One tech wanted to replace both rotors and sanding down the pads to re-use (he said my brake pads can last up to one year). The guy in auto part said the surface of brake pads having hard spots could cause the pulsation, replace the pads. Of course, replace both rotors and pads is recommended but I have tight budget! What options do I have? can I just machine the rotors?
View 12 RepliesShort Version. 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan, I two weeks ago I replaced the front brakes (rotors, calipers, and pads both sides) I drove the van 100 miles Saturday night with no problems. Sunday afternoon, whilst driving home from a restaurant with 5 people in the van (driving super gingerly because they were my inlaws) the right front brake stuck on and smoked on the drive home. The calipers are new, and I have not had any other problems since I replaced the brakes that were trashed when I got it.
Long version, So heres the deal, I am the proud owner of a 2000 Dodge Grand Caravan, its got about 140,000 miles on it, its a little rusty, but I got it for free. A family member was getting rid of it, as it was 11 years old, and they wanted something newer, and it needed brakes and a few other things. They were going to donate it, but it sat all winter waiting for the donation company to pick it up. Being a consummate grease monkey elite shade tree mechanic tinkerer type, and being in the new family, new house cash flow situation, I swooped in and towed it home in hopes that I could make a decent enough ride that I could fit two adults, a car seat and a dog into.
Now when I got the van I knew it had some problems. That's the reason it was free. But it is/was all fixable stuff. Typical of age and mileage It had a whiny power steering pump, it needed an oil change, the power steering lines leaked, the transmission cooler lines needed to be replaced. It needed a serpentine belt. It has a motor mount that needs replacing. The front suspension clunked because of worn out swaybar bushings and end link Its a bunch of work and few weekends and a few hundred in parts, but when the van was free, and you do the work yourself it costs a lot less.
The front brakes were completely trashed when I got the van, that is one of the reasons that the previous owner had parked it. And it was obvious that the right front caliper had seized, I could not push the piston back in. And that was the one that seized on, and had the most damages so I replaced it, along with the left front, as it was also the original one, and well they were both the same age, and have the stuff to bleed the brakes out. So what causes disk brake calipers to randomly stick on when they are used gently? Because when I drive it angry, such as now, they seem fine.
I had a front brake job done on a 2002 Dodge Dakota pickup at 85000 miles. When I stepped on the brake, I felt pulsation in the pedal and a sort of wobbly feeling in the steering wheel. Also the brakes were making noises while driving. Classical sign of a warped rotor?! Long story short brand new rotors, brake pads and calipers, later the pulsation is mostly gone but the braking is still not smooth at one point while the tires are turning. Now i do have to older tires on the front but i just bought two brand new tires for the rear. Would it be wise to put the new tires on front to see if there might be some unevenness caused by the old tires before i take it back to the shop?
Also the feeling of the brakes catching on one point seems non existent or so minimal I can not be sure if the road surface interfering while driving slow of applying the brakes gently. But slowing down from higher speeds (above 40 mph) and using more then gentle braking ( not standing on the pedal with both feet) it is definitely there. Before the brake job braking caused the steering turning right. (sign of more braking action on the right - right?). Now with new stuff still pulls to the right but not as strongly. Should not this disappear with the brake job? Or get the new tires on front and see what gives?
I have a '09 Dodge caravan. The ABS, ESP, TCS, and Brake lights are on. As we drive along the brakes apply, probably on only wheel. After we stop, we can drive on for a short way and it happens again. A mechanic told us that the steering sensor was telling the computer that the steering wheel was turned all the way to the left. I wonder if I pulled the fuse for the ABS pump and ABS valve if it would be safe to drive, at least until we can get it to the dealer for repair. I am cheap and like to get by as cheaply as I can/. I am not fond of ABS, or TCS any way?
View 19 Replies1996 Grand Caravan with ABS, 3.3L V6, 152k.
Am I correct that Dot 4 brake fluid is equivalent to Dot 3 - with the added advantage of higher boiling point? Is there any downside to using Dot 4, other than a small additional cost? Seems like the cost difference is irrelevant compared to the safety margin to reduce the chance of boiling the brake fluid on a long downhill in hot weather, or - as in a recent puzzler - heating from the exhaust system. Or is Dot 3 really just fine for most cars?
Either way, I'm going to flush the system with new fluid (and replace old parts as needed), it's definitely due. Neither my owners manual, nor the factory service manual, gives a capacity for the entire system. Ditto the Napa store. I'm guessing it's in the range of two quarts. I don't want to buy a full gallon only to let it sit in the garage, but if I need three quarts, I may as well buy the gallon. Where to find the capacity, or have a ballpark approximation for what the system will need?
Also, is there any benefit to flushing the system BEFORE replacing wheel cylinders to keep old fluid out of new parts? That makes sense to me, even if it uses extra fluid. So:
1: Dot 3 vs Dot 4
2: capacity
3: which comes first: flush or new parts
I have a 2002 Grand Caravan, when foot is on brake, speedometer jumps all over, engine bucks so bad I have to put it in neutral or park at every red light. When I go forward, it jumps a little, and sometimes will not shift, engine revs up so bad, I have to pull over, shut engine off, turn it on and then it shifts. Speed sensors were supposedly replaced with the plug for them. It is at a dealership, they checked all the sensors, electrical wires, etc, and not it doesn't shift at all!! It is still there, now I have no van to drive. They claim they did nothing to it, it was shifting 90% of the time. It will not shift at all, even when I shut it off and re-start it. Now they claim it may need a new used tranny.
View 1 RepliesIn cold weather, front suspension is very noisy. I've replaced stabilizer bar bushings, stabilizer bar links, control arms (complete with new bushings and ball joints). A few months prior, I replaced struts with Monroe quick struts. Noise appears when I hit a pot hole or go over a speed bump. Not really a creaking, almost like a slapping sound. I've taken a look at motor mounts and they look OK. Now that the weather is warm there's no noise. Rack and pinion were replaced about a year ago so engine cradle was removed. I removed it and reinstalled. Also installed new tie rod ends and lubed the inner tie rod joints.
View 3 RepliesSounds like an old police car siren but only about 10 % of my driving time and usually late evening hours...
View 4 RepliesI just completed a front brake job on a 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan, installing new rotors and pads. Right front rotor and pad installation went perfectly. Left front - I heard a faint "hiss" as I compressed the caliper piston using a c clamp. In addition, as I placed the new inner pad against the caliper/piston, I noticed that the piston had become slightly "uncompressed," meaning it moved back out a little bit on its own. I compressed it again with a c clamp and had to rush to get the caliper back in place with the new pads in place before the piston SLOWLY worked itself back out and I wouldn't be able to fit the caliper around the new rotors and pads. I completed the brake job, pumped the brakes, and took it for a ride - all seems fine. The pedal is not spongy and it does not travel all the way to the floor.
Do I have anything to worry about? This is my 6th brake job in total. This is my first brake job on this vehicle. The slight hiss and the fact that the caliper piston did not stay seated after I compressed it bothers me.
Today I noticed a knocking sound coming from what sounds like the front left (drivers side). When I accelerate and when I brake the sound stops. The sound also stops when I am going around a bend in the road as well as when I change lanes. When I am turning a corner I do not hear the sound.
View 2 RepliesI have a 1993 Dodge Grand Caravan with about 160,000 miles on it. The front end has been deteriorating steadily for some time now. I have no power brakes or power steering, but I do not think that this is related to my REAL problem: My driver side CV joint (or axle or whatever) failed last week. Upon inspection, my mechanic commented on how he was surprised that it held on long enough for me to get to his shop. It was replaced by a mechanic with a new (not re-manufactured) piece.Yesterday I was driving a friend to the airport about 150 miles away, and 20 miles out of town, my van began wobbling in the front, and then shaking violently - consistent with my previous CV failure.
After dropping my friend off at the airport, I proceeded to the nearest mechanic, who again commented on how he was surprised that I was able to make it to his shop. He said something about the last CV joint being too long or something against a tulip joint (or something, I should have written it down).Initially it drove smoothly, as it did after the first fix, but on the way home I noticed a slight wobble that is connected to acceleration (that is, when I take my foot off of the gas, the wobble disappears). I am concerned that the CV is going to fail again. What would be causing this? Are the mechanics at fault, or is there another problem that propagates in the CV?
I just had my van inspected and tires rotated...van sits for a few days then travels 20 miles and am now smelling something burning and smoke is coming out from front right tire. Other discussions say calipers/pads and that's ok BUT my question is since my van only has @24,000 on it, did the mechanic do something when he rotated my tires? I am a senior citizen and only use my van once a week.
View 6 RepliesI have a 2010 Dodge Journey which my husband and I purchased a year ago used. Over the course of the year we have been dealing with brake problems. No less than a week after we purchased it, we had it at the dealer for pulsation from the brakes and they turned the front rotors. Still didn't resolve the problem completely and was back again and they turned the rear rotors . 4 months later we're back with the pulsation and I had my front rotors turned again. Wasn't quite happy with that as I still felt the pulsation just not as bad. We decided to just let them be and wait.
Well the pulsation got worse over time and a month ago went to Pep Boys and they replaced my Front pads and rotors, they inspected all four prior to that and told me they all looked fine. But I insisted that the pulsation was pretty bad that even felt it on the steering wheel. They replaced the front ones. Next day I was back because the pulsation was still there, and they machined the rotors incase they were already defective. So long story short what else can be causing this. My tie rod ends do not look to be severely worn to possibly cause this. Getting really tired of this car and all its little quirks and problems honestly.
My Camry XLS have pulsation when brake pedal is applied. The pulsation get increased with the speed and very noticeable at 60 -70 mph.
Is it front or rear break issue ? If you think rotors has to be re-surfacesd should I also change pads ?
My car is a 2004 Toyota Camry LE 2.4L. I've been having a brake pulsation problem with my car for few months. I feel the vibration on the pedal and also on the steering wheel when I brake at high speeds. And also I feel like the pedal goes too low and not responsive enough.
So I took the car to a local shop 3 days ago and they told me that the front rotors are bad and have to be replaced. They installed new Wagner front brake rotors and pads. But still I get the same problems described above. Today I drove on the highway and got the same vibration both on pedal and steering when I apply brakes.
I noticed a pulsating feeling when I applied the brakes in my 2001 Ford Focus. I figure that it might be warped rotors, but after driving the car for a while, it seems to have dissipated. The car was sitting around for a few weeks. I read that it could just be rust buildup, but I feel that would require more than a few weeks of sitting around. Is there any way to check for myself, short of taking off the rotor?
View 3 RepliesI have two Hyundais - 2011 Sonata SE and a 2008 Santa Fe Limited. here is my problem with the Santa Fe.
Brakes: Changed front rotors and pads - rear had the rotors resurfaced and installed new pads. Still get a lot of pulsation when stepping on brake pedal. Is there anything else I should be checking?
Ever since I took my 18" wheels off for the winter and put the stock VW 16's with snow tires I have on multiple occasions almost rear ended the car in front of me when I experienced what seemed like a loss of brake pressure. The brake pedal did not feel spongy or anything but often in this situation the abs brakes seem to kick in for no reason. I feel a slight pulsation in the brake pedal which I can only assume is an activation of abs. I'm wondering if this slight pulsation (1 second duration ) is causing my brakes to be less effective. The pavement has been completely dry and I was not traveling fast enough, nor pressing the brakes hard enough to cause the tires to lock and trip the abs.
View 4 RepliesI have a 2004 Grand Caravan 3.8 engine. For the last 2 months the oil light has been coming on when car is first started. If I stop engine and start again the light will be off. I don't think its actual oil pressure because the car runs fine with light on or off. I'm thinking a bad pressure sensor?
View 17 RepliesSometimes when I start my 2006 Dodge Grand Caravan, 3.3 liter engine, the oil light comes on and stays on, even if I rev engine up. Engine sounds normal, does not sound like oil pressure is low. If I turn engine off and the immediately back on, light goes out and stays out. I replaced the oil pressure sending unit - didn't work. I hooked up a gauge - engine has 60 psi oil pressure at idle - plenty! I'm guessing an electrical problem in the circuit.
View 4 RepliesI have a 2005 Grand Caravan, this winter has been a cold one. The GC has always started without problem but after I back out of my parking spot, it sits outside, I put it into Drive and it will not move and after I give it a little gas it would still not move. None of the gears seem to work, but if I wait a little bit and the Van warms a little more it will go into gear and all is good. This does not happen all the time and when it does go into gear and I drive I do not have anymore problems until the next time it will "act up" on me again. Is this a problem or is it a cold problem and not a transmission problem?
View 7 Replies