1998 Ranger Brake Failure....

[ret_Marine2003]

1998 Ford Ranger Break failure... Or a modern update version of "Old Mr. Toad's Wild Ride"

Hello,
I had an exciting test drive yesterday.
I picked up a low milage 1998 Ford Ranger that was supposed to be maintained by a Ford Tech.

The guy might have been a Ford Tech, but he certainly did not care to spend time or money on maintenance beyond changing the oil.

I knew the power steering system leaked.

I knew the factory alarm system was intact but the key fob was lost.

I knew the battery is new and from a dealer, but probably misappropriated because it is larger than the one that it is supposed to be there and the original battery retaining material was modified and outfitted with a carved wooden wedge.

I knew the driver's side floor had rust-through from a leaky sunroof.

I did not know the brakes were on the edge of failure.

I took it out to test the repairs I had just made to the power steering and to put gas into the tank.

I drove under the limit and everything was going well, and downhill...
I was nearing the first four-way intersection and caught a green light. I downshifted to stay under the limit and was coming up to the next four way when I applied the brake.... The break pedal went right to the floor with a strange hydraulic "swoosh" sound!

I was shocked for a moment, but immediately hit the brake pedal again and caught just a hint of resistance.
Pump and plant one more time and the truck began slowing but by then it was time to lay on the horn and look for the escape route of least damage potential.

I can only thank the divine for his interventions because the traffic did not move as I blew through that red light! (The horn also did not work, that turned out to be a fuse.)

It has been a long time since I experienced this kind of brake failure.
It appears to have new pads and drums, but probably needed wheel cylinders, ABS units; and the Master.

I coasted with hazards on at the shoulder of the road to the gas station where I replaced fluids and purchased gas.

I filled the break reservoir to the top.
Checked pressure and heard the "whoosh" again.
I Hit the pedal and it went to the floor before felling that familiar hint of resistance again.
No obvious leaks from the lines but at least two wheel cylinders need replaced.

I had it towed home.
No need to tempt fate and the divine.

Anyone else has this happen?
If you have, share the recipe for your repair.
This is the kind of thing I load the "parts cannon" for.
I have no doubt that it has not seen appropriate maintenance since the dealer and original warranty expired.

 

[sgtsandman]

Many garage mechanics, dealer tech or independent, are known to have some of the worst vehicles out there. They spend all day fixing other people's vehicle issues and have little to no desire to fix their own as a result.

In any case, it sounds like your master cylinder is shot from the desctiption you are giving.

 

[racsan]

Yes, I agree. some mechanics have some of the worst vehicles on the road. After all day of working in other peoples cars the last thing they want to do is be under their own hood. Back some 25+ years ago I was a outboard mechanic at a boat dealership. I didnt even want to change my own oil after a few years of that place.

 

[adsm08]

Many garage mechanics, dealer tech or independent, are known to have some of the worst vehicles out there. They spend all day fixing other people's vehicle issues and have little to no desire to fix their own as a result.

Add to this that we know what is wrong, what is going to go wrong, what is currently going wrong, and how to deal with it on the fly without getting ourselves or others killed. This means that things a non-mechanical person would find quite disconcerting we end of thinking of it as "an average Tuesday".

For example, I once had a wiring issue in my truck, but couldn't quite track down exactly where it was. It would just randomly present with a crank, no start. No rhyme or reason, it would just happen, but once it was running it would run all day. To most people this would be a problem. I figured out that if I started letting the clutch out while it was cranking the truck would start moving, and then it would pop start the engine and it would run. I drove like that for over a year before I just bought a parts truck and put that harness in mine.

 

[RonD]

I have lost brakes a few times on a few vehicles, yes gets real scary real fast, because its so unexpected

On 2 of my Rangers it was the rear brake line rusting out between frame and gas tank, so you need to push a new line through to the back, not at all hard to fix

Master does have 2 separate brake lines out
Front line is for rear brakes back line is for front brakes

This is so you will at least have "some" brakes if a line of caliper/cylinder leaks
But you do have to pump the brakes to get slowed down