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P0500 — Vehicle Speed Sensor Malfunction

P0500 means: The controller is not receiving a plausible vehicle speed signal.

System: Speed & Idle Control · Standard: SAE J2012 generic code · Severity: Repair soon

01Can you keep driving?

Repair soon

The car will usually keep running, but continued driving risks secondary damage or an emissions failure. Book the repair.

02What you will notice

03Likely causes, most common first

  1. Failed speed sensor
  2. Wiring fault
  3. Damaged tone ring
  4. ABS module fault

04How this code is diagnosed

On most modern cars the speed signal comes from the ABS system, so a speed code can point at a wheel sensor instead.

Start by reading every stored and pending code, not just this one. A single fault frequently sets three or four codes at once, and the first one in the freeze-frame data is usually the cause while the rest are consequences.

Common questions

What does P0500 mean?

The controller is not receiving a plausible vehicle speed signal. Vehicle Speed Sensor Malfunction is a generic speed & idle control code defined by SAE J2012, so it carries the same meaning on every OBD-II vehicle.

Is it safe to drive with P0500?

Repair soon. The car will usually keep running, but continued driving risks secondary damage or an emissions failure. Book the repair.

What are the most likely causes of P0500?

In rough order of how often they turn out to be the problem: Failed speed sensor; Wiring fault; Damaged tone ring.

Other speed & idle control codes

Sourcing

Code number, system and definition follow the SAE J2012 / ISO 15031-6 generic diagnostic trouble code standard. Symptoms, causes and severity are the standard generic diagnostic logic for that fault. This page does not contain manufacturer-specific procedures, part numbers or pricing.