Hello TO All,

My ABS light came on yesterday on the way home from work, at first I kinda of panicked and thought my brakes were going out, but they worked just fine and then I happened to look at my Odometer and it had just reached 50,000 miles. I was wondering is there some code that would set it off at 50,000 miles? It just seems too ironic that it started giving me trouble at exactly that mileage!!!!! I'd appreciate any info or suggestions.

Thanks and take care,

Craig

 

Craig,

What year is the vehicle? My chilton manual has info. on how to get the code for ABS and I'd be glad to share it with you, but my manual only covers 97-00, although I'm sure the 01-03 procedures are similar. Let me know if you're interested.

 

Hello,

Thanks, I would appreciate it if you could look it up. It's a 2000 F150 4.6L V8.

I hate to be a mullet, but how will I check the code number? I guess by now you've figured out I know almost nothing about the newer trucks or how they operate<VBG>

Thanks again and Take care,

Craig

 

My friend's Explorer recently lit the ABS. There is a little ABS sensor on top of the differential that apparently wears out fairly easy.

1 bolt holds it in, 1 wire harness connected to it. Took 5 minutes to change.

Cost $12.00 US at the Ford dealer.

Good luck and let us know what you find...

 

Criag,

I'm at work right now and the manual is at home. I'm a man of my word so I will post the procedures either tonight or tomorrow morning. As far as knowing what the code is; it isn't quite the same as using a scanning tool to get a particular code. Rather, you're going to look at how many times the ABS light blinks and based on that, you'll need to see a chart of what the problems are. (between 1 and 16 flashes if I remember right) Tell me how many flashes you get, and I'll tell you what the book says.

Something to look at in the meantime: as it turns out, my problem was being low on brake fluid. I've also heard others having the same problem causing the brake and ABS lights to come on. So, just in case you've got the same issue, I would inspect the master cylinder and all the brake lines before assuming you've got a real ABS issue. Good luck.

 

Hello,

Thanks, I would appreciate any help and I will check the brake fluid level in the Morning. I had a friend at work use his code checker or trouble shooter. He hooked it up to the computer and then ran a trouble test and it didn't show any problems? So, I am still baffled, which isn't hard to do<G>.

Thanks again, Take care,

Craig

PS Thanks for the info on the part and it's cost, that's not to bad a price!!!

 

All right Craig, here it is:

Turn your key to the 'run' position. You need to locate the RABS II diagnostic connector. (it is behind passenger side kick panel, I belive.) Anyway, there are two mating halves. Disconnect them. Take the wire that is orange and black and attach it to a jumper wire. Ground the other end of the jumper wire. (I am told a screw driver works just fine) Now, you'll need to hold the wires in place and look up at your dashboard. The ABS light will begin flashing provided you have grounded the wire properly. Count the number of times it flashes, including the last flash which is going to be longer than the previous ones. The code will repeat itself again after the long one so you can verify your counting. You'll probably want to count a few times just to make sure your pulling the right number.

Once you've verified the number of times it has flashed, you can stop counting, undo your jumper wire setup, and put the two mating halves back together. Post your number and I'll look up which problem you're having. Off the top of my head, I can tell you that 16 is normal operation. Good luck, hopefully it is a cheap and easy fix!

 

Hello XLT,

Well, I kind of looked things over and decided I didn't want to take a chance on messing anything up, so I will be taking it to the Service Center. I want to thank you for all your help and trouble, but I am not very good at working on auto's or truck's so I think I will just call and then run it in. Luckily, I am only a couple of miles away and since it's under warranty they may just take care of it.

Thanks again and Take care,

Craig

 

Craig,

No problem, always happy to help. Good luck with the fix!

 

Hello,

Well I just got back from the Ford Dealership, 2 hours and a 139.81 bill. I should have just gone and bought the rear wheel speed sensor, like so many suggested and I would have saved the 116.99 labor charge. I wasn't a real happy camper, especially since all I wanted was to have the computer run the test and I was planning on purchasing the part myself at the parts counter, well, needless to say that didn't work out like I had planned, Anyway, the light is now off and the brakes feel a lot better. I had read in the manual when the light is on the brakes do not function in the ABS mode, so whether or not they did, I was feeling a bit apprehensive about all my highway driving and the stopping and starting back up.

So, if your ABS light comes on all of a sudden, I think I would go to the parts department , buy the sensor, and save yourself a lot of money and grief.

Thanks to all for the help, hopefully I will listen next time<VBG>.

Take care,

Craig

PS I did have the extended warranty, a 100.00 deductable, and what a hassle that was to get them to acknowledge my claim and all the faxing back and forth between the dealership and them. I sure would of hated to be our somewhere in an out of the way place and really need to use it.

 

After 3 months of driving with that darn light on I decided to drop it of at a local mechanic. He said it would cost $80 just to diagnose it as it can be a rather complex operation with all the sensors involved. I scheduled an appointment. I decided to go to a Ford dealership and get the sensor that goes on top of the differential. It cost me $19 and took me about 10 minutes to install. I didn't even have to raise the truck to gan access. I just backed into my driveway that is sloped. The part went in real easy and solved the problem. I probably saved $100 as I am sure I would have been charged to install this device.

By the way, when I put my truck in the run position, the ABS light went on, then out, then stayed on.

It's only $19 and not much labor and worth a try.

 

97 XLT 4X4,4.2L

Your a godsend, I have been watching these message boards for infomation on this subject, and finally someone who knows what they are talking about.

I would like to thank all you guys for your posting on this subject, I thought I was the only one that ABS light problems. And the tip about checking the code, THANKYOU !! Mine flashes 4 times, can anyone tell me how to determine what a code 4 is? Also my E-Brake light is on, these lights came on about the same time and have been on for about 7 months now. I use the emergency brake all the time and it work fine. My regular brakes also work fine in spite of the lights.

Bow 12

 

Any chance that this rear wheel speed sensor could be at Auto Zone, O'Reilly, NAPA, etc.? Or did you all have to go to Ford only?

 

part number anyone?

 

Valk

I just picked up a Wagner replacement at O'Reilly's for about $12. It fixed the ABS light on my 2000 Navigator.

The part number can be looked up at O'Reilly's website. The local store had to order the part in as they did not have it on hand. Next day service!

FYI, I checked the old an new rear diff sensor with an ohmmeter while I had them both in my hand. The new sensor read around 1200-1300 ohms, the old, failed one was open. That's why it failed the power on self test.

If one has the inclination, they could check the sensor(s) with a meter and see if they are open. I had just swapped the sensor from my 97 F150, so I knew my rear sensor had failed.

Steve