A Useful Warning!
Today has been cold with light snow. Coupled with the salts dropped on the pavement, this made for very dirty spray all over everyone’s car, including mine.
As a result, when I slowed to park the warning below was displayed in the center of my instrument panel…
We have railed for years about the uselessness of warning lights as well as too many of the notifications seen in message displays. Like here, or here. But this one lays it out perfectly!
The Warning
The Park Assist symbol in the upper left is accompanied by the warning that the system’s sensors are blocked and need to be cleaned! Exactly what the driver – me, in this case – needs to do, and exactly what would logical to expect!
As far as we at DashboardSymbols.com are concerned each and every warning light that appears on an instrument panel should be accompanied by instructions that are as specific as possible.
The car’s computer knows what is needed, and its high time it communicated with its driver properly. In most cases the fix will involve a qualified service shop, but at minimum the driver will have the knowledge necessary to communicate with that shop.
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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY
Disabling a Fob
2023 in Review
These are two versions of the TPMS light, and either one is easily the most misunderstood warning light you’ll find on your instrument panel. And the fact that its shaped like a horseshoe doesn’t help.
But the warning light does not discriminate between cooling air and actual air leaks. It comes on if one tire is low or all four is low, so more information is needed. Your model may or may not include a display option like the one shown. It is a read out of the tire pressure in the individual tires. If all four tires read roughly the same, within a pound or two, the warning light is the result of seasonal cooling.
If you are comfortable with checking your tire pressures and adding air, by all means do so. But you will first need to know the required tire pressure. Look for a label just below where the driver’s door latches. The required pressures will be shown. They will match left to right but will likely be a little different front to rear. Set the pressure on the pump and trust it. It will stop pumping once the proper pressure is reached. You may also find yourself using a pump with a built in gauge. Trust it as well and be sure to add your spare tire to the routine.
I did what is seen to the right to my Polestar 2. Yes it actually was my fault. And as bad as it looks thankfully its all cosmetic and no one got hurt.
After the accident, I was able to get an estimate at one of two body shops recommended by my insurance company, and you see it here, just about $6,500. However, they called several days later declining the job because they couldn’t get information needed to actually do the repair. I was able to confirmed with them later that this was strictly about the proper handling of the high voltage battery.
Second, not having a choice of body shops is a prescription for abuse. The original estimate, above, just about $6500. On the right is the certified shop’s estimate. This is not a joke, over $21,000! More than three times the original! A disclaimer is needed here as it is often the case that more damage is found once the work begins, but I don’t ever recall seeing a job jump by a factor of three!
To EV or Not to EV…
Reasons NOT to by an EV Debunked
The 12 Reasons Each With a Counterpoint
1) Purchase cost is way higher.
– Not true. Expensive models get the most press, and there are many of them, but there are some very, very affordable EVs. We’re not going to point to any manufacturers (we’re not in sales), just do some homework. And that statement completely ignores cost of ownership, which goes to EVs hands down. If cost of ownership is a foreign concept, its homework time again…
2) Depreciation is massive.
– There is some truth here, but it is massively overstated. In further truth, its too early to fully determine. The industry remains in infancy, prices are coming down thus lowering pre-owned EV prices.
3) The Batteries cannot be recycled on a commercial scale.
– Partly true. They can be recycled at scale, but this is still being ramped up. The mineral value is driving this.
4) The performance claims are grossly exaggerated.
– If this is a reference to speed, this is flat out wrong. If its a reference to range, its partially true. Most manufacturers are pretty conservative with range estimates. Consumer Reports data confirms this.
5) They carry no spare wheel so to reduce weight.
– This is actually true, but across the entire automotive industry. All vehicles, ICE and EV, are transitioning to refill kits rather than spare tires, again to reduce weight. Not all flat tires can be re-inflated so we’ll take this opportunity to tell the industry to ensure that at least a donut is available in all vehicles!
6) You can’t charge them from a flat or a house without a drive.
– Somewhat true, but a solvable problem. I live in a “flat” (apartment) and it has four Level 2 charging stations available and a charge port can be placed along the road in most cases at private homes that lack a drive(way).
7) Charging points are not ubiquitous enough to journey with confidence.
– Again somewhat true. More charge stations would be better, but planning can accommodate the vast majority (journeys) trips with the stations currently available.
8) Batteries that catch fire cannot be extinguished without plunging the whole car into a skip-full of water.
– This is actually true. However, fires (not to mention explosions) are far, far more common with the rolling bombs more generally known as ICE vehicles. Any EV fire gets so much attention that perception becomes skewed. Its actually very difficult to get an EV battery to burn.
9) Existing car parks are not designed to cope with the 50% higher weight.
– Sooo many things wrong with this. EVs are heavier, yes, but an EV of about equal size is only 15% heavier, not 50% (Camry vs Model 3)! Further, large SUVs (Escalade 7,700 lbs.) are actually heavier (25%) than most electric powered SUVs (Model X, 6,200 lbs))! Now there are hints that the writer of the piece is from Europe, where cars are generally smaller, but we don’t believe for a minute that car parks built anywhere are built to the lowest possible standards.
10) The time to queue and charge an EV is magnitudes of filling a petrol tank.
– This is true, but can an ICE vehicle be refilled at home??
11) The environmental damage of extracting minerals and making batteries is more than using fossil fuels.
– This is just flat out wrong and propaganda. Oil must be extracted as well.
12) Insuring EVs is massively higher than petrol/diesel vehicles.
– We have not found this to be the case, but in truth Tesla started its own insurance division because of high prices in some regions. We believe this is levelling out as EVs become ubiquitous.
And finally, a few of points in favor of EVs.
——————————————————————-
Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.
These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.
Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing is more true.
The author has 25 years of automotive experience and has assembled the most extensive collection of symbols and warning lights anywhere (over 1,000!) and can help you open and start any keyless start car with a dead key fob battery. BA, St. Joseph’s College, ME: MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY