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Does anyone know of a rebuild kit I can purchase? Or a place that still manufactures the part? Thanks.
Bill
Any other thoughts on how to fix it.
Had the same problem on my '99 model.
One of my rear drums imploded last month and I wound up having to get a wheel kit (bearings etc.) in addition to a brake job. Not cheap. :sick:
The front calipers are all steel and have a very long service life. The rear calipers are aluminum with phenolic (non-metallic) pistons.
Thanks for the inside scoop!
But the rear calipers are really, really cheaply made. I have now learned that when doing a rear brake job on a Blazer, figure in the cost of rear calipers. Also, for whatever reason the rear rotors tend to warp. They can be turned and smoothed out, but I am two for two on my personal Blazers having warped rear rotors, when the fronts were smooth as glass. May have something to do with the dual drum/rotor casting.
Get this, the inner lining of the rubber brake line had deteriorated and would allow fluid to flow freely one direction, but would separate and restrict the release. Replaced both front brake lines, purged the fluid to get rid of the trash in the line, and all was good.
Never saw that one before or since.
Just remember to chock the front wheels and DO NOT apply the emergency brake or you will never get those rear rotor/drums off. It really is no more complicated than the fronts.
Have fun,
Jim
Thanks for your help.
Second, when you do that brake job, you should replace the rear calipers. Don't faint, they are pretty cheap and easy to find. Unlike the front calipers, the rear are made of aluminum. When you push the piston back in to accomodate the new, thicker pads, the pistons have a nasty habit of binding in the cylinder bore and sticking, causing major heat build up. And big time fuel economy loss!
Now, the little squeak/chirp you are hearing is due to a rotor being slightly out of true. Also no biggie. Pull the rotors when you do the brake job and have them "trued" at the parts house. This involves putting them on a brake lathe and taking off a very small amount of metal, just enough to get the two sides in perfect parallel with each other.
With regular hand tools, the total time for this job is about 1-2 hours. You will need some help when it comes time to bleed the air bubbles from the rear brakes after changing the calipers.
You can try to get by without changing the calipers, but if you have over 70K miles I would bet money it won't work.
BTW, Wagner calipers with pads run $82.99 each at O'Reilly's. If you get the caliper by itself, rebuilts are ~ $40 exchange. But good pads are going to run you about $50.
Have fun.
The Kelsey-Hays ABS (EBC4) modulator is the culprit. I tried to purchase a rebuilt modulator for my 1991 S10 Blazer 4x4 but the only way I could get a rebuilt one is to send mine to a rebuilder and get it rebuilt for about $700. The modulator must be kept clean of any debris or dirty fluid. A tiny speck of dirt or a piece of rubber seal can cause the ABS modulater valves to by-pass and the brakes get spongy and sink to the floor. Many master cylinders have been replaced thinking that was the problem
I solved my braking problem by replacing every component of the entire braking system (except the ABS modulator) which was unnessessary. The main problem was old dirty fluid. The brake fluid in my 1991 S10 Blazer brake systen was the original fluid. I bled the sytem with fresh DOT 3 brake fluid by foot bleeding and it took six hours. A pressure bleeder attached to the master cylinder will work a lot better than foot bleeding. There is a special procedure you must follow and it5 is still difficult and time consuming to bleed ABS brakes including the ABS modulator. If they don't have a pressure bleeder that fits the GM mastercykinder, some auto repair shops merely give up on the job after a couiple of hours and never get all the air out of the system.
1. Bleed the brakes and be patient because it takes time to bleed ABS brakes. .
2. If that fails, replace the ABS modulator and bleed the brakes again. A rebuilt ABS modulators are available at local parts stores for a 2000 Blazer.
Did you ever get your back rotor off? I have a 98 blazer 4x4 with 4 wheels disks. I have the same issue with the back rotors. It took me a good 2 hours to get the back wheels off. I had to soak around the hob and inside the studs with wd-40. after an hour I took a hammer to the back of the tire and it finally came off. Both sides were stuck.
Now that I have the caliper and bracket off, I cannot get the back rotors off. I also removed the thin lock rings around the lugs and the rotor still will not come off. I took a few bangs on the back of the rotors and front center, still no luck. Any suggestions?
I have had a case where I knew I was going to have to replace the rotor, so I soaked it for half a day and then dislodged it by tapping with an 8lb sledge. I don't mean beating on it, just a firm tap, a little more than you would use to seat a finishing nail. The mass of the sledge will impart a high amount of mass/force on the rotor and dislodge the rust adhesion.
Another trick you can do is reinstall the caliper and brackets. Put the wheels back on, but leave a small (1/16") gap on the lug nuts. Move the car a couple of feet and hit the brakes. Do this forward an backward, and the force of the brakes without the wheels being tight can break loose the rust adhesion. You can usually hear it when they break loose, and with all the lug nuts on, but loose, nothing will come apart.
Both of the procedures above can be performed without damaging the rotor. Good luck!
It would be best to purchase preformed brake lines ready made from GM. LMC Truck offers a preformed stainless steel brake line kit for 1982-1994 S10 Blazer 4WD for $229. It consists of 10 preformed lines with fittings attached. There may a few of the lines in their kit you can use for a 1998 Blazer 4WD and toss the lines that you cannot use. The best option is to go to a Chevrolet dealership that has a parts counterman who will cooperate with you and let you examine his computer screen so you can pick out the lines you need to replace and only order those parts along with any associated, bolts, clips, brackets, etc. Never let a parts counteman pick out the parts you need because they will be the wrong 50% of the time.
I noticed that most of the 1998 Blazer 4WD and 2WD OEM preformed brake lines have not been discontinued by GM and they will fit your calipers, chassis, master cylinder and the ABS modulator without any major bending. LMC Truck does not offer brake line kits for 1995 and later S10 Blazer because the parts are still avalable from GM at the dealership parts departments. When they are discontinued by GM, the aftermarket suppliers will start making them if there is a large enough demand to make it profitable. I have noticed in my dealings with doctors, plumbers, electricians, home repairmen, and auto repair mechanics that they usually turn a minor job into a major and more expensive job every chance they get.
Would be greatly appreciated! THX
Nothing too magical about bleeding the system, just takes time to be sure and get all the air out.
Those caliper bolts require only 37 lb. torque and not a ounce more. !!! Many so-called auto technicians do not uise a torque wrench to tighten those bolts (they must supply their own tools where they work) and will use "More's Law" (if the correct amout is good, "More" is better) They will use their "armstrong" torque wrench and tighten the bolts as tight as they can which will usually ruin the threads in the steering knuckle. After they damage the threads in your expensive steering knuckle, they usually do not say anything about it because it would be their responsibility to spend 4 hours replacing your $300 steering knuckle.
Check your rear brake caliper for looseness. The bolts could have been over torqued or not torqued enough.,
As it turns out, They needed to bleed the brakes more is all. I'm back and running normal.
Gary
Most of the time all that is wrong with the ABS brake system is air in the lines. It takes an extraordinary amount of time, a special procedure and a l;ot of patience to bleed those brakes especuially if you don't have the proper tools. . If a auto shop technician tries to foot bleed the S10 Blazer 4WD ABS brakes he may never get correct brake pedal travel because his is merely pushing air back and forth in the brake lines. . A pressure bleeder is required to maintain a constant pressure as the air is pushed out of the system and most auto repair shops don't have a pressure bleeder that fits an S10 Blazer master cylinder. A special reverse pressure brake bleeder is available that pressurizes the brake lines from the wheel cylinders to the master cylinder and expells the air out of the master cylinder. . That special brake bleeder kit cost about $300 and most auto repair shop technicians will not invest that much money in a brake bleeder kit that they may not use but once every five or ten years.
About 1995, the NTSB had a hearing about the earlier ABS brake systems on the S10 Blazders but GM fooled the NTSB and blamed the failures on the drivers not knowing how to use ABS brakes and got out of an expensive recall.
You are fortunate to have a 2000 Blazer because GM made vast improvements to the ABS brake system since 1996 and the later model ABS modulators are much more reliable..
Pick a good parts house and replace both. Quick and easy fix.
I have owned several Blazers. Each has had this issue.
Good Luck!
the blazer brakes are skipping
things i changed already
front rotors ,pads and calibers
rear rotors and pads
and the brakes still skip
does anyone know what this is from
There as got to be a reason. Any suggestions?
The ABS brakes on my 1994 Ford F150 truck has not worked in 12 years. All the brakes my Ford truck has now is standard brakes but at least the Ford ABS modulator does not have any air in it. It seems that the Ford ABS system never had problems with air in the modulators. The brakes on my Ford truck stops fine in city traffic but the rear brakes lock up and skid on wet pavement.
You MUST cycle the ABS modulator to expel the air when you bleed the ABS brake system. If you don't, there will still be air in the ABS modulator and the brakes can go to the floor. In order to cycle the modulator on a 1989-1995 ABS modulator, it takes a GM Tech 1 scan tool . On the 1996-2001 ABS, it takes a different scan tool.
The GM Tech 1 scan tool is obsolete and a good used GM Tech 1 scan tool cost $400 - $500. There is no auto repair technician that will pay that much for a tool that he may only use once a year.
I prefer Bendix CT3 ceramic brake pads for city or highway driving. They are quiet, have a good pedal feel, low brake dust, less rotor wear, they are long wearing and have excellent braking in all temperatures. .
You may be required to replace the wheel hub when using a new sensor if the sensor pick up end is hitting the reluctor ring (tone ring).
Grace