brake and anti-lock brake light

[JimmyDiesel]

I cannot seem to trace the source of my brake and anti-lock light staying on.



I replaced the vacume booster and they went off for a month or so. I had the one of the brake pad linings separate from the pad and the lights came back on. I replaced all four pads and both front calipers, yet the light remains on. I have a firm pedal and the brakes opperate normally, except the anti-lock. I assume that when the light is on they are dissabled?



Anyway - I disconected the wire on the proportioning valve and nothing.



also I disconcted and reconnected the battery cable and then started the truck. The lights momentarily blinked off then back on steady.



I hope someone might be able to help



thanks,

jimmy

 

[Regcabguy]

My truck had the same symptoms. It turned out to be the speed sensor on the rear axle. Part: $35. 50 Do not know if that will help you or not.

 

[paul-g]

My truck had the same symptoms. It turned out to be the speed sensor on the rear axle. Part: $35. 50 Do not know if that will help you or not.

i have the same thing and i got a new sensor for the rear enaxle and my light is still on the dealer say i let my rear brakes run to lose ti lone.

 

[cerberusiam]

You need to pull the codes from the RWAL controller to see what is causing it to think there is a problem. The controller is behind the glove box on the firewall. Follow the hrness down towards the bottom of the dash and you should have one wire that is not connected. Ground that wire for 5 - 10 seconds with the key on and the brake - antilock lights will start flashing number sequences. Copy these down and report what they are.



I had the same problem with the sensor and the controller kept telling me it was bad even after I replaced it. If you follow the harness from the rear diff back up to the frame between the RWAL valve and the fuel tank you will find a connector that is most likely fastened to the frame rail and probably cover in road grime, mud, etc. Pull this connector apart and grease the connection with dielectric grease and see if that helps. It wouldn't hurt to make sure the connections to the valve are clean and greased also.



If you still have a problem pull the connector apart again and look at the female (I believe) part of the plug. It has a removeable piece that is supposed to keep the pins sealed and straight. On mine the male portion of the pins could not go in far enough to make good contact. I pulled the piece out, greased it up good, taped it all back together with good electric tape and have not had a problem for 2 years. And yes, the anti-lock works just fine. Can't slide a tire and it quite the disconcerting free wheel when it did detect a locked wheel.



Your other option is to just unplug the controller and the lights go away if that is where the issue is.

 

[JimmyDiesel]

Thanks, ill try to pull the codes over the weekend. As soon as I get them I will post them.



-jimmy

 

[JimmyDiesel]

Mr. Jack Daniel's and I went out and grounded that lead and recovered the code.



4 (thats four) flashes over and over, till the end of time. I wonder what that means? Jack say's we are not going to check the harness by the rwal tonight. I'll check it in the morning with his cousin, Hung-the Hell-over.





thanks Cerberusiam, I really Appreciate the insight.





-jimmy



ps - disconected the controller and the lights went off!

 

[bgilbert]

Your other option is to just unplug the controller and the lights go away if that is where the issue is.

Best option IMO. Simply unplug the cheezy Dodge attempt at antilock brakes- behind the glovebox antilock module. Unplugging this you'll never see the antilock light again, and the brake light will work as it should when parking brake is applied or low vacuum. The braking system will work as any other Dodge pickup truck did without RWAL- rear wheel antilock brakes.

 

[1stgen4evr]

ABS light

"Best option IMO. Simply unplug the cheezy Dodge attempt at antilock brakes- behind the glovebox antilock module. Unplugging this you'll never see the antilock light again, and the brake light will work as it should when parking brake is applied or low vacuum. The braking system will work as any other Dodge pickup truck did without RWAL- rear wheel antilock brakes. "



I SECOND THAT 100%.

And I will add from recent experience (first of this week) that the valve will begin to malfunction even with the module unplugged. I got a couple of fittings from napa and joined the lines together where they entered the valve (thus completely eliminating and trace of ABS) on my low miles 93. Removed said valve and pitched it. I have the best brakes ever and I have no trouble controling the wheel lockup myself. Incidentally, there have been times when I WANTED to slide all the wheels to save my *** and avoid a crash. It has not happened in the Dodges probably because I am older now and drive with more caution, but it has been really close several times. I would rather have six flat sided tires than a crashed truck.



If you feel that you don't know the stopping characteristics of the truck, take it out and do a abit of testing as to really hard stopping. Get the feel of what it does and then you are the mindfull (as opposed to mindless) controler that is monitoring the brakes.



James

 

[cerberusiam]

Error code: 4:Closed RWAL valve switch.



What that means without an FSM is a good guess. Offhand I would say the RWAL unit has some issues. They are really pretty simple and can be taken apart and cleaned with a little care.

The braking system will work as any other Dodge pickup truck did without RWAL- rear wheel antilock brakes. "

Only if the RWAL is removed completely from the system. I believe a large part of the front rotor warp problems and bad braking was due to a malfunctioning or disabled RWAL controller. I have the brakes not work, lockup periodically for no reason, and just be a general pain with a bad controller/components or disconnected. Not to mention several sets of rotors/shoes and generally bad braking. Remove the controller and set the brakes up to where the rears will do good braking and they want to lockup almost all the time. Tire wear, frowns from the local Bobby, and just general annoyance is the result. The RWAL is there for a reason and like any other electro-mechanical piece it will take maintenance to work correctly.



I just don't favor the slash-and-burn method of getting rid of the info center lights or braking problems.





My . 02

 

[JimmyDiesel]

I don't believe in the slash and burn method either (unless is smog a control) It never worked correctly from the begining. I think I am gong to get it working properly before I decide to put the axe to it. The aluminum case of my rwal unit looks like it has taken a bath in HCL. I am gonna replace it and see what happens. Thanks for the help.



-jimmy