ABS Problem?

[DCBones]

Hi guys. Just changed the front breaks on my 2000 Explorer. Brakes feel good and when you softly brake, its just fine, however, when you brake harder, the ABS kicks on, though THE LIGHT DOES NOT COME ON. It definitely feels like the ABS to me when this happens. Could there be a damaged sensor from the brake swap?> There might be a bit of vibration when turning and the rear brakes are totally shot but I have not changed them yet, just to let you know. Nothing else was done on the car except the brakes. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance!!

 

[shooked]

I had similar problem. No ABS light. When my light came on, the ABS kicked off and problem was solved, until I restarted vehicle. The fix below fixed it.

I just went through this. Mine finally threw the ABS light on and then the ABS did not engage at all. So, I took the brakes off, took the rotor, and the rotor shield off. Pull the ABS sensor out, use a screwdriver or chisel and knock off any slag that has grown underneath the flat of the sensor, and there may be some gunk on the flat of the underneath of the sensor itself. I then took a flat file and trued the surface up the best I could. Reassembled, and voila, works perfect. There is a post on here somewhere regarding this, and it states the issue occurs due to the distance between the sensor and geared wheel in the hub. If this doesnt work, then explore other options. This is the cheapest and in all likelihood will correct it.

shooked <///><

 

[DCBones]

Thanks! One more thing...

Thanks Shooked, I'll check out the sensors. Does anyone have the diagram of the exploded front wheel for the 2X4 Explorer in 2000? Just for my reference? Thanks!!

 

[lounge lizard]

f all you did was change the front brakes out and the back brakes are shot and need replacing.

you may want to change the rear brakes and see if the problem persists.

it may be sensing that the front brakes are grabbing harder then the rear brakes, thus thinking it is locking up.

 

[shooked]

Yeah you are going to have to replace the rears anyway, so as lounge lizard said, do that too. I doubt pushing the piston back in the front caliper did anything to mess with the sensor. Check the free literature online at autozone, they may have an exploded diagram you can reference.

shooked <///><

 

[DCBones]

Update!

OK, here's the deal. When we first changed out the fronts, there was a mishap and the back bearings did not go in on each side of the truck. We knew this instantly when we pulled the car out of the bay and heard grinding. Pulled it back in, found the problem and put the back bearings in. It ran ok, but had the ABS problem I wrote about above. The truck drove a few miles home, and the next day I decided to changed the inner and outer bearings in the front completely, as there was still a little shimmy-ing when turning. I got really scared because the bearings came with new races and we did not transfer the races the day before! However, when we pulled the fronts off AGAIN, the new rotors had apparently come with races installed. Is this normal??
Any how, we cleaned off the tips of the ABS sensors (they did not look damaged), put in the new bearings, changed the rear pads and the ABS problem is still happening! Plus- the pedal is a bit soft, has been since we did the brakes. Think this is related?
Does anyone think the sensors actually could have been damaged, and that is why they are still going off all the time? Thanks in advance.

 

[bobflood]

I got really scared because the bearings came with new races and we did not transfer the races the day before! However, when we pulled the fronts off AGAIN, the new rotors had apparently come with races installed. Is this normal??

If this is 2WD, it is very common for the new rotors to have new bearing races installed front and back. Don't know about 4WD.

 

[DCBones]

Update

Yeah that was a bother! So no thoughts on the ABS problem persisting though?

 

[shooked]

The ABS sensors must be spaced appropriately for them to work. When I tore my front end apart the sensors worked fine, but when I put them back in, I started with the dumb grinding/no stop. So, yank them back out, clean the surface with a flat file, wipe the underside of the mounting surface of the ABS sensor, use a screwdriver to remove any grown or growing slag.
If this doesnt work, in addition to the soft pedal, by chance, (im asking) does anyone believe by pushing the caliper back in without opening the bleed zerk, that it could have pushed fluid back in ABS controller? If this did occur, you will likely need someone with an OBDII that is capable of cycling the ABS controller to purge it.

 

[lounge lizard]

huh!
I just changed my front brakes and pushed the caliper buttons back in so I could put new pads in and no problem with the ABS.

when I was all done I had good pedal, nice and firm when applying the brakes.
and when called for the ABS come on and pedals the brakes so they don't lock up.

never heard or thought about pushing fluid back through the ABS unit, causing a problem.

since it does flow back through it in normal use.

 

[shooked]

Any luck with your brakes?

 

[shooked]

huh!

never heard or thought about pushing fluid back through the ABS unit, causing a problem.

Here is the info I was referring too. Actually posted on this site.

Bleeding Brakes A common mispractice of car repair is (when pushing back caliper pistons for new pads) to push the old dirty fluid back up to the master cylinder. This fluid will go through the ABS module as well. Doing this may cause trash/dirty fluid to get into the module and cause problems. When pushing the piston back, open the bleeder and allow the old fluid to go out that way. This ensures no trash going into the Hydralic Unit.
http://explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152576&highlight=bleeding+abs+controller