The $3000 part

[freezerLsc]

My brakes were working fine, but one day the abs light came on, and stayed on. No local mechanics were willing to tackle the issue, so i was forced to take it to the dealer. They told me they couldnt do anything until they did the computer diagnostic. ($90).
So they did it and said "all indications point to the hydraulic unit" . I was a little distressed to find out that the part was prices at over $3000. Everyone in the office was smirking. They suggested I get a used unit. I have a couple of questions still.
Is this the thing attached to the master cyl.?
What else could be causing the problem??
does anyone know what sensors and conditions will make the abs shut down??
Do the error codes for abs have to be cleared or do they dissappear in real-time??

[rjparker]

Ebay has a 87 ABS for $145 that you can "buy it now"....see http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=595582602



------------------
Richard J. Parker
92 Town Car Cartier
prev 88 Mark VII LSC
prev 88 Lincoln Town Car
U.S. Marine Corps 1969-1971

[valentino302]

As pro-five-oh is on vacation, I can no longer re-route this message to Bluecollar's board...so I hope he'll check this message out. It sounds like the ABS pump, the thing bolted to the master cylinder.

Obviously you can tell the dealer to go fly a kite.

[This message has been edited by valentino302 (edited September 21, 2001).]

[Lscman]

Freezerlsc,

I am glad this post did not get moved, so everyone can address it. I will gladly point you in the right direction, but I need more information. Aside from the yellow light:
1)Do the brakes work fine? If not, what are the symptoms?
2)How many times can you pump the brakes before you hear the faint buzzing noise from the hydraulic pump?

Comment: The overhead light can illuminate for many reasons. Very seldom do you need a complete ABS unit. In my opinion, the shop is clueless and grossly overcharging you. The ABS unit costs $1100 complete, but typically an accumulator, wire or sensor is bad that costs under $200.

[BLUECOLLAR]

What code(s) did they come up with? If the "RED" brake light does self check(when its first started), and only the "YELLOW" comes on, its probably just something in the ABS system....which NEVER requires replacement of the entire system!

[freezerLsc]

The brakes are functioning normally. The Yellow light comes on at first when the car is started, then goes away, then comes back. It seems only to come back when the car is in motion. But it will came back even if the barakes are not depresses.

[Lscman]

Did you check for the pump sound yet???

[BLUECOLLAR]

If the red brake light is working properly, and isn't coming on at the same time the other one is, its an anti-lock problem. The anti-lock light coming on "only while moving", sounds like a wheel sensor.....which is a whole lot cheaper than 3 grand! They might have gotten several weird codes and are trying to blow you off. The codes the tech pulled should be in your file, if I were you, I would find out exactly what codes they found and go from there.
NOTE: Some codes have priority over others. The system may give you several codes,all being different parts, but the one with the highest priority may be causing the code for the others.

[Blue Oval]

I had the same problem. To check if it is a wheel sensor do the following. Unplug all of your wheel sensors (front unplug under the hood, rear unplug in the trunk), then check the resistence of all of the sensors using a multimeter. They should all be in the neighborhood of 1100 ohms. One will be way off-at least mine was-if you have a bad wheel sensor. Costed me $82 and installed in 15 min. by myself. Any Q's let me know.