ABS Light came on....
 

Why is my car doing this to me already :mad:

The abs light came on last night, and has been on since. Then today, I noticed it was rather hard to push the brake pedal down, so I gave it a good push, and it gave in, but it almost hit the floor. It did that to me twice, then went back to normal. Can someone tell me what my car is doing??

Thanks -Dennis

Bled your brakes reciently?? Possibly the ABS unit is dying... I know jack about the ABS units though, only standard hydraulic systems...

I know I need to bleed my system...

Oh, forgot to mention... I went over a bump last week and my ABS light came on too... If anything the braking felt better to me when the light was on (Stiffer pedal)... Then after stopping the car and turning it off, it hasn't come back on since then... Hmmm, oh well... No biggie I guess :)

~ Chris

This can happen when the ABS relay fouls up... Try unplugging the pump connectors (two on the pass side fender) and see if it does it still

Tom

Alright I will try that. If it doesnt work... What do you think the problem is? How much does a new ABS unit cost if thats it... likely quite expensive...

new pump or control module?? Pumps RARELY go bad. If the control module is shot, it just defaults to non-ABS braking. IF the pump relays are whacky, they will kick the pump on at random times and screw stuff up like you are describing... its the relay under the black box on the pump w/ the ABS letters on the cover

Tom

So I just take the black box off that says ABS on the main unit, and theres a relay there? How much would it cost to replace the relay? And where could I get said relay?

Yeah, unscrew the cover, there is a relay under there. Take it out, I usually use one from a spare pump I have laying around, never bought one new.. I am sure you could get one from a parts store if you brought it in... First thing is to unplug the pump to make sure it stops the funky brakes

Tom

Would I unplug both of the connectors? How long do I leave them like that?

Yes, leave them unplugged until you are satisfied knowing that it didn't act up again

Tom

So theres 2 relays in the ABS unit... Which one do I take out? Or should I replace both of them? I unhooked the unit, and the brake issues I were having have went away, so its obviously something with the unit.

When you replaced the shoes, were you gentle with the lines? If you have air in the system, it will go almost to the floor like that.

I would venture to guess that since this happend after you replaced your pads, it has something to do with that. As tom said, the ABS module rarely fails.

I wouldn't say that because you pulled the relays, the unit is bad, if anything, that means that the relay is sticking, or worn. You may want to ask earl if he can loan you 2 known good relays, and see if the problem goes away.


-Patrick

Well I didnt think the unit is bad, just the relays. I went to autozone, and they didnt have either of them. Would NAPA have replacement relays? Or is this going to be something only Subaru carries?