What does it mean?
C1241 is a Chassis (ABS, traction control, steering) fault code. It indicates: Steering Angle Sensor Velocity Performance .
Symptoms
- Stability and traction warning lamps on, often only after the wheel has been turned
- Brief stability control intervention with no obvious reason, sometimes with a short brake pulse
- Angle trace on the scan tool showing sudden steps rather than a smooth change
- Warning appearing during parking manoeuvres, when the wheel is turned quickly
- Fault intermittent and hard to reproduce when the vehicle is stationary
Likely causes
- Momentary signal dropouts that make the angle appear to jump instantly from one value to another
- Dirty, worn or cracked encoder disc inside the sensor
- Fatigued conductor in the clock spring that opens as the wheel turns
- Loose sensor mounting or a worn column bearing letting the sensor move independently of the shaft
- Corroded connector under the column shroud
- Interference or heavy traffic on the data network delaying the angle messages
- Poor sensor ground or unstable supply voltage
How to fix it
- Graph the steering angle while turning the wheel slowly and evenly, and look for steps, freezes or spikes
- Repeat the test while gently moving the clock spring connector and column harness by hand
- Check the sensor mounting and the column bearing for movement
- Measure supply voltage and ground at the sensor while turning the wheel
- Check for network communication faults from other modules that share the same bus
- Calibrate the sensor and repeat the test drive to confirm the trace is now smooth
- Replace the sensor or the clock spring assembly if the steps remain after calibration