Intro + Question

[Dan1031]

Hey, I just joined and wanted to say Hi. I bought a camaro about 3 months ago, and I'm already having problems with it. It's a 96 automatic.

One of the big problems that I'm having is that when I slow dow to stop, at about 10-15 mph, my low trac. light comes on and my car doesn't stop, so I have to push the break down harder, and my car makes some weird sound from up front and the brake petal depresses towards the floor a little bit and the ABS INOP light comes on. It stays on until I turn off my car. While the light is on, the low trac. light doesn't come back up.

I've searched through 3 pages of "ABS INOP" topics and nothing was the same as this. All the suggestions were "check your third brake light". Well my brake light is working, so does anyone have any clue what might be causing this or how I can fix it?

I'm only 19 so I don't have many tools or that much knowledge of working on cars. I have only done the basics like spark plugs, oil changes, and air filter stuff. I bought the Haynes repair manual so I could learn to do more stuff, but nothing in there says anything about this problem. Any help is appreciated.


-Dan

[Nachius]

A lot of people have ABS Inop problems/low trac problems after gear changes. I hear a lot of them w/ reluctor ring problems.

Do you have any idea what the previous owner had done to the car?

[serpint]

Check the basics.

Check the brake lines.. Maybe someone cooked the brake fluid before you owned it and there's air/etc built up in the lines. Could also be worn out brake lines.

Check your brake pads/rotors.. are they excessively worn? If so, replace them.

[Ian]

Try pulling the ABS fuse out, disableing them. Sounds like your abs is activating when it shouldnt be, probably due to a faulty sensor somewhere.

[Silver 99 Camaro]

Agreed. My parents car did the same thing. It's the ABS coming on when it shouldn't bad. It was a bad wheel sensor, cost about 300 bucks on a Bonneville, don't know what it costs for an F-body.

[Dan1031]

"Do you have any idea what the previous owner had done to the car? "

I have no clue, I bought it at a used car lot, it came with a carfax, it was first in Canada, then sold at an auction, that's all I know.


"Check the brake lines.. Maybe someone cooked the brake fluid before you owned it and there's air/etc built up in the lines. Could also be worn out brake lines."

What do I check them for? How can I tell if there is air in them or if they are worn out? Do I have to take my tires off for this or can I just jack up my car?

"Check your brake pads/rotors.. are they excessively worn? If so, replace them."

Same thing, what are the signs that they are worn? Sorry, I've never done anything with brakes ever before so I'm not sure what things are supposed to look like and what they shouldn't look like.

"Try pulling the ABS fuse out, disableing them. Sounds like your abs is activating when it shouldnt be, probably due to a faulty sensor somewhere."

Is it in the fuse box inside the car or the one under the hood? Do you mean to keep the fuse out or just pull it out and replace it with a new one?


Is the wheel sensor in the wheel well somewhere? How can I tell if that is what is causing it?

Sorry for all the questions but my car does this CONSTANTLY and it sucks. I was just driving home from school today and it was doing the same thing. Anyways, thanks for the help so far.


-Dan

[93camaro_zzz]

Originally posted by Ian:
Try pulling the ABS fuse out, disableing them. Sounds like your abs is activating when it shouldnt be, probably due to a faulty sensor somewhere.

I'd start with this if it was my car.