OBD-II Code · Chassis
C0041
Left Rear Wheel Speed Sensor Circuit
Severity
medium
Worth booking. It costs fuel, emissions or comfort until it is fixed.
Can you drive it
Only if running normally
A short trip to a shop may be reasonable if the light is steady and the car runs normally. Stop safely for a flashing light, severe shaking, overheating, loss of power, or another urgent warning. The code alone cannot confirm safety.
Indicative cost (USD)
$150–$400
Varies by vehicle, diagnosis, parts, and local labor. This is not a repair quote.
RF WSS range fault.
How a shop works this
Work from evidence to part, not the other way round. A code names a circuit or a symptom; it does not name the part that failed.
Note every code that is set, not just this one.
Codes that appear together usually narrow the cause faster than any one of them read alone.
Read the freeze frame — the conditions the fault was recorded under.
Cold or warm, idle or load, road speed and engine speed. A fault that only appears cold is a different fault from one that only appears under load, even with the same code on the scanner.
Confirm the fault is current rather than history.
Clear the code and see whether it returns under those same conditions. A code that does not come back may have been logged during a repair, a flat battery, or a bad connection that has since been disturbed.
Then work the likely-causes list in the order shown.
That order is what a shop checks first for this code — wiring and connections before the component they run to, because a connector costs nothing to inspect and is a common answer.
If the code comes back after a repair, the underlying fault is still there. That is the point to bring in a scanner with live data and freeze-frame, or a shop that has one.
Common symptoms
- ABS light
Likely causes
- Failing sensorMost common
- Tone ring
Read the full diagnostic procedureC0041 is a generic chassis code for a fault in the left rear wheel speed sensor circuit — the EBCM/ABS module is not seeing the signal it expects fro…
C0041 is a generic chassis code for a fault in the left rear wheel speed sensor circuit — the EBCM/ABS module is not seeing the signal it expects from the LR WSS during a wheel-rotation event, either because the sensor is open/shorted, the air gap is wrong, the tone ring is damaged, or the harness has broken between the sensor and the module.
Cheapest-first ladder on a shop floor
- Scan live data for all four wheel-speed sensors with the vehicle on a lift, spin the LR wheel by hand at ~1 rev/sec, and watch the signal. Passive (variable-reluctance) sensors should put out 0.4-1.5V AC at slow rotation, climbing with speed; active (Hall-effect) sensors output a 0.2-1V DC square wave (or a digital frame on newer GM platforms) with amplitude essentially fixed and frequency climbing with speed — flat 0V or pinned battery voltage means circuit fault before sensor fault.
- Resistance-check a passive WSS at the connector with a DMM: most spec 1,000-2,500 ohms; open circuit or below 200 ohms is a dead sensor. Active sensors don't ohm-check — back-probe the signal wire with the connector seated, key-on, and look for the reference voltage (typically 12V supply, 5V signal idle).
- Inspect the harness routing along the trailing arm or behind the rear knuckle — rodent chew and rub-through at the body grommet are the two most common harness failures on this circuit.
- Pull the sensor and measure air gap to the tone ring with a feeler gauge (spec is usually 0.020-0.050 inches; if you can't measure it because the ring is missing, that IS the diagnosis). Expensive-misdiagnosis caveat: GM trucks 1999-2007 — the ABS tone ring is pressed onto the CV axle or rear hub and rusts off completely, leaving a clean stub of axle and an air gap that reads infinite. The WSS itself is fine, but replacing the sensor doesn't fix the missing tone ring — you replace the axle, hub, or tone ring (some are available as a stamped-steel slip-on repair part) and the code clears.
Vehicle-specific patterns1999-2007 GM trucks (Silverado/Sierra/Tahoe/Yukon/Suburban) with the Kelsey-Hayes 325 EBCM throw C0041 from the trifecta of rusted-off tone rings on…
- 1999-2007GM trucks (Silverado/Sierra/Tahoe/Yukon/Suburban) with the Kelsey-Hayes 325 EBCM throw C0041 from the trifecta of rusted-off tone rings on the rear axle shafts, corroded sensor connectors at the rear-axle harness junction, and water ingress into the EBCM itself — diagnose tone ring first (visual inspection through the brake-drum or rotor backing plate) before condemning anything else.
- 1997-2014Ford F-150 with rear hub-mounted WSS as an integrated assembly throws C0041 when the wheel-bearing/hub assembly fails — the bearing roughness destroys the magnetic encoder ring inside the hub, so the fix is a $180-$300 hub assembly rather than a separate sensor (you cannot buy the sensor alone on these).
- 2008-2014Dodge Grand Caravan/Chrysler Town & Country throws C0041 from rear toe-link sensor harness rub-through where the WSS pigtail clips to the trailing arm — the rear suspension articulates enough to wear through the loom.
- 2003-2009Toyota 4Runner/GX470 throws C0041 from corroded sensor mounting bolts that seize the WSS into the rear knuckle; the sensor body breaks off during removal and the bore needs to be drilled and re-tapped.
Estimated repair$80 to $450.
Look up another code
C0041 — frequently asked
What does a C0041 code mean?
RF WSS range fault.
What causes a C0041 code?
Common causes: Failing sensor; Tone ring.
What are the symptoms of a C0041 code?
Typical symptoms: ABS light.
Is it safe to drive with a C0041 code?
Only if running normally. A short trip to a shop may be reasonable if the light is steady and the car runs normally. Stop safely for a flashing light, severe shaking, overheating, loss of power, or another urgent warning. The code alone cannot confirm safety. Estimated repair: $150-$400.
How do I diagnose a C0041 code?
Work from evidence to part, not the other way round. A code names a circuit or a symptom; it does not name the part that failed. 1. Note every code that is set, not just this one. 2. Read the freeze frame — the conditions the fault was recorded under. 3. Confirm the fault is current rather than history. 4. Then work the likely-causes list in the order shown.
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