Vehicle pulling hard to left when braking

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Old 01-13-2004 | 04:20 PM
F1504x4's Avatar
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From: Sheffield Lake, Ohio
Vehicle pulling hard to left when braking

I have a 1995 F-150 4x4 and lately when I brake the vehicle pulls to the left hard. If I take my hands off the wheel and brake (in a parking lot) the steering wheel imediatly turns hard to the left. However every morning on the way to work for the first few miles, when I brake it slows and does not pull to the left at all. Than as it warms up is when the pulling to the left starts when braking.... Anybody have an idea??

Front Brakes and rotors look fine.

Thanks for any input!
 
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Old 01-13-2004 | 11:13 PM
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My thoughts are a caliper hanging up and/or air in the right side. Is your master cylinder full? One cheap thing to take a look at is tire pressures. Let us know what you find.
 
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Old 01-14-2004 | 06:35 AM
F1504x4's Avatar
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From: Sheffield Lake, Ohio
Originally posted by ChiDiver
My thoughts are a caliper hanging up and/or air in the right side. Is your master cylinder full? One cheap thing to take a look at is tire pressures. Let us know what you find.
Thanks for the response!


The brake fluid is full and the tire pressure is at 35 psi for the fronts. The brake pedal is nice and firm while I apply the brakes with no spongey feeling.

It brakes excellent and straight when I first drive it after it's been sitting for hours. Than after a few miles of drive time this pulling to the left hard starts to happen when braking!
 
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Old 01-16-2004 | 12:48 PM
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Check the tire pressure in the tires with an accurate gauge when the pulling starts. As little as 1/2 PSI can make all the difference in the world, depending on what tires you have on it.

Assuming the tire pressures are OK, look at the brakes closely (with the wheels off) and see if one pad is worn more than the others. That would indicate an issue with a caliper or slide pin. I suspect either the right side is not pulling its weight, or something on the left side is almost metal-on-metal.

What you're describing can be caused by a lot of different things.

Let us know what you find.

-Joe
 
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Old 01-16-2004 | 01:52 PM
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From: Sheffield Lake, Ohio
Originally posted by GIJoeCam
Check the tire pressure in the tires with an accurate gauge when the pulling starts. As little as 1/2 PSI can make all the difference in the world, depending on what tires you have on it.

Assuming the tire pressures are OK, look at the brakes closely (with the wheels off) and see if one pad is worn more than the others. That would indicate an issue with a caliper or slide pin. I suspect either the right side is not pulling its weight, or something on the left side is almost metal-on-metal.

What you're describing can be caused by a lot of different things.

Let us know what you find.

-Joe
Thanks for the response Joe!

I'm going to pull the front tires off this evening and check what you advised..

Phil
 



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