Brake question

[crabbman]

Did you try getting the abs to activate some grass or gravel during your test drive?

No sir, did not try this.
Give it a try tomorrow morning.
Thank you.

 

[crabbman]

Hello, Just got back from my dirt road hard stopping.
Could not activate ABS.
No lites on dash and wheels turned normal.
How does one know if ABS is not working/acitvated?

 

[JonnyTahoe]

The brake fluid is definitely more than a bit aged, it looks like black oil. I just watched a video on YouTube and realized it should be clear.

 

[JonnyTahoe]

Be prepared for the brake bleeding to give you hell after you open the system up. It WILL NOT bleed like the old way we are so well use to doing. The ABS manifold has solenoids that trap air in the system and that keeps the pedal from firming up. You will need a scan tool that has the bleed procedure built in, or get it to a garage that can do it or get you a ****** clone Tech2 (this is what a did). You also have the option of gravity bleeding with a series of locking brakes up and activating the ABS (this pushes the air out). Ive had success with this but I forked out the $250 and got me a ****** Tech2 and it takes care of it all and then some now. Worth every penny I paid for it to me.

GOOD TO KNOW !! THANK YOU.

 

[JonnyTahoe]

No tech2 needed for this. If you have 4WD you can put all four corners on jack stands and then put it in drive and hit the brakes. The ABS will activate to purge any air. You then need to bleed the brakes again. Maybe have to do this procedure 2 or three times. I had this happen when I replaced the master cylinder and didn't do a bench bleed correctly.[/QUO

 

[JonnyTahoe]

I learned about a year ago that pushing the pedal all the way can kill the master cylinder. I had to replace mine to finish a simple pad, rotor and fluid replacement because bottoming it out tore the seal inside the MC.

For the ABS bleeding trick, you turn the key on just as you begin to push the pedal slowly. You want the pedal stroke to take about 3 seconds to go from not pushed to whatever point you're stopping it at. I learned a simple solution is to lay a 2x4 behind the brake pedal so you have a set and safe stopping point. Doing the key-on trick 3-4 times per corner should be plenty sufficient to get the air out of the ABS solenoids. But it's all pointless if you're constantly just introducing more air into the system ahead of the ABS module (through the MC or leaking lines).

I flushed my entire system to replace all the fluid by pumping it out the back two calipers. The whole process took maybe 30 minutes doing it by myself and I wasn't in the least bit of a hurry. If you're still having a soft pedal even after just one hour of multiple bleedings, then something is definitely wrong. Could be a leaking bleeder screw or damaged MC since you didn't replace any parts that required opening up the system. A damaged bleeder screw is highly unlikely.

If you bled them properly in the correct order and are not losing any fluid, then I'm betting your MC crapped out. Even though you may not have floored the pedal, you still repeatedly pushed it beyond the stroke in which it's been traveling for so many years during normal driving.

 

[JonnyTahoe]

Time for an update. I've been so busy with work lately I decided to just take it to Jiffy Lube and have them do it. They replaced my rear calipers, rotors, and pads. They also bled the brakes and put in new brake fluid. Now the brakes are working great and no more caliper sticking! The heat/dust shield on the back of the rotors was toast so they took that off, and they showed me where there appears to be a small brake fluid leak on the brakes, but I'll worry about that another day.

If your happy with your new brake job and the job J L did that's all that matters. Plus if your brakes have issues in the future or near future you just drop the truck off with them and they have to deal with it.