My rear sensors have fallen out Toyota CHR Hybrid

[SusanK]

I reversed onto my drive yesterday and the rear parking sensors were going off although there was nothing behind me. On further inspection there are two holes in my bumper where both of the sensors were. They are both inside the bumper and can obviously detect the bumper when the car is in reverse hence the audible and visual warning from the dash.

My question?

Is this covered under warranty or will it cost me a fortune if I take it to the dealers?

Also, the rear bumper was replaced after an accident in September 2021 (the car was only 4 month old when I was involved in an RTA - not my fault). Should I go back to the repair shop or the dealership?

 

Thanks in advance 

Susan

[FROSTYBALLS]

The Toyota warranty will cover manufacturing defects and if the bumper has been replaced outside the Toyota dealer network, it is possible the sensors either haven't been fitted correctly or they are third party sensors.

So this would possibly point towards the insurer, assuming the bumper replacement was an insurance repair

Having said that it seems strange that they have become dislodged after 19 months and not sooner !!

Could someone have (deliberately?) pushed them through? More likely?

[Roy124]

Susan, tricky one.  I think it is too long after the repair. 

Is there anything that might have pushed them in?  I had the headlight Wiper Blades on my car wrecked.  It had been parked in a colleague's drive and he had a toddler.  I knew what had happened.  He knew what had happened.  Neither of us spoke of it. 

Have you used a car wash and a pressure washer? 

A dealer or your garage if different will best advise a fix. 

[SusanK]

32 minutes ago, FROSTYBALLS said:

The Toyota warranty will cover manufacturing defects and if the bumper has been replaced outside the Toyota dealer network, it is possible the sensors either haven't been fitted correctly or they are third party sensors.

So this would possibly point towards the insurer, assuming the bumper replacement was an insurance repair

Having said that it seems strange that they have become dislodged after 19 months and not sooner !!

Could someone have (deliberately?) pushed them through? More likely?

Could have been pushed through deliberately by some local kids but surely they should be fastened in somehow?

[SusanK]

35 minutes ago, Roy124 said:

Susan, tricky one.  I think it is too long after the repair. 

Is there anything that might have pushed them in?  I had the headlight wiper blades on my car wrecked.  It had been parked in a colleague's drive and he had a toddler.  I knew what had happened.  He knew what had happened.  Neither of us spoke of it. 

Have you used a car wash and a pressure washer? 

A dealer or your garage if different will best advise a fix. 

Thanks Roy..I never use the pressure washer on the car and  I checked some of the other sensors and they are not loose. I suppose they could have been pushed in. Does anyone know how they are fixed in? Is it something I could fix myself or does the dealer have to do it? Not quite sure how to approach the dealer without getting ripped off.

[FROSTYBALLS]

4 minutes ago, SusanK said:

Could have been pushed through deliberately by some local kids but surely they should be fastened in somehow?

As far as I'm aware most, regardless of manufacturer, are a push fit into the bumper or bodywork.

[SusanK]

6 minutes ago, SusanK said:

Could have been pushed through deliberately by some local kids but surely they should be fastened in somehow?

Frosty…it was an approved insurance repairer I would doubt they are not approved parts but I suspect they haven’t attached them correctly to the bumper and somebody has pushed them through. Doubt if the repairer would take responsibility after all this time. It’s a dilemma..

[FROSTYBALLS]

Insurers don't always fit original equipment parts.

[Cyker]

Indeed, most will use pattern parts if they can get away with it, but luckily pattern parts for Toyotas seem less common than with other marques, and a lot of insurance companies have been burned by them and resort to using Toyota parts. (Initial cat theft being a good case in point - Many replacement third-party exhausts ended up flagging errors, requiring a return and more cost, so most of them went back to Toyota parts!)

In this case, I'd see if the sensors are still there and hanging down; If so, you can probably push them back in. IIRC if they need to go in a certain way they are keyed. Tricky bit there is if they need to be recalibrated - Hopefully they are self-calibrating!

If you do need to go back to the insurer repairer, they usually guarantee their work for a few years - The front-end repair on my Mk1 was supposedly warranted for 7 years IIRC - So I imagine you could blag them into fixing it if they fell out.

You can always phone them to ask; Most of them have decent first-line customer service as if they get complaints the insurer might drop them, so they tend to try and at least be helpful!

[SusanK]

32 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Indeed, most will use pattern parts if they can get away with it, but luckily pattern parts for Toyotas seem less common than with other marques, and a lot of insurance companies have been burned by them and resort to using Toyota parts. (Initial cat theft being a good case in point - Many replacement third-party exhausts ended up flagging errors, requiring a return and more cost, so most of them went back to Toyota parts!)

In this case, I'd see if the sensors are still there and hanging down; If so, you can probably push them back in. IIRC if they need to go in a certain way they are keyed. Tricky bit there is if they need to be recalibrated - Hopefully they are self-calibrating!

If you do need to go back to the insurer repairer, they usually guarantee their work for a few years - The front-end repair on my Mk1 was supposedly warranted for 7 years IIRC - So I imagine you could blag them into fixing it if they fell out.

You can always phone them to ask; Most of them have decent first-line customer service as if they get complaints the insurer might drop them, so they tend to try and at least be helpful!

Thank-you Cyker good advice,

I know the sensors are both there behind the bumper hanging by the wires as I have been under the car and checked plus they are still alarming when I reverse. I have tried pushing them back in from the back to the front of the bumper but they just fall out again. Not sure if I need to turn them or tighten a screw behind the bumper for each sensor but I don’t want to do any damage to them. I will contact the repairer tomorrow to see if they are under guarantee and if they will fix them before I go to the dealers. When they did the repair initially i went under the car and they hadn’t repaired it properly so I didn’t accept it straight off. There was a part underneath that was still bent so they arranged to fix that a few days later. 
 

Thanks for your advice.

[Derek.w]

I expect a lip on the sensor stopping it going right through? has this broken off the sensor when someone has forced it through to the inside of the bumper.

Compere sensor to one that not pushed in even if its a sensor at the front of the car.

[Roy124]

Susan, the dealer won't rip you off.  They will give you a price.  You can also try and independent.  Quotes are free. 

[Derek.w]

Just possable sensor lip was dammaged with the original accedent but not replaced as it was just a hairline crack around the lip.

[SusanK]

21 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

I expect a lip on the sensor stopping it going right through? has this broken off the sensor when someone has forced it through to the inside of the bumper.

Compere sensor to one that not pushed in even if its a sensor at the front of the car.

Thanks Derek will check it tomorrow morning 

[SusanK]

6 minutes ago, Derek.w said:

Just possable sensor lip was dammaged with the original accedent but not replaced as it was just a hairline crack around the lip.

Will check it

[Phil T]

Some sensors are held  by a clips behind the bumper, if those clips were not clipped in properly, they could drop out. Others have 3M adhesive tabs which stick on the inside of the bumper, aftermarket ones are £12-£20 each, OEM £20 for the retainer, sensor £30. Fleabay genuine part prices.

[Starensis]

I’d take it back to repairer and demand they fix it. I’d say they drilled holes too big and probably tried to silicone them in or similar.

[Devon Aygo]

Per the attached picture the sensors are retained by "Retainer for ultrasonic sensor" 89C48A, B & C these by Toyotas instruction are non-reusable as they stick to the inside of the bumper with a 3M adhesive pad.

In all of the cases of sensors fallen off/ dropped in etc the route cause is a previous body repairer trying to reuse/re-stick the old pads will inevitably fall off later on

 

 

18f3a28e-1752-4154-8280-7cc27b809e55.pdf

[Cyker]

Ahh, nice one DevonAygo - This'll give the OP strong reason for the original repairers to sort it out.

 

[Devon Aygo]

On 5/2/2023 at 8:09 PM, Devon Aygo said:

Per the attached picture the sensors are retained by "Retainer for ultrasonic sensor" 89C48A, B & C these by Toyotas instruction are non-reusable as they stick to the inside of the bumper with a 3M adhesive pad.

In all of the cases of sensors fallen off/ dropped in etc I have seen the route cause is a previous body repairer trying to reuse/re-stick the old pads will inevitably fall off later on

 

 

18f3a28e-1752-4154-8280-7cc27b809e55.pdf 453.32 kB · 5 downloads

 

[SusanK]

On 5/3/2023 at 11:10 PM, Devon Aygo said:

 

Big thanks to everyone who responded to my plea for help. 
I contacted the Auto Repair Centre and asked if the work  they completed on my car in September 2021 was under guarantee. They informed me all work is covered by a 5 year guarantee and bring it in the next day.

I was there at 9am and they had fixed both sensors f.o.c. By 11am. 
 

All fixed now just goes to show this forum works…..how did we manage before the Internet ;-))

[SusanK]

On 5/2/2023 at 9:47 AM, Phil T said:

Some sensors are held  by a clips behind the bumper, if those clips were not clipped in properly, they could drop out. Others have 3M adhesive tabs which stick on the inside of the bumper, aftermarket ones are £12-£20 each, OEM £20 for the retainer, sensor £30. Fleabay genuine part prices.

Fixed by the repair shop who repaired my back bumper after an accident (not my fault) thanks for your reply