Morning all.

Just bought an 02 Tracker from my neighbor. He was very honest with it's "issues".

One of the first things I needed to attack was the RR drum brake. It had "fallen apart". The owner had gutted the brake and put a hose clamp around the cylinder. This was the apparent cause for the ABS to create a massive brake pulsation at all speeds.

I replaced all the armatures, springs, shoes, and drum last night then tried it out. Still have the massive pulsation.

I'm going to pull the ABS relay now and see if the pulsation stops. I'm posting this now as, if the relay pull doesn't work, someone might have another suggestion for me.

Remember, this is my first day with the Tracker. I haven't pulled the front wheels off even. Just want to start running down the troubleshooting list so I can take it for a "pre-safety" check.

Other first observations..
-The parts I used are used, except for the spring kit.
-The brake pedal is very soft
-the rear pads definitely need to be replaced

I know that it could be warped rotors / drums or dirt / grease but it seems too extreme for that and there's no pulling. Just thought I might post now in case there's something obscure I haven't thought of yet.

Any suggestions are welcome!

Thanks,
Ross

 

Pulled the relay and no change. That's probably a good thing!

I'll pull the front brakes apart and see what kind of mess they're in...

Ross

 

I was once told that a failed speed sensor or dirty sensor triggers the ABS. Seeing as your vehicle is older (like mine), this is a real possibility. I do not have ABS on my Tracker. If you wish to disable the ABS system, you might be able to pull an ABS fuse. Your comments lead me to believe the speed sensor on the RR wheel failed and caused the ABS system to tear up the brake on the wheel (????). It happened to a Pontiac an in-law owned, so I disabled the system. Sounds like the "Neighbor" tolerated the situation and thus ruined the brake? Check it out on the web.

 

So it was simply a rotor / pad replacement. When i went to replace them in my driveway, on one of winter's coldest days, i snapped the caliper "saddle" bolts. Got aggravated and put everything back together and parked it.

Last month i fixed the broken bolt issue (in much more acceptable weather), changed the pads and rotors. No more pulsation!

Thanks for everyone's help!

Ross