Brake issues
#17
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Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: St Paul , MN.
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To save money you could go to a parts house and buy the fittings & line in bulk rolls and bend them with a hand bender from the same source [ maybe $20 -bender ] but unless your lines are rusted , you do not need to replace because of the wrong fluid .
#18
Registered User
Thread Starter
I know that I don't need to replace them, but I think it would be money better spent than alcohol to flush the petroleum out of them. Also, they're old, which is evidenced by the fact that I burst one of the metal ones under hard braking.
If I were going to make the hard lines myself, where can I find out exactly what fittings I need so that I can have the parts ready BEFORE I start taking it apart?
If I were going to make the hard lines myself, where can I find out exactly what fittings I need so that I can have the parts ready BEFORE I start taking it apart?
#19
Registered User
if want to go oem then i may be able to help you. i can almost always get oem parts cheaper than the service dept at the dealership. i know that i just got the 2 front rubber lines from the dealer and i got both for just under $90. i think retail is over $160. jm0.2
#20
Registered User
Thread Starter
Well, to revive an old thread, I've got some updated info. I chose not to replace all the parts at the same time, due to the fact that I live in an apartment and I don't always have a great place to work on my truck.
Quite a while back I flushed everything, fixed the leak (the brake line was VERY corroted and was weak due to this) and installed the GM 1 ton wheel cylinders in the rear (this made a HUGE braking difference... thanks to all who recommended it). I decided to drive it this way until I absolutely needed to replace the parts, and do it then (I had them all on hand).
Well yesterday the ABS and BRAKE light came on and my truck would pull HARD to the right when braking (it felt as if the front left caliper wasn't working). I took it to a friend's house and checked it out and sure enough, the front left caliper was seized. I noticed that the pads were REALLY worn and it was time for new rotors too, so I replaced the Master Cylinder, ABS pump, both calipers, pads and rotors (has anybody ever told you how much it sucks getting the front spindles off???). Finished off by bleeding the brakes.
Anyway, so I took it for a drive (a relatively long drive) and the brakes feel great! It stops on a dime, and the truck continues going in the intended direction when the brakes are pressed. The only problem is that the ABS and BRAKE lights are still on and the ABS is not working (if you mash the brake peddle to the floor it will lock them up). It's totally managable, it's just like driving a vehicle without ABS, but I want it working correctly. Any ideas?
Quite a while back I flushed everything, fixed the leak (the brake line was VERY corroted and was weak due to this) and installed the GM 1 ton wheel cylinders in the rear (this made a HUGE braking difference... thanks to all who recommended it). I decided to drive it this way until I absolutely needed to replace the parts, and do it then (I had them all on hand).
Well yesterday the ABS and BRAKE light came on and my truck would pull HARD to the right when braking (it felt as if the front left caliper wasn't working). I took it to a friend's house and checked it out and sure enough, the front left caliper was seized. I noticed that the pads were REALLY worn and it was time for new rotors too, so I replaced the Master Cylinder, ABS pump, both calipers, pads and rotors (has anybody ever told you how much it sucks getting the front spindles off???). Finished off by bleeding the brakes.
Anyway, so I took it for a drive (a relatively long drive) and the brakes feel great! It stops on a dime, and the truck continues going in the intended direction when the brakes are pressed. The only problem is that the ABS and BRAKE lights are still on and the ABS is not working (if you mash the brake peddle to the floor it will lock them up). It's totally managable, it's just like driving a vehicle without ABS, but I want it working correctly. Any ideas?
#22
Registered User
Are you sure you want the ABS working? I am not at all a fan of the 4 wheel ABS. My buddy has it on his '02 and says it will NOT stop. Same experience with our '02 Durango. Since you are from Vancouver you know Padden Parkway and SR 503 intersection and how the lights don't give you a lot of warning. I had to make a rather abrupt stop there and nearly ended up in the intersection. It should have stopped fairly easily, but hard, in the distance I had. Just plain would not stop. If I were driving it all the time it would be unhooked for sure.
I am retired from Portland Fire Bureau and the station I worked at had a rescue that rear ended several different vehicles over a period of time with different drivers. The guys always said it just would not stop. I didn't pay much attention to what happened since I was never on that rig. It went to the shop a number of times and I don't recall how (or if) it ever got fixed. I do remember now the way the guys described what happened was exactly like my buddy described his '02 stopping and I say about how our Durango stops. Or doesn't. Makes me think that was probably a 4 wheel ABS rig also.
This is just some of my personal experience which I will admit is pretty limited. However it doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling about 4 wheel ABS. Never had any trouble with the RWAL on my '01.
I am retired from Portland Fire Bureau and the station I worked at had a rescue that rear ended several different vehicles over a period of time with different drivers. The guys always said it just would not stop. I didn't pay much attention to what happened since I was never on that rig. It went to the shop a number of times and I don't recall how (or if) it ever got fixed. I do remember now the way the guys described what happened was exactly like my buddy described his '02 stopping and I say about how our Durango stops. Or doesn't. Makes me think that was probably a 4 wheel ABS rig also.
This is just some of my personal experience which I will admit is pretty limited. However it doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling about 4 wheel ABS. Never had any trouble with the RWAL on my '01.
#24
Registered User
Hmm, mine's always stopped great...
May have even saved my life when a pickup I was passing at 75mph suddenly turned left in front of me. I was able to steer around him with the brakes mashed to the floor. I'm sure without the 4 wheel ABS all I could have done was go straight into him.
Sometimes when people complain of poor brakes on these trucks I think the real reason is they are used to stopping a 2000 lb sedan, not a 8000 lb truck.
#25
Registered User
I was comparing our Durango to our PU's. It plain and simple would not stop. My buddy with the '02 said exactly the same thing. BTW, I sometimes tow 105,000 lbs so I think I have an idea what it takes to stop.
#27
Registered User
I wonder if your new ABS pump is defective. Can you put the old one back on there to see if the light goes away?
Things that cause the light include low brake fluid, a braking problem where the pedal goes down to the floor and the rear-end speed sensor.
I'm betting your problem is with the actual ABS pump istself, or possible the proportioning valve. Now, I am not sure if your truck has the proportioning valve since is it 4 wheel ABS and I don't have one to reference readily. I do know that the valve in those can shift and causes a sensor screwed into it to light up when the valve is too far in one direction. It is possible to shift this valve too far in one direction when bleeding because one function of this valve is to cut off the front or rear brakes if you have a brake line or other failure causing you to loose pressure in that circuit of the brake system. You may be able to check this by locating the valve and unhooking the sensor wire as I believe it is only one wire, being grounded by the brake system when it is closed circuit.
Chris
Things that cause the light include low brake fluid, a braking problem where the pedal goes down to the floor and the rear-end speed sensor.
I'm betting your problem is with the actual ABS pump istself, or possible the proportioning valve. Now, I am not sure if your truck has the proportioning valve since is it 4 wheel ABS and I don't have one to reference readily. I do know that the valve in those can shift and causes a sensor screwed into it to light up when the valve is too far in one direction. It is possible to shift this valve too far in one direction when bleeding because one function of this valve is to cut off the front or rear brakes if you have a brake line or other failure causing you to loose pressure in that circuit of the brake system. You may be able to check this by locating the valve and unhooking the sensor wire as I believe it is only one wire, being grounded by the brake system when it is closed circuit.
Chris
#28
Registered User
Thread Starter
Could it possibly be due to an overfilled master cylinder? I had put some brake fluid into it when the pads were worn, and now due to the thickness of the new pads it's clear up to the cap.