Abs/asr lights on a jetta

Maintenance/Repairs
1

I have a 2001 jetta glx with 60k miles on it and the abs/asr lights came on solid today. If the lights were not on I would not have known something was wrong. Took it to the dealership and they said it would cost approximately $3000 to fix after tax and labor to replace the abs hydraulic pump and abs module. I can’t afford to replace it right now. Is it absolutely necessary that I do or can I drive it for a little while longer? I hardly drive the car except to run small errands around my house. I guess what I am asking is will my conventional brakes work if the ABS do not?



thanks

2

The ABS only comes into play on slippery road surfaces. You are not likely to see them until winter. That said, I live in the snow belt and I have ABS and it only activates about every other year for me. You likely will not notice.

The problem comes in IF you happen to find yourself in a dangerous situation where ABS could help you prevent an accident and it is not there to do it. That could be very bad. Most of us have all driven before the days of ABS. We survived. Be a few people we may have known have not because of the lack of ABS.

So, little need right now, but I would plan on taking care of it by late fall. Note: don’t go back to your dealer. Find a good local independent mechanic who can do the work for a lot less. Dealers are no better (or worse) than independents, but they are almost always more expensive.

3

Your situation is not uncommon. Many drivers are merrily tooling around with the ABS light lit up. They plan to do so for the remainder of the car’s natural life.

You still have conventional braking. Your brakes are fully operational and ABS is not used in normal situations. Only when braking on those slippery roads does ABS come into play. You may continue to drive without ABS without concern.

But you should also check if a working ABS is required to pass annual inspection. A few states insist but many don’t care.

4

Before you take the dealer’s word for it visit the modulemaster website . They rebuild both ABS control modules and pumps . I had my Passat module rebuilt for about $ 250 including shipping .

5

thanks for all the replies everyone.