Re: 96 Dodge ram brakes

Posted by Mark Robke on December 31, 2015 at 10:53:24 from (98.19.74.155):

In Reply to: 96 Dodge ram brakes posted by 37Chief on December 30, 2015 at 20:06:14:

Speaking from experience-I believe several factors contributed to this 'event'.1-if this is a bumper pull trailer,heavy load on the tongue,lightened the front tires and they lost traction.2-rear brakes not functioning properly(if they are drum)out of adjustment or frozen wheel cylinders.The adjustment could be due to non functioning self adjusters possibly due to rust.The wheel cylinders could be frozen due light stopping power used by the owner who anticipates his stops;since the fronts do 70% of the stopping,the rears may barely be required to make most stops.Also the proportioning valve may not be functioning properly.If they are disc rears,still could be possible frozen calipers due the same reasons.
I recently had a rear brake line failure on my '03 Chevy while towing a loaded trailer.The pedal dropped,the fronts skidded,the rears kept rolling,and then the antilock kicked on,dropped the pedal to the floor,and,because the brake line failed,the antilock could not pump up the rears,so I had to pump the pedal my self.However what saved me mostly was that my trailer brakes did work and help stop me.Now 2 things-I have had anti lock stops on slick,icy conditions and they do a great job.I have road tested vehicles for ABS(antilock)proper function, and when they work,nothing is better.But when they don't , they are a mess.On my stop- because of the line failure(rust),the ABS could not function properly costing me valuable stopping distance.On many vehicles they also act as the proportioning valve in regular stops,and can fail causing poor braking.Manufacturers should not make the lines out of anything that will rust;it can be done:the after market ones I had put on my truck are stainless steel.The place I had do the job does quite a few and he also has told me he finds a lot of frozen rear wheel cylinders after a poor braking complaint.
Every vehicle that I own or drive a lot,once in a while I try out the ABS to see if it skids or antilocks.I usually try this out on slick conditions so I know how my brakes will react in an emergency.I also check my trailer brakes before each haul,to see if they will lock up on my drive way with the hand control.I am a skeptic:40 yrs of being a mechanic I guess.Mark

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