Balance question

[oh_SHO]

95 MTX 103K

History
New pads all around 8/03
Replaced 2 of 3 e-brake cables 8/03
Cleaned and greased all slider pins 8/03 (replaced 2 bent ones on rear calipers)
Multiple bleedings, never got much air...
Crack ABS ring on front passenger side

I put about 6K miles on it since I did all this. The brakes have never felt good on this car, by far the worst in the 5-8 SHOs I've driven. It is not just me, my Father has said the same thing. They feel kinda spongy and not effective. I know they suffer from bad fade. I have also noticed that there is quite a bit more dust build up on the rear wheels compared to the front.

I think I'll be pulling her out of storage late next month so I want to get some ideas and suggestions. Will the cracked ABS ring cause more braking power to be applied to the rear? Should I disable the ABS until I get the ABS ring fixed? Bad master cyclinder?

 

[NotSoSlowSHO]

Sounds like they are not getting completely bled if only the REARS are dusting.

It should be the ther way around.

 

[oh_SHO]

I thought the same thing but I still didn't get any air. I'd just like to know what is wrong before the convention. There is no way I'll put her on the track with this problem.

 

[pjtoledo]

The standard home method of bleeding the brakes does not bleed any air out of the ABS assembly. There is a procedure on it in the manuals, or you could have a dealer do it. Supposedly doing a few ABS stops will help the air out, never tried it myself. A cracked ABS trigger ring will have no effect on brake fade. All they do is to tell the ABS computer how fast the wheel is rotating.


Perry

 

[rangerj]

How in the world did you bend 2 slider pins. The cracked ABS ring mayl cause the ABS to activate. The crack in the ABS ring increases the distance between the "teeth" so that the sensor "thinks" that that wheel is moving slower than the rest.

Do not disable the ABS. If it is activated a few extra times it is actually good for it, and it will not hurt anything.

If you are building up brake dust on the rear wheels are you sure you do not have calipers that are hanging up?

 

[Mr Anonymous]

Can you get a firmer pedal by pumping it? Typically, if you can get a firmer pedal by pumping it a few times it is an indication that the master cylinder is failing.

How was the fluid flow when you bled the brakes, specifically the rears? You might want to visually inspect your bias valve on the forward left rear control arm.

 

[oh_SHO]

I have no idea how the slider pins got bent. I just noticed them when I had the claipers off. This all done right after I bought the car. I checked the e-brake release and it is going all the way. It just seems weird that the dust density the same on both sides.

The reason I asked about the ABS is I thought maybe it was adding more bias toward the back. Then I thought about it and it does not make sense for the ABS system to work that way. So forget that idea...

 

[oh_SHO]

Can you get a firmer pedal by pumping it? Typically, if you can get a firmer pedal by pumping it a few times it is an indication that the master cylinder is failing.

How was the fluid flow when you bled the brakes, specifically the rears? You might want to visually inspect your bias valve on the forward left rear control arm.

The pedal does get firmer but I thought all brakes did that? I dunno. I am not sure what to look for on the bias valve. I remember looking at it but nothing stands out, same thing with the fluid flow. I did bleed the rears with the car sitting on the wheels to rule that out... Could the rubber lines cause these issues? I don't remember replacing any so that mean they have been on there a while if not original. I don't know why I didn't think of that earlier.