how the car would function.

When a sensor is bad, it’d convey incoherent information to the ABS console, which is liable to cause quite a lot of problems.

Before we conclude whether a bad ABS sensor could cause a car to vibrate or not, let’s look at some of the symptoms of a bad sensor.

How To Know Your ABS Sensor Is Bad

A bad ABS sensor would most likely cause the ABS light on your dashboard to come on, and if your car doesn’t have an ABS light, it’d illuminate the check engine icon.

When this happens, it is one of the various signs that one or more of your car’s ABS sensor(s) is bad.

Other symptoms include hard shifting, delayed shifting (for automatics), driver assistance failure, and loss of traction.

When you begin to notice any of these signs, it’s time to check on your sensors; you could do that using an OBD II tool or engage a mechanic.

Can A Bad ABS Sensor Cause Vibration?

Vibrations weren’t mentioned above as one of the signs of a bad ABS sensor; however, in some cases, a bad sensor can cause vibration.

Moderns are more sophisticated than ever, and different manufacturers design their cars in different ways. Hence, the issue of a bad sensor causing vibration may not apply to all vehicles.

The commonest reason why a car may vibrate when being driven is bad alignment. When the wheels are out of alignment, you may notice that the car vibrates as your accelerate or decelerate.

Also, loose nuts, bad brake caliper, and quite a couple of other things can cause your car to vibrate.

Notice that a bad ABS sensor isn’t mentioned as one of the causes of vibration? Well, that’s simply because, as mentioned earlier, a bad sensor doesn’t have a direct impact on the wheels, or the brakes, or the tires.

For a car to vibrate while being driven, the engine, tire, wheel, braking system, or in some cases, the engine must be physically affected.

Can ABS Cause Vibration When Braking?

Yes, it can. If you notice that your brake pedal vibrated during braking, it is because the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) got activated in the process.

This vibration is basically nothing to worry about as the ABS is simply designed to prevent your tires from locking up at any point in time.

However, if the braking was so obvious and unusual, maybe you should call on a mechanic to check up your car. You shouldn’t delay in solving issues that affect your car’s braking system as that could be a very costly risk.

How Come When I Brake I Feel a Vibration?

Brake shuddering isn’t something to be taken so lightly. If you always feel a vibration when you apply the brake, it could be a result of uneven wear of brake discs and/or a broken rotor.

When your brake discs unevenly wear out, the brake pads will now directly touch the rotor’s surface, which in turn causes the vibration/shuddering.

Also, rust and dirt affect the performance of your brake rotor; hence, making you feel a vibration each time you apply press the pedal.

We’d strongly advise that you get a mechanic to fix the fault with your braking system, and also endeavor to go for wheel alignment afterward.

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Conclusion

So, can a bad ABS sensor cause vibration? in some cases, yes, a bad ABS sensor can cause vibration.

However, it is important to say the vibration is too intense and occurs each time you match the brake pedal, then it could be that something is wrong with your car’s braking system.

The best way to fix brake-related issues is to get a mechanic to do that. We won’t encourage DIY practices for fixing brakes.

Also, always ensure to have your car checked up – by a technician/mechanic – once in a while to detect and fix any issue that may be discovered.