What does the VSC light mean on a Toyota

Last updated on January 13th, 2023 at 07:29 pm

It will interest you to know that the VSC light issue is one of the common problem with Toyota vehicles which makes the check Engine lights to illuminated every now and then.

Indeed, it’s not uncommon to see the VSC light in Toyota Highlander, Toyota rav4 or the VSC Light Camry and corolla as it is a common problem.

And I guess you may have even seen VSC light in Toyota Sienna too that is if you own a sienna car.

Toyota VSC light reset | What does the VSC light mean on a Toyota

Today’s article will talk about the Toyota VSC light problems for various Toyota models.

Below are the sub-topic we will be talking about in this article:

  • The VSC Light Toyota Highlander
  • The VSC Light in Toyota Rav4
  • The VSC Light Toyota Camry
  • The VSC Light Toyota Sienna
  • The VSC Light Toyota Corolla

What Does The VSC Light Mean On a Toyota?

In case you don’t know, VSC is simply known as “Vehicle Stability Control “. Also know that it will be impossible for the Traction Control of your vehicle to perform well while the VSC light is illuminated.

What it means is that when your car VSC system recognizes that the vehicle has begun the loss of traction, it spontaneously tries to apply brake on all of the wheels of the car to avoid additional slips or skids.

However, it is well known that the VSC is responsible for the reduction of road accidents while driving under the rain, a snowy or foggy weather.

It simply means that it is essential for you to examine the VSC system on your Toyota car once it starts to malfunction or when it completely stop working.

Below are the list of Toyota brands that have this VSC system in place to safeguard car owners.  Although, this is not limited to only Toyota brands:

  • The Toyota Highlander
  • Sienna
  • Toyota Rav4
  • Avalon
  • Camry
  • Celica
  • Corolla
  • Matrix
  • Prius
  • Solara
  • And others.

What does it mean when the VSC light comes on?

Many of the Toyota car owners will notice that whenever their car Check Engine and VSC lights are ignited, it means that the system is informing them that there is an issue with the gas cap or the O2 Sensor.

Although sometimes tightening the gas cap or changing it may help to fix the issue but in case it doesn’t work, then we advise you visit an automobile workshop for inspection or servicing.

So is it safe to drive with VSC Light on?

There is no direct answer to this, because it all depends on what caused the VSC light to turn on in the first place.

But if after you have examined the VSC system and you noticed the problem is coming from O2 sensor, then you can still drive the car for some time without having any other issues, but you will experience less gas mileage.

And note that the VSC light was turned on because of an error code which was registered. Also, this code will continue showing until it is repaired, cleared or reset.

The O2 sensors can sometimes be tedious and at the same time very easy to change by yourself, though it depends on the model of the car. 

VSC Light Toyota Highlander

Indeed, the Toyota Highlander car happens to be a medium size sport car that was designed with an automatic transmission, third row stylish sit and an all wheels’ drives.

This brand is known for its high safety standard which needs frequent inspection of the tire pressure, air bags and the stability control system.

I guess you know that any faulty or malfunctioned car could temper with the car stability control system which might trigger the VSC light to turn on in your car dashboard.

But once this happens to your car, then here are the steps that will guide you on what you can do to reset the VSC warning light.

Below are how to reset VSC Light Toyota Highlander

Toyota VSC light reset |How to Reset VSC Light Toyota Highlander?

Now you can reset the VSC warning light on your Toyota Highlander car dashboard if you follow these steps below:

  • Step 1: Ensure that your car engine is off and then apply the parking brake to avoid the car moving
  • Step 2: Check the car engine compartment but before that, open the car hood. Then trace the air filter box that is on the left hand side of the car engine.
  • For those who don’t know, the air filter box has a black square shaped, large and with a ribbed intake hose.
  • Step 3: Inspect all the small black vacuum lines around the air filter box. In case you find any disconnection, then reconnect them back. And in case there are any loose vacuum lines, reconnect it back and tighten firmly.
  • Step 4: Start your engine and drive to clear the “VSC” warning light which is on display.
  • But if you observe that the VSC light has failed to go off after you have driven the car for some time, you can then try the next steps below:
  • Step 5: Turn your car engine off and safely park it by applying the parking brake. Next, open the car hood, and disconnect the battery’s negative cable by using the actual size socket for about 10 to 15 seconds.

Doing this will help to reset all of the car computer system thereby clearing the VSC warning Light.

Now you know How to Reset VSC Light Toyota Highlander.

For you to carry out these activities, below are the Items you will need:

VSC light Toyota Camry

You should know that the VSC light Toyota Camry is just like every other car stability control available in most car that has this system in them. Sometimes most people confuse the Toyota Camry VSC light system with traction control (TC) system.

As we mentioned earlier, the vehicle stability control (VSC) in a Toyota Camry is what is responsible for avoiding skidding and the TC is responsible for preventing the vehicle wheels from spinning on a slippery ground or surface.

How to Disable VSC in a Camry

Make sure you complete the following sequence within 30 seconds of starting your car to disable or reset your VSC light system.

Once you practice this frequently, you can be completing it in less than 30 seconds. But you will continue doing this each time you start the engine. Ensure you watch the video above for a better understanding.

  • Step 1: Ensure your car is turned off and parked with the parking brake disengaged. You can now start the car engine. Once done, engage the parking brake control.
  • Step 2: Then depress the brake pedal and release it. Now disengage the car parking brake.
  • Step 3: Now you have fully depressed and hold down the brake pedal for few seconds. You can now engage the parking brake and disengage it while holding down the brake pedal. You can repeat this again.
  • Step 4:Finally release the brake pedal and engage the parking brake while you fully depress the brake pedal and then release.

Ensure you repeat it again. Once done, this should solve the problem.

Once VSC and the Trac-off indicators light appears on your dashboard, then it means you have successfully completed this process.

Warning!

Make sure you don’t try this if you do not want the VSC to be disabled or turned off. This is because the VSC helps you to be in charge of your car in case of any emergency.

VSC Light in Toyota Rav4

Indeed, turning off the VSC light in Toyota Rav4 is just simplified. Just by clicking a button, you can turn on or off the Toyota VSC light of RAV4.

And also, you can even turn off or on the TC of Rav4 Car by clicking a button. Read more about this here

How to Disable VSC Light in Toyota Rav4

For you to turn off the VSC light in Rav4, just push and hold the switch while the car is been parked, this will turn of both the VSC and TRAC system.

But supposing the VSC light was already on when you switched the button, then it will turn off the TRAC and VSC indicator lights.

VSC light Toyota corolla |How to Reset VSC Light on Toyota Corolla

Note that you can still take any of the procedures above to also reset your Toyota corolla VSC light that is if this approach doesn’t work well.

How to Reset VSC Light on Toyota Corolla is as simple as you turning off your car engine and starting it back again for 10 or more times, then the VSC light will disappear.

Maybe you should try the method in this video if this doesn’t work.

VSC light Toyota Sienna |How to reset VSC warning light Toyota Sienna 2 generation.

Whenever the VSC light Toyota Sienna is turned on by itself, it means there is a problem in the VSC or vehicle stability control system. It can sometimes be from the car TC or traction control system.

Also, the VSC light may turn on if the engine switch is turned to “ON” position, though it usually goes off after some time.

But if it happens that the light comes on while driving, it means your car VSC system isn’t working correctly or not working at all.

So in cases such as this, we advise you to stop driving your car while it is on. 

Make sure you contact your Toyota dealer if any of the cases below is what you are experiencing:

  • Once you notice the VSC warning light doesn’t come on after the car engine switch is turned to “ON”.
  • If the VSC warning light stays on after the engine switch is turned to “ON”.
  • If the warning light comes on while driving.
  • If the “TRAC OFF” indicator light comes on when the “VSC” warning light comes on that is even if the “TRAC OFF” switch is not pushed.

Make sure you watch this video below to find out how you can reset the How to reset VSC warning light Toyota Sienna

VSC light Toyota Sienna Reset

You can begin by pushing on the TRAC OFF button in, hold and then try to start your car. Once done, it will immediately turn off the check engine light and the VSC light.

You can now release the TRAC OFF button. That is if the VSC and TRAC OFF light is still lite, you can then turn it off again and release. After that, this should work.

But if it doesn’t work, then try out the procedure on How to Disable VSC light in Camry above. This should solve the problem.

The summary of the VSC light Toyota issue we have discussed in this post

Today we have shown you how to reset VSC light in Toyota rav4, the VSC light Toyota Sienna, the VSC Light Toyota Highlander, and the VSC light Toyota corolla and finally reset of VSC light Toyota Camry.

At the very start of this article, we discussed what does the VSC light mean on a Toyota generally and if it is safe to drive with VSC light on.

We guess you have learnt a lot today? However, feel free to look up to the area that affect your car specifically.

Sharing is caring!

Scroll to Top