Front Brakes Seize Up

[Buck63]

Greetings. First time poster here, so I thought I'd put it where it would do me the most good.

I bought a 91 Eddie Bauer about a month ago that had done quite a bit of sitting behind a barn for the past few years. It had 138,000 miles on it, but only 30,000 on the tranny. I expected some problems, and have been rectifying them as they appear, mostly solenoid, battery, new fluids, starter, brake pads, things like that.

My problem is that when I drive this thing long enough, the front brakes start to engage themselves on me. They seized up on me this afternoon, and I had the hubs smoking hot (One of them literally) by the time I smelled the pads and limped her to the side of the road. I jacked it up and tried both front wheels (one at a time, of course) and both were hopelessly seized for about an hour. Another hour to let the poor thing further cool off, and I drove the remaining 6 miles home without incident.

My question involves the RABS, because my dashboard light for the "Rear Anti-Lock Brake" indicator has been on since I bought it. I had suspected the sensor as the culprit, so considered it to be more annoyance than anything, but now I'm wondering if the RABS valve might be malfunctioning and allowing pressure to build up in my system? I ask this, because the couple of times it has gotten to this point, I had vacuum lines popping off. At least I assume they popped off at this point, because I had inspected under the hood thoroughly for exactly such things well beforehand. This, however could have something to do with the transmission which must have been hot itself.

I assumed these problems when I bought a long sitting vehicle for a tap dance (he swore he'd let me have it if I'd "Never do that again!"), and I still feel like I came out ahead, but being stuck for 2 hours alongside a backwoods Missouri road without a fishing pole waiting for my brakes to free up ain't really my thing.

Any other suggestions before I start replacing calipers and such?

 

[91exploreron37]

Seems like you have some sticking calipers I'd also replace the brake hoses, and slide pins as well.

 

[Buck63]

Thanks. That's what I keep coming back to also. I just thought the problem would be more consistent than it has been, I considered the warmer weather might have played a part in heating the calipers up a bit quicker.

Just thought I'd throw it out there to see if there were any known quirks. I'll revisit this thread when the problem is resolved, that may be a few days though. And maybe not too many $$.

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

to determine if it's an ABS problem, couldn't you unplug the ABS fuses for a few days and see how things go? if the problem stops then at least you've "cornered" it to a relation to the ABS. in my 1993, i replaced the brake pads one day and they were shuddering like when the ABS kicks in, took the fuses out for a few days, and when i put them in they brake perfectly.

only problme now after about 8 months is i need the rotors resurfaced and leveled out, shudders horrible now while driving, yo ucan even see the dash move

 

[Buck63]

Okay Josh, the shuddering. That seems to be the first symptom that I'm having. First a mild shudder when I apply the brakes, progressively worse until seizure. Either way, I don't think I'm going to be comfortable until I go through the system.

I'm going to try your suggestion before I take the plunge though. Will report back to this thread as needed. Thanks to yourself and 91exploreron37 for your speedy replys.

 

[91exploreron37]

Well 91's dont really have a full abs system with the pump and all that like newer first gens do but I guess there still could be a fuse.

 

[Buck63]

I think they're only for the rear brakes for the '91, if the namesake is taken at face value anyway. But there's a fuse for it, right under the one for the radio amp. I was lucky enough to inherit all the manuals too, right down to the JBL Ford Premium sound system manual. (for all the good it did me with a burnt out FM module, can you say "Supertuner"?)

 

[Blacksheep Josh]

i have another question about the shuddering. is the entire truck shuddering or is it just the steering wheel?

can anyone else back me up on this, could his brake booster not be calibrated right?

also, you said the truck sat for a while, did you clean the brakes before driving it or anything? i'm thinking maybe the brakes are gunked up just from crap getting up there.

also, i know for my calipers when they were going bad, instead of buying brand new ones, i just spent an afternoon "rebuilding" mine with new seals and all.

 

[marragtop]

I suggest trying to bleed the front brakes when cold and hot. You could have a bad metal line that is only acting up when the system gets hot.

 

[TedJ]

The rubber hoses, especially if old and dried out, can act almost as a one-way valve that will not let fluid return from the calipers. (causing them to stick) If the hoses aren't in perfect shape, may as well replace them its cheap and easy.

 

[Buck63]

Josh, replaced front right brakeline and both front pads to get it to pass the safety inspection required in Missouri. The shuddering is definately coming from the front. Also, had the parking brake stuck in the right rear and had it freed up, and vowed never to use it. The back shoes look fine otherwise. I've suspected bad lines, and haven't ruled it out, but from what I've seen so far, the fluid looks like it just came out of the bottle. And curiously enough, the main offender seems to be the front right, the one I replaced the line on, since it was the one that was smoking. This being said, both sides were seized.



I also consider that the master cylinder may have the piston for the front brakes creeping out on me. I might, in the end, replace master cylinder, calipers, and metal flex lines just to be safe. At this point, it's a matter of cash flow. I'm thinking of starting this weekend with the calipers and seeing how it goes from there. Considering that one side seems to be worse than the other, I'm thinking they're the most likely culprit. I'll work backwards from there, because I'm not convinced.

I didn't think about bleeding them hot, Marragtop. They've been bled otherwise. Just for the sake of knowing. Other than the bad line in the front, and the frozen parking brake, everything looked in order. IF they get that hot again, (which I'm hoping not, I don't want to be buying a new tranny next) I'll give that a shot.

 

[Buck63]

Ted, I replaced the one on the front right when I got it, and plan on doing the same on the left now for the sake of throughness. I think I'll do so this weekend when I do the calipers. Since I've already bought pads, they won't hurt so much.

Oh, and it hasn't acted up for the last couple of days, but I'm only driving 10 miles each way so far. I feel the hubs everytime I get out now, but they've not been anything buy maybe lukewarm. It doesn't do this everytime I drive it. The drive that took it down Sunday, I had made without incident the Sunday before, maybe a 75 mile round trip.

 

[Buck63]

Replaced calipers, drained and replaced the fluid, (didn't look so new after I let it go for a bit), and replaced the nasty looking brake line on the driver's side this afternoon. I've only driven it a few miles yet, and a few days time will tell for sure, but it sure felt better, no vibration at all yet. Hopefully the next wrench I turn won't be on the front wheels.

Thanks to all for the help, and suggestions. I did, btw, unplug the abs sensor, and it made no difference either way. Should this hold for me, then I get to follow directions for improving the gas mileage. I love this forum already. You guys are great!