96 GRAND CARAVAN: ABS QUESTION

[William Falconer]

In the last week or so I have noticed that the front brakes get pretty hot
while driving in town but not so bad on the highway. When I stop and then go
to start off again it feels as though the front brakes are not releasing
immediately when I remove my foot from the brake peddle. I am wondering if
the ABS brake module may have something to do with this. I thought I had a
bad calliper on the front and replaced it but that didn't resolve the
problem. Has anyone had trouble with their ABS that sounds something like
this problem?

Regards
Bill

 

[David Allen]

Overheating brakes is a chronic problem with these vans. I've never heard
of the ABS system being the culprit. The brakes are underdesigned for the
size/weight of this van. It's made worse if you drive a lot of stop and go,
drive in hilly areas, the rear brakes aren't adjusted properly and/or one's
driving habits are hard on brakes, e.g., fast, last second stops. Also, the
piston on the calipers is made of a composite non-metal material. This is
not a good thing. When they overheat, they tend to stick.

I'm helping a friend ('99 G. Caravan) this weekend who's brakes overheated
so much they caused the bearings to fail. We're replacing the hub/bearing
assemblies, the rotors, the pads, the calipers (probably do a rebuild if we
can find metal pistons).

 

[William Falconer]

Thanks for the input Len. I was asking around today and got the same
response from another person so I'm hoping that is it. I was told that one
way to test to see if the line is collapsed is to open the bleed cock on the
calliper and then take the top off the brake fluid reservoir. Fluid should
seep out the bleed nut on the calliper, if not she's plugged. I'll give this
a try and let you know the outcome.

Regards
Bill