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Performance Upgrades - Maintenance - Modifications - Problem Solving - Off-Road - Street Trucks. Covering the Explorer, ST, Sport, Lincoln Aviator, Sport Trac, Mercury Mountaineer, Mazda Navajo, Ford Ranger, Mazda Pickups, and the Aerostar. Featuring H.I. - Human Intelligence.
I'd fix your pull while driving. It's not that bad to do ball joints. Fix all the stuff you can find bad then maybe your braking/pulling problem will dissappear. Mine is a 93 and has four wheel ABS. If swapping out the ABS HCU doesn't cure my pulling problem I'm converting to non-ABS.
Money is preventing me from fixing that at this current time. I'm an unemployed single father of one, Full time student and relay on my student loan checks for survival. My next check comes mid Nov and I have already found a replacement/backup engine that I am picking up, I also plan on buying a new T/C shift motor, shocks and at least some new speakers at that time along with replacing my ball joints. If that doesn't fix my alignment then I will take it to a shop and let them check it out. My left front tire is always good, However my right front tire may be in line with the left sometimes..... but sometimes it points to the right 1-3 inches. My new tires
Edit: replacing my radiator to, Then I'll be broke for another two months.. Oh and have to pay the next 3 months insurance off as well then I'll be in the poor house.
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okay guys, i have read lots of posts on this and your all conflicting. i want a straight answer please.
Apart from the obvious, can i just bypass the damn valve, haul out the sensor wires and throw the damn computer away?
Can i bypass the valve using (2) 3/16 straight connectors and a 6 inch length of brake pipe. Can i locate and remove the damn computer and then remove the wiring loom to the rear axle..can i???
okay guys, i have read lots of posts on this and your all conflicting. i want a straight answer please.
Apart from the obvious, can i just bypass the damn valve, haul out the sensor wires and throw the damn computer away?
Can i bypass the valve using (2) 3/16 straight connectors and a 6 inch length of brake pipe. Can i locate and remove the damn computer and then remove the wiring loom to the rear axle..can i???
If you want to remove abs all you need to do is disconnect the connector on top of your rear differential(and turn off the idiot light on the dash), this will completely shut down the abs system and your brakes will function like you dont have it.
If thats not what your trying to do and I have misunderstood you, I suggest you make a fresh topic and give more information.
nope you haven't misunderstood me at all...and yes my rear brakes haven't worked for months and no i have to fluid going to my rear brakes. The valve is leaking and wont work. so its going.
HOW...do you turn off the idiot light on the dash? well make that two of them now. A yellow and red.
both came on the moment i removed the rabs assembly. No i don't have a master cylinder reservoir warning thingy and the brakes work fine.
well i cant really help you there, only thing i can think of is to pull the dash and remove it, you might be able to find a workaround if you post a new topic...
Yeah you should be able to remove the bulb completely once you pull the cluster out. I would recommend replacing the bulb or informing everyone if you do try to sell your explorer in the future.
The RABS on the Ex (or all Fords for that matter) was trash. Nothing like trying to stop on a steep hill in the mud and having the dang thing chatter you all the way to the bottom not allowing you to stop at all. I've seen it happen on many early '90's Ford Trucks on the pipeline. Learn how to drive and you'll never need ABS. It's like all the other nannies on newer vehicles. Just learn how to drive properly and you'll have no problem.
Can't help with the bypass question. I figure just try it. Bypass the valve, if it screws up the proportioning then go to the wrecker and find a new one. That simple. I just threw the sensor ring away when I re-geared. Light was on but I just pulled the bulb out.
yeah okay guys i get that much..however, the red brake light i need to have in use. so can anyone tell me where the module is that uses the red light associated with the RABS system? It came on when i removed the power to the RABS. There must be a control module for this system somewhere that is separate to the emergency brake pin switch circuit.
To clarify, there seems to be two separate circuits using the RED brake warning light.
After reading this thread, i see there is a need for clarification. All Ford light duty trucks (Ranger, BII, Ex, Aerostar and F-series) were equiped with rear ABS systems starting about 1987-88. The Explorer had Rear ABS only in 91 92 models. In 93 Four wheel ABS was installed on Explorer. All 93-94 EX models and newer have four wheel ABS.
It is very easy to tell a 93-94 system. There is a large pump/valve assembly bolted to the drivers frame rail above the steering box. The 91-92s do not have this. There is a solenoid valve located on the drivers frame rail forward of the fuel filter on the earlier trucks. This is the valve that commonly leaks. I have replaced two of these on my vehicles.
On the 91-92 systems, this valve can be bypassed with no worry of pressure drops in the system. This valve mearly is pulsed on and off during ABS activation and is just a straight through line when not activated. This creates the pulsing action that anti-lock is. The proportioning is all done in the master cylinder. So to answer your questions, bypass the valve to take it out of the system. You can get 3/16 line fittings at any auto parts store. You will just need to have a tube flaring tool and understand how to make double flares. Then plug everything in as normal. The computer only looks to see that the components exist and will not set the light unless you have an open coil in the solenoid or other problem.
The 93-94s are more complicated. There is a pump and three solenoid valves. One for each front wheel and the other for both rears. The module is actually mounted under the hood on these trucks, and i think the early models have the module behind the dash. The system works very similar, the proportioning is done in the master cylinder because the ABS system is straight through in operation when not activated.
I recommend not tampering with your brake system just to avoid legal hassels, but I have done this to my vehicles as a stop gap solution.
Hope this helps you, good luck and Merry Christmas
okay ..i understand what your saying and it makes full sense. However, since removing the valve and the wiring loom to the rear diff, replacing and joining the pipes, the YELLOW light has come on and stays on. The red brake light stays on too.
IS THERE A COMPUTER MODULE TO THIS SYSTEM? Maybe it senses something that isn't there.
cheers for your marvelous input, all of you. There is a solution out there.
Yes, there is a module in the system. It is behind the dash, kind of under the radio. Did you completely read my post, it was rather long and i apologize. After bypassing the valve make sure that everything is plugged in as it normally would have been and you will not get a light.
The 92 system is fairly simple. It only looks at the rear axle speed sensor, the vehicle speed sensor, brake switch and the coil in the solenoid vavle. If it sees any problems in those circuts or any of the power circuts then it will set the light on.
Long story short, plug in all components as normal. Zip tie bypassed valve to frame and leave plugged in. Your brakes will work as a conventional system and you will have no lights on the dash provided there is not another problem in the system.
abs is fine but you need good tires to be able to properly drive in the winter conditions! allseason tires just dont cut it for extreme winter conditions! they may be mediocre in snow but fail miserably on ice!
haha..yes your right about that..but hey..what the hell does work properly on ice?
So long as you brake with distance and don't stomp too hard, your fine. Any sudden expectations...buy another vehicle.!!
Anyway, well this all makes sense, and unfortunately the valve is in the landfill. I completely removed everything, except for the module. It will be my next target, and thanks for the heads up. With any 'light on' situation, there needs to be a circuit. The circuit must originate from the module.
What you said also explains the red brake light behaviour. Do we have a picky of said module anyone???
That sucks you got rid of the valve. There is a diode/resister assembly in the harness on the drivers side inner fender well. It has to do with the brake warning light, the red one for parking and low fluid. I have looked at the circut and i cannot figure out why it is even there. It must have something to do with the module signals. From what i can see the circut should work without it but I will have to look at it again.
The only thing that may work on ice is tire chains. You can't go fast with them and they cut through about anything!!
You may need to reroute some wiring. I'm not sure how this may effact your grounds and power supplies to other areas of the vehicle. When you unplug it, check all the systems and make sure they work. Things can be tied together in illogical ways.
yes all is good. No brake sensor stuff goes to the main computer, thank god, so no, nothing else is affected.
I will get to the main module tomorrow and see if it helps me removing the wiring to it. Bet it helps. I don't have a low fluid warning sender on the master, so its not that. i guess the module has sensed that something major has happened and is sending the signal to the red light.
I thought for one minute it might be the Lights on/brake off relay, but it was working fine before and i can see the red light dimming on that operation. So its fine in the background.
Nope, i have a permanent red and yellow signal coming from somewhere.
It is very easy to tell a 93-94 system. There is a large pump/valve assembly bolted to the drivers frame rail above the steering box. The 91-92s do not have this. There is a solenoid valve located on the drivers frame rail forward of the fuel filter on the earlier trucks. This is the valve that commonly leaks. I have replaced two of these on my vehicles.
My explorer was manufactured in September of 1993, It's a 94 model XLT. It has the thing your talking about bolted to the frame but.... My front ABS has to be crap or something then. My rear tires never seem to lock up but my front ones have many, many, many times. My ABS light is not on indicating there is no problem with my ABS.
I can go from 30-40 or whatever to 0 on a gravel road and it works fine. But if I am on a softer surface like in a yard, the front tires always lock up when I brake. Wet leaves, yes the front locks up. Wet pavement it is fine so this really confuses me to death.
Also the solenoid valve your talking about is around $800 at advance if it is what I think it is.
Can anyone help me with this since it's my thread? :
I don't care to share as I've seen many ABS threads roll through here with and without help
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okay to help you a little and anyone that comes here to this thread..let us consider the word 'proportional'.
Dictionary places emphasis on two definitions of the same word; relative and graduated.
So when you press the brake, the system features make sure that pressure is place equally to each wheel so that the braking force is relative from the rear wheels to the front. Another part of this definition implies that it does so...gradually(To divide into marked intervals, especially for use in measurement [of force]).
So ABS on any system should supply equal pressure in gradual stages to each wheel, in any condition and against any environmental influence.
Taking this into consideration it is therefore logical to consider that each wheel is 'managed' and that its behaviour is 'sensed'. The wheel behaviors are collated and the appropriate braking force is applied to each, simultaneously and equal to its computed needs.
How is this all done you might ask? Wheel sensors, brake pump with four wheel access and a computer module, to figure it all out.
If you only have rear wheel ABS then the function only applies to the rear wheels. its as simple as that guys.
My new tires 
