'96 ranger 3.0L automatic front rotors

[98v70dad]

My 96 ranger needs some new rotors and I'd like something more heavy duty than the original ford rotors. I put heavy duty rotors on my 96 crown vic and that completely solved my pulsing front brakes .

1) Any suggestions for something I can get at napa, autozone, advance or o'riley's that might be heavier than stock? I can look at what's available there but I have no idea whats good and what's junk. I usually buy napa premium rotors but the ones they have for my ranger are just stock OE dimensions. They used to sell a heavy duty one at napa.

2) They want to know if I've got ABS sensors on 2 or 4 wheels. Did the '96 3.0L come configured either way? It doesn't seem like they would have done that - if so, how do I tell what I've got?

 

[rangerenthiusiast]

Hey 98v70dad, I’m really sorry to bust in on your thread like this, but something you mentioned really caught my eye.

Does anyone reading this know why heavy duty rotors would solve a pulsating brake problem? I ask because my 2000 Jetta with ABS has had a problem with occasional pulsating breaks for years now and it drives me nuts. It only happens about a half dozen times a year, but when it does, it’s always when I’m rolling up to a stop and it feels like the car has very little stopping power the pulsating is going on. SCARY! But knowing very little about how to diagnose ABS issues, I’ve just had to live with it. Pumping the brakes seems to set things back to normal. I let a mechanic replace one wheel speed sensor and cleaned all the others myself, to no avail.

Any help is very much appreciated and again, sorry to jack your thread, 98v!

 

[adsm08]

I don't know of any of the chain stores having HD rotors for a Ranger.

When in doubt about your ABS system get the ones for 4WABS. Literally the only difference is the tone rings on the back.

FWIW I am pretty hard on the brakes on my truck, and I have yet to warp a rotor. I have a 97 D35 in my truck, so it's the same rotors as your 96.


As for why HD rotors would solve a pulsing problem, it's because someone is too hard on the brakes. HD rotors are thicker, heavier metal, so they won't warp as easily when you really hammer the brakes. That warp is what causes the pulsing.

That isn't that Jetta's issue. It probably has a cracked or damaged tone ring on one wheel.

 

[98v70dad]

Hey 98v70dad, I’m really sorry to bust in on your thread like this, but something you mentioned really caught my eye.

Does anyone reading this know why heavy duty rotors would solve a pulsating brake problem? I ask because my 2000 Jetta with ABS has had a problem with occasional pulsating breaks for years now and it drives me nuts. It only happens about a half dozen times a year, but when it does, it’s always when I’m rolling up to a stop and it feels like the car has very little stopping power the pulsating is going on. SCARY! But knowing very little about how to diagnose ABS issues, I’ve just had to live with it. Pumping the brakes seems to set things back to normal. I let a mechanic replace one wheel speed sensor and cleaned all the others myself, to no avail.

Any help is very much appreciated and again, sorry to jack your thread, 98v!

Yeah, don't understand why people do that, especially when it's the first and only reply. Hijacking accidentally is one thing, but doing it intentionally is just inconsiderate in my opinion. It would have just as easy to start a new thread.

 

[Curious Hound]

Between the two of you, I think we may be talking about 2 different issues.

1. ABS, when activated, pulses the brakes as it seeks to maintain maximum braking force without skidding. Before ABS, we were taught to "pump" the brake pedal in slippery or emergency braking situations to get the same effect. I imagine if an ABS system is not operating correctly it might do this at the wrong time.

2. If disc brakes are overheated from improper, abusive use, the rotors are said to sometimes become warped or distorted. This causes them to feel like the brakes are pulsing or vibrating when applied due to the warped rotor trying to slide between flat pads. Heavy duty (often thicker) rotors handle dissipate heat better before becoming warped. Vented rotors are important for this reason also. They shed heat better.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[98v70dad]

I don't know of any of the chain stores having HD rotors for a Ranger.

When in doubt about your ABS system get the ones for 4WABS. Literally the only difference is the tone rings on the back.


As for why HD rotors would solve a pulsing problem, it's because someone is too hard on the brakes. HD rotors are thicker, heavier metal, so they won't warp as easily when you really hammer the brakes. That warp is what causes the pulsing.

That isn't that Jetta's issue. It probably has a cracked or damaged tone ring on one wheel.

Yeah. Mid 90s fords had issues with the rotors. They easily overheated and warped. My crown Vic drove me crazy with pulsing until I discovered the heavy duty ones. Driving in Atlanta traffic pounds the brakes. Frequent 70 mph to zero stops due to traffic. Sometimes you've got to stand on the brakes to stop. Also we get a lot of really heavy rains that put standing water on the roads. A splash of cold water on hot brakes will warp them pretty quick.

Not sure I understand your answer on the 4wabs. Are you saying the only difference is on the back drums or the number of teeth in the ring?

 

[Curious Hound]

Sorry adsm08 was replying while I was typing.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

[98v70dad]

Between the two of you, I think we may be talking about 2 different issues.

1. ABS, when activated, pulses the brakes as it seeks to maintain maximum braking force without skidding. Before ABS, we were taught to "pump" the brake pedal in slippery or emergency braking situations to get the same effect. I imagine if an ABS system is not operating correctly it might do this at the wrong time.

2. If disc brakes are overheated from improper, abusive use, the rotors are said to sometimes become warped or distorted. This causes them to feel like the brakes are pulsing or vibrating when applied due to the warped rotor trying to slide between flat pads. Heavy duty (often thicker) rotors handle dissipate heat better before becoming warped. Vented rotors are important for this reason also. They shed heat better.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

My question was about the second item you mentioned. Looking for heavy duty rotors that I don't have to mail order.

 

[Curious Hound]

Not sure about that. I order a lot from the internet.

Regarding 4wabs...

The front rotors for 4wabs will have the tone ring. The front rotors for RABS will not have the tone ring.

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[adsm08]

Yeah. Mid 90s fords had issues with the rotors. They easily overheated and warped. My crown Vic drove me crazy with pulsing until I discovered the heavy duty ones. Driving in Atlanta traffic pounds the brakes. Frequent 70 mph to zero stops due to traffic. Sometimes you've got to stand on the brakes to stop. Also we get a lot of really heavy rains that put standing water on the roads. A splash of cold water on hot brakes will warp them pretty quick.

[\quote]

Been there, done that, never going back.

Not sure I understand your answer on the 4wabs. Are you saying the only difference is on the back drums or the number of teeth in the ring?

A whee speed sensor has an exciter ring, or a tone ring, to give the sensor something to look at. It counts the number of teeth and how quickly they go by to determine how fast a wheel is going.

A RABS-only truck has no front wheel speed sensors. Wheel lock-up is guessed at by how quickly the rear axle speed sensor sheds it's speed.

A 4WABS truck will have the rear axle sensor as well as a speed sensor at each front wheel.

A RABS rotor has no tone ring on the inner side. A 4WABS rotor does. That is the only difference. A 4WABS rotor on a RABS truck produces normal operation. A RABS rotor on a 4WABS truck makes the front wheel speed signals not exist. Also, the last time I priced them (my truck not actually having ABS I just wanted the cheapest ones) the 4WABS rotors with the tone rings were cheaper.

There is nothing about the rear drums or the number of teeth that factors into this.

 

[planeflyer21]

Well 98v70dad, I know you don't want to order online but I did, primarily because I was disappointed with the high-overhead pricing for Autozone/O'Reilley.

I ordered a front set from CarID that were "heavy duty for trailer towing" brakes.

I ordered several things at once, all were drop shipped, and all got to my doorstep crazy fast. Not sure what got here last but I ordered Sunday online and the last item to arrive got here Thursday.

That was all with CarID's standard shipping.

Brakes work great!

 

[98v70dad]

Yeah. Mid 90s fords had issues with the rotors. They easily overheated and warped. My crown Vic drove me crazy with pulsing until I discovered the heavy duty ones. Driving in Atlanta traffic pounds the brakes. Frequent 70 mph to zero stops due to traffic. Sometimes you've got to stand on the brakes to stop. Also we get a lot of really heavy rains that put standing water on the roads. A splash of cold water on hot brakes will warp them pretty quick.

[\quote]

Been there, done that, never going back.



A whee speed sensor has an exciter ring, or a tone ring, to give the sensor something to look at. It counts the number of teeth and how quickly they go by to determine how fast a wheel is going.

A RABS-only truck has no front wheel speed sensors. Wheel lock-up is guessed at by how quickly the rear axle speed sensor sheds it's speed.

A 4WABS truck will have the rear axle sensor as well as a speed sensor at each front wheel.

A RABS rotor has no tone ring on the inner side. A 4WABS rotor does. That is the only difference. A 4WABS rotor on a RABS truck produces normal operation. A RABS rotor on a 4WABS truck makes the front wheel speed signals not exist. Also, the last time I priced them (my truck not actually having ABS I just wanted the cheapest ones) the 4WABS rotors with the tone rings were cheaper.

There is nothing about the rear drums or the number of teeth that factors into this.

Atlanta is a good place to live except for the horrible traffic. I waste 2 hours every day in traffic. Thanks for the info on the rotor types. I was trying to avoid getting under there to look for sensors unless I had to.

 

[98v70dad]

Well 98v70dad, I know you don't want to order online but I did, primarily because I was disappointed with the high-overhead pricing for Autozone/O'Reilley.

I ordered a front set from CarID that were "heavy duty for trailer towing" brakes.

I ordered several things at once, all were drop shipped, and all got to my doorstep crazy fast. Not sure what got here last but I ordered Sunday online and the last item to arrive got here Thursday.

That was all with CarID's standard shipping.

Brakes work great!

I order almost all my car parts online but I needed them by Friday. 2 day shipping on something that heavy is more than I want to pay. Rotors aren't that bad. I may just do the pads. The truck is still on the original pads if you can believe it. I got the truck from my dad and he never drove it much and he did very little maintenance on it. The grabbing may just be nearly worn out pads.

 

[98v70dad]

I decided to replace the pads and hope for the best. I used new napa premium pads. For the first three days (about 100 miles) the brakes were great. Today the pulsing came back (rained all day). It comes and goes which is odd. I've replaced a lot of brake pads but never had this happen. Usually pulsing doesn't go away and come back. Pulsing was really minor and happened rarely before the new pads. Its a lot more severe now but its still coming and going.

The pads were original from 1996 and worn down to almost the wear indicators. Pins were discolored but not pitted or rough. I cleaned them up, lubed them with brake lube and reused them. The pads came with new hardware so I used the new hardware. I lubed up all the contact points and the backs of the pads.

Anyhow, maybe its just the rotors and they need to be replaced, but the intermittent thing doesn't make sense.

Any ideas for me?

 

[4x4junkie]

You mention the pulsing returning after it had been raining...
Do the brakes also feel real grabby when it happens? (like it's causing the ABS to activate)?

The rain thing has me suspecting it might actually be the rear drum brake shoes that often get grabby (sometimes exceedingly so) when the humidity is real high.

If they feel grabby, see if you can get it to go away by riding the parking brake for a block or two to warm the brakes up a bit (be gentle at first--- hold the brake release so you can let the pedal back up right away. If they're real grabby this could actually lock up the wheels, so you'll want to do this away from other traffic)... If things return to normal after doing this, then that is where your issue is.

I've never been able to find a good solution for this on mine (been through 3 different sets of shoes), so I've always just dealt with it by heating the brakes up some with the parking brake when it happens, after which they're fine until the next morning or after the truck has been parked for some hours (or when clear weather returns).