Dead car.. Parking malfunction, park on level surface.....

64169 Views 14 Replies 8 Participants Last post by volodkyna, 5 mo ago

Joel Liebman

Discussion Starter · May 17, 2017

This is the second time this week this happened. I get to the car and it's completely dead... very dim interior lights. I jumped it and it started right up.. leaving this message on the dash. Parking malfunction. Park on level surface. Be sure the parking brake is secure. Okay it is on a flat surface. I don't use the parking brake. Today after I jumped it, it fired up but when the cables were removed it died. So I jumped again but this time put the parking break on and then off. Worked. After the first time I took it to the mechanic. He checked the battery which is not old and it check out very good. Any thoughts ?? do I need to take it to Toyota ?

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Joel Liebman

Discussion Starter · #2 · May 18, 2017

exact message

P lock malfunction. when parking Park in flat place and apply parking break securely.
This is the second time this week this happened. I get to the car and it's completely dead... very dim interior lights. I jumped it and it started right up.. leaving this message on the dash. P lock malfunction. when parking Park in flat place and apply parking break securely. Today after I jumped it, it fired up but when the cables were removed it died. So I jumped again but this time put the parking break on and then off. Worked. After the first time I took it to the mechanic. He checked the battery which is not old and it check out very good. Any thoughts ?? do I need to take it to Toyota ?

Easy Rider

· #3 · May 18, 2017

Joel Liebman said:
This is the second time this week this happened. I get to the car and it's completely dead... very dim interior lights.

YOu could have stopped right there.

Unless you have a NASTY short somewhere dragging the battery down.....which is highly unlikely:

You have one of 3 conditions present:

The battery is weak, maybe due to a bad internal connection or a shorted cell. Just because it is relatively new doesn't mean that it couldn't have failed.

A loose or corroded connection at one end of one of the main 12 V battery cables. The chassis connection for the negative lead in particular may look and feel OK but NOT have a good connection.

The charging system (inverter) has failed and is not charging the battery.

YOU NEED A VOLTMETER TO FIND OUT WHAT THE SITUATION REALLY IS WHILE IT IS FAILING.
Or take it to the shop. Without a meter, your time will likely be wasted trying to fix it yourself.

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walt1122

· #4 · Jun 21, 2017

Sounds like the battery!

I don't remember what site I found directions on how to test the battery with the cars own diagnostics. It is hidden with in the center console engine screen. I think I have a hard copy in my car just in case. Google it and maybe you can find answer. Beware, I went to an auto parts shop and they had a free battery test and the car passed their test but the battery was still bad. A quick check is if you hook up jumpers to the connector under the hood. If this starts up the car IMMEDEATELY you know it is getting enough power from the other car's battery and not from yours. Dealer will try to sell you a very powerful oversized battery. Remember the 12v battery only powers the ignition system. Doesn't need to be a super powerful one. Check the specifications so you don't get taken!

Walt

walt1122

· #5 · Jun 21, 2017

try this

DO-IT-YOURSELF TEST PROCEDURE (thanks to jdenenberg):
- Without brake pedal, press the Power button once and release to enter ACC mode
- Press and hold the MFD Info button, then turn the headlights on and off three times to enter Maintenance mode; release Info button
- Press “Menu” (on screen)
- Press “Display Check”
- Press “Vehicle Signal Check” - the battery voltage is shown and should be about 12.4 to 12.8 Volts (normal for an unloaded battery)
- Again without brake pedal, press Power button and release to put a current load on the battery - the voltage should stay above 12.0V (if less than 12.0V the battery is not well, or there is a fault or unusual load somewhere)
- Press brake pedal and press Power button once to enter "Ready" mode - the battery is now charging at about 14V (if less than 13.6V or more than 14.4 there may be a problem with the charging circuit)
- Turn car OFF to leave Maintenance mode

Note: it is better if you simply flash the parking lights rather than the headlights, especially if you have the HID headlights.

For reference purposes here is a graph which will help to explain the voltage in reference to the SOC (State of Charge)

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complete23

· #6 · Jan 3, 2018

i just find my all car engine with my mechanic he will guide me all detials and make my car better so i suggest you check with good mechanic

Nightsalive

· #7 · Jan 27, 2018

Hi everyone,

I'm having this same issue with my 2013 Prius. It's progressed to happening every day when I try to start it.
I receive the p lock malfunction when parking error. Rarely, simply trying to start again works. I have been removing the negative connection to the 12v battery now every time this happens. Popping it back and starting again seems to work. However, today I have had to do it 4 times already.

I have completed the 12v battery test and there appears to be no issue. I just had AutoZone swap it out for me because it was under warranty. I had the exact same issue starting the car 15 minutes later.

I do have an after market remote start installed, just as an FYI.

I'd appreciate any help on this.

Easy Rider

· #8 · Jan 27, 2018

First I would suggest pulling the fuse on the remote start and charging up the battery fully......to see what happens next.

Then removing cleaning and re-seating BOTH ends of both main battery cables. A simple inspection is NOT good enough.

After that, you probably will need assistance from a shop.

Nightsalive

· #9 · Jan 27, 2018

I had the remote start disconnected this morning. It didn't seem to have an impact as I had the same issue starting the car afterward. I took it to the dealer. They ran diagnostics and checked it out. They could find no issue at all. The car started for them every time. (It gave me the errors 7 times today)
I asked them to keep it until Monday and try starting it again...

Easy Rider

· #10 · Jan 28, 2018

Nightsalive said:
I had the remote start disconnected this morning. It didn't seem to have an impact as I had the same issue starting the car afterward...

I guess I didn't explain well enough.

The remote start may be sapping power from the battery while it is just sitting there doing nothing.

And if you LEFT it disconnected while at the dealers, they would not find that it was drawing too much power......if it is.

Mind you, I'm not saying that IS the problem......but it could be.

DSG48

· #11 · Sep 11, 2018

Easy Rider said:
YOu could have stopped right there.

Unless you have a NASTY short somewhere dragging the battery down.....which is highly unlikely:

You have one of 3 conditions present:

The battery is weak, maybe due to a bad internal connection or a shorted cell. Just because it is relatively new doesn't mean that it couldn't have failed.

A loose or corroded connection at one end of one of the main 12 V battery cables. The chassis connection for the negative lead in particular may look and feel OK but NOT have a good connection.

The charging system (inverter) has failed and is not charging the battery.

YOU NEED A VOLTMETER TO FIND OUT WHAT THE SITUATION REALLY IS WHILE IT IS FAILING.
Or take it to the shop. Without a meter, your time will likely be wasted trying to fix it yourself.

having a similar issue. drove the car yesterday morning. parked in driveway and due to the incline, must use the parking brake. tonight, after not driving the car since then, a neighbor comes over saying our "Flashers" are on. I went out to check. car was DEAD. had P Parking Malfunction on the display, saying to park on a level surface or use parking brake. the parking brake WAS on. lights very dim. tried jumping, nothing.

thoughts?

DSG48

· #12 · Sep 11, 2018

also, all terminals on battery look good. no lights were left on. according to the neighbor, the Flashers were on for maybe a couple hours. they thought we were aware of it. Ummmm, NO! LOL

Yvonneen

· #13 · May 14, 2021 (Edited)

I think that the problem might be in the "head" of the car. I had a friend that due to some electrical issues, appeared a parking malfunction. He resolved it very fast and cheap at one of his mechanics. You just need to find the right dude that could fix your problem fast and affordable. It's not a big deal. Last year when I was In London, I visited a famous car museum that I found on A tour through British motoring history. I saw there a tunned Prius with a 2JZ engine. It was something incredible and sick for me. You could also try this, LOL.

Easy Rider

· #14 · May 15, 2021

Yvonneen said:
I think that the problem might be in the "head" of the car. I had a friend that due to some electrical issues, appeared a parking malfunction. He resolved it very fast and cheap at one of his mechanics

What is the "head" of the car ?
And knowing exactly what was done to fix his problem might be helpful.
General information like that isn't particularly helpful.

volodkyna

· #15 · 5 mo ago

I had the same problem (toyota prius plus hybr 2012). This problem is caused by the low charge of the accumulator and related breaking. It is not enough only to replace the accumulator if you see this error. For example, because of the old low charged accumulator, my starter relay was burned down that's why I could not start a car, switch it to the neutral mode (to be able to push it on the tow truck). I called guys from the car service station and they replaced the relay at my place and the accumulator, only then they were able to take my car to the service station and checked the electrical parts there. It cost me about 300-350 USD in Poland (parts and labor)

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