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I have a 1995 F-150 ext. cab xlt 5.8l that I am having some brake and/or drive line problems with.
It started about a week or two ago when I would apply the brakes lightly they would hit hard and the back end would skid. As well there has been a very loud vibration and whirring noise through out the whole truck from about 20km/h and up but i am already aware that I need rear axle bearings and seals.
The front end has been serviced with new warn hub and bearing kits, brakes, rotors, calipers, and ball joints.
I put the rear end up on stands today, took off the wheels and drums to see if anything had broken or maybe i just need new shoes but everything appears to be fine so I put the drums back on, started the truck, put it in drive and let off the brake. The drivers side either doesn't move or will begin moving slowly while the passengers side spins fine, now when I hit the brakes the drivers side stops but the passengers side will keep spinning along with the drive shaft for about 5-10 seconds before it feels like abs is going off and the back end shudders and clunks to a stop. I adjusted the shoes both ways and have bleed the brakes with no positive effect, if anything its a bit worse now with both sides not stopping right away but instead keep moving for some time before coming to a stop in the same manner as the passenger side had before. This happens with or without the wheels on it, drive or reverse.
I have checked u-joints and all seem to be fine. Shoes appear to have plenty of meat on them and the drums don't look to be warped or damaged in anyway.
Thank you for any input to help solve this problem.
Three items of concern -
1) Seals - if oil / grease has gotten on the shoe friction material, the brakes will become quite grabby.
2) Bearings - if the bearings are shot, they may not be keeping the drum centered with respect to the shoe mounting...???
3) Passenger side not stopping - not understanding this. If the truck is suspended and the brakes are firmly applied, both sides should stop pretty quick. The difference is the spinning speeds is interesting, but perhaps not an issue with a single-pull (non-limited slip) axle.
How much fluid is in the brake reservoir? Do you see any leaks near the drums? If it was me I'd start by replacing both brake wheel cylinders, or at least the passenger side and see where that got me.
The not stopping could be rabs, master cylinder, slave cylinders, clogged lines, or more likely way out of adjustment.
They should be adjusted until they almost touch the drum but not quite. As long as the adjusters are able to turn freely, backing up and firmly applying the brakes will adjust them to where they should be.
The shuddering could be contaminated shoes (sandpaper them), out of adjustment, or most likely warped drums.
To check for warpage, block it up with the wheels off, tighten up at least 3 wheel nuts with several washers behind them to take up the slack from no wheel,then put it in gear like before.
Resting a screwdriver or tire bar or such on something solid slide it in until it just barely touches the drum. If there's a warp you should see the high point touching before the rest. If you can stop the right wheel (pull on the e brake cable ?) the left should spin.
Thanks it appears to have been contaminated I took some sandpaper to it and it made the problem much less noticeable so I will be cleaning it up better and replacing the axle seals and bearings then see how it goes.
Unplug the ABS Valve from under the truck. Should be in the frame rail under the brake booster. Drive it and see if it stops shuddering. Looks like this:
Mine would do it until I unplugged it. Then I replaced it and that solved the problem.
12-20-2014, 03:31 PM
1995 f-150 drums shudder
