2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission 99' 3500 rear brakes scare me!!

[PRyker]

Yesterday I needed to slam on the brakes hard because a little car got in front of me and jabbed on the brakes in traffic. WOW... . what a scary feeling!! The rear wheels made a big loud clunk, locked up for a split second and then the pedal became mushy and the truck slowed down very slowly.



The clunk was very loud and it shook the truck violently. It scared the heck out of me. Afterwards I tested it out on some open roads and it always did the same thing. I also feel no pulsating at all from what should be a 4 wheel ABS truck? I guess it was working because after the big clunking sound I could not lockup the tires. The sound definately came from the rear.



I searched the forums for an hour this morning and could not find anything like this. Any ideas?



Thanks

Phil

 

[macdaddy]

Been there had that!!!!!!!!!!

PR

I lived with that BS for over 6 years with my 99. On more than one occasion if I hadn't had the opportunity to pull to the left or right while braking I would have nailed to car in front of me. In fact about the only time I felt confident about braking was when the truck was pulling a trailer or heavily loaded.



That being said, what you can do (seemed to help with my truck) is when a panic stop is needed apply the brakes easy just for a split second then get into them hard, on mine this would avoid activating the ABS control.



Mac

 

[PRyker]

MD,



that is terrible that we have to live with this!! There has to be a better fix?? I do know what you mean though. That is how I am braking now.



Thanks



Phil

 

[macdaddy]

PR

You can also pull the fuse on the ABS it's in the side fuse box in the dash on the drivers side. Doing so will I believe set a trouble code (ABS) on the dash. I never deactivated mine due to the possibility of throwing the truck into a sideways skid during panic stops like the old days. But you might want to try it anyway. I would recommend pulling the fuse and testing it out somewhere safe in case you pitch it sideways. I also had just adjusted my driving habits (allowing plenty of space in front of me) at all times.



Mac

 

[EricBu12]

To have better braking, What I did is a little expensive but I stop from 60 to 0 in 175' ... Most cars stop in 130-150... .



1. Did disk conversion from EGR in the rear... http://www.egrbrakes.com/ and switched the front rotors with slotted ones and carbon Kevlar pads. The rear disk is a nice setup, not hard to do... took a weekend.



2. Added a thing called brake-guard,,, http://www.4x44u.com/pub/k2/am4x44u/truck_stop/parts/bguard.htm



I am not sure how this works but I do know it made a difference in the stopping distance. They say it makes the brakes more efficient from "hydro equalization" sorta like an accumulator in a water system in an RV. The items are a air over hydraulic system and makes the brakes respond faster even under light aplications so I guess you would not need as much brake pressure to do the same stop as before... . here are some pics of my conversion and of the brake-guard



https://www.turbodieselregister.com/user_gallery/displayalbum.php?&userid=3978&albumid=381



Rear set

#ad




Front rotors and pads

#ad




#ad




Here is the bracket for the rear disk. After removing the drums and backing, it went on very well.



#ad




Heres the new front rotors after 5000 miles on the truck.



#ad

 

[E7mack96]

My '99 3500 did the same stuff. I nearly ran into/over quite a few cars over the way the brakes would get mushy. I pulled the seat cusion from my ??? several times.



I fixed mine by getting rid of it after like 18 months. Too many idiots around these parts cutting in front of me.



Now the 2003 brakes are 10 times better. no issues there.

 

[macdaddy]

Eric

Nice set up I know Glenn and Dawn good at EGR. I had their stuff on my 99, the fronts where like yours. The rear disc conversion is not available for the Dana 80 DRW, just the Spicer/Dana 70 SRW which I believe you have. I had their carbon/kev shoes with their bigger brake cylinders. But still had the stopping problem.



Mac

 

[EricBu12]

Mine is the Dana 80 SRW... The disk conversion did OK for the stopping power and the front pads will just last longer with the carbon kevlar pads but the real difference was with the addition of the Brake-Guard..... Much quicker responce and not needing as much pedal to do the same stop so if you do a panic stop, the distance is greatly reduced... . I estimate empty of 80' shorter.

 

[trqmnstr]

Eric, how much does the Brake-Guard sell for. Thanks

 

[EricBu12]

Oh boy, can't remember that one, it was pretty expensive,



I found a better web-site for it



http://www.brakeguard.com/





I bought it at May Madness 04 and it was like ... . Don't quote me,... . like $200 or so... Might have been more... I went to the web-site but no prices... . might have to contact them to ask... . But it really works and they have video proof it works with measured distances before and after even with trailers and motorhomes... .



heres a PDF format of testing of the brakeguard



http://www.brakeguard.com/Phase_1.pdf



http://www.brakeguard.com/Phase_2.pdf



http://www.brakeguard.com/Phase_3.pdf



Phone # of the guys



1-866-327-7868

1-360-608-5784

 

[tp0d]

the brake guard sounds pretty interesting based on its principles. I was doing a search for a relative cost and came upon this...



http://www.legalcasedocs.com/120/248/051.html



they want $ for the full details, and I cant even find a date anywhere. . mebe this was an old case. . i duno. .



-j

 

[EricBu12]

That complaint said it, the guard didnt stop wheel lockup, ... well it doesn't, if you lock it up, you are sliding, not stopping..... So the other part of the complaint is the longer stopping... . What this does do is help the brakes react sooner with less pedal needed... . When you do that an do a sotra panic hard stop, it will shorten stopping distance...

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Man, that disc brake conversion really looks neat!



BUT, back to the issue - on my '91 with rear-only ABS, it did the same as yours - was REAL scary if a sudden stop was needed on a loose or wavy road surface - that ABS was VERY nasty!



SO, on my truck, I unplugged the ABS harness at the sensor on top of the differential, and wired a 1800 ohm resistor across the leads to fool the ABS controller into thinking the circuit was still operating - no ABS light on the dash to worry about, and the brakes then operated like "normal", non-ABS brakes - a VAST improvement in effectiveness and predictability!



Not as neat as a disc conversion - but the resistor was only 10 cents...