next2nothing000

Hi there, as you can see Im new here but this seems like a great site for the Chevy enthusiast. Im the proud owner of a 1999 Tahoe LT 2WD. My issue with it is my brakes having no power and the pedal going so low to the floor. It has been bad since Ive had this used at 40k miles. It now has 91k miles and its only getting worse. I have changed the rear brake pistons, front calipers, master cylinder, brake booster and has been bled countless times. So basically, everything but the lines and the ABS unit has been replaced. The Master Cylinder has been changed 3 times. The front rotors are fine and the rear drums were turned about 3 months ago. All this, and still no fix. Even the brake shop I took it to couldnt fix it. Also, the rear brakes have been adjusted several times. So what Id like to do is figure out whats causing this or just BYPASS the whole damn ABS unit. I have my hunch its in there. Any ideas guys??

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MDTAHOE

I have run into this complaint several times at my shop with this truck. 95% of the time it is adjustment of the rear brakes, Most of the time the customer has been dealing with this for a long time several shops have looked at it and the rear brakes have been adjusted multiple times. Usually the customer NEVER wants to believe it is that simple but I adjust them and let the customer drive it, they always say my brakes have never felt that good. Itis hard to believe that somyhing so simple as a brake adjustment is not done properly by most people. People think you just crank on the adjuster untill they feel drag in the wheel when spinning it by hand WRONG it works in most cases but not usually on tahoe and suburban. Snap-On tools make a tool that you set to the inside of the drum them you flip the tool over and put it to the shoes you the turn the adjuster untill the shoes touch the tool. Now if it comes down to not being a adjustment then you need to find a shop that can pressure test the brakes. For the front we would remove the inboard brake pad and put a pressure sensor in its place for the rear we remove the wheel cylinder bleeder and put a pressure sensor in. Then we apply the brakes and look for good pressure.

in2pro

I have heard that replacing the front brake lines to the calipers (the flexible portion) can help with uneven braking and could possibly be you issue. I replaced mine with the braided on second brake job I did on my 97 Tahoe it did seem to improve braking to me.
I also understand there is a proportioning valve to the rear brakes that could also cause inconsistent braking.

But what MDTAHOE said may be your best bet is to have the system pressure tested, at least this would give you some insight as to what might be happening without having to shotgun anymore components

Consumer reports showed that the 96-99 Tahoe’s had poor track record for brakes and transmissions.

Batchawana

I have this problem. I want to purchase this tool for my shop. I called SnapON tools. Their best guess is a Brake Adjusting Tool with B1468. Cost is $35. Thank you for confirming this for me.

Batchawana

claytonc

Having a proble with brake lights on my tahoe. Whrn i press them down the brake lights blink then go out. But if i barely press thrm they stay lit. Also to shift out of park i just have to slightly press the brake, if i press to hard it will not shift into gear. Cant figure this one out guys! Help me out

Scotiapilot

100%! Exactly. Very few people understand rear drums anymore. The entire rear shoe pack moves and when you try and spin and feel drag 99% of the time only one shoe is dragging.


The home Mech literally has to spin wheel backwards, then brake the forwards and brake and adjust accordingly. Once this is set the system will be rock hard.


Its also why cleaning the dust and grime and using the proper shoe grease on the drum assembly is so stinking important.

Scotiapilot

The other thing is making sure your drums are turned properly. This allows you to adjust the shoe pack before sliding drum on to a very close adjustment

Chevygods2002

did you ever find out what was wrong with it?

73shark

Welcome to the forum.

It sounds like it could be one of the switches operated by the brake pedal.

TopMechanic

88-99 Chevy with soft brake problem finally solved and you can do it with factory parts on the cheap! like many if not all of us I had ****ty, soft and spongy brakes on my obs Chevy.... well first gen escalade in my case. I tried unplugging the ABS- fail. I tried better pads and better rotors-fail. I tried ss brake hose fail. You name it and I've tried it with little to no brake improvement. Until now, I am a mechanic at a local junk yard in my town and while dismantling a 98 single rear wheel k3500 with 5.7 realized the brake caliper had the same outer dimensions and bolt pattern with a much larger piston... more piston surface area more stopping power right? well only if the master cylinder bore wasn't under sized like it is on all obs Chevy. But wait there's hope yet! upon further inspection in my yard and a little research on the web I discovered 95-00 k3500 had a MC with a large enough bore to run the larger calipers and no bleed bypass valve gives you plenty of pressure to the front and rear brakes without creating a hard to press pedal. so in conclusion 89-00 k3500 calipers with your factory pads and rotors and master cylinder from 95-00 k3500 with rear drum brakes equals the best brakes you will ever have with zero modification. 50mph to 0 distance is down to 30ft or less in a 6600lbs escalade. hope this helps all the the lost souls with there soft pedal tahoes.