[Tloon]

New Member her trying to keep my 1996 Taurus alive with 140K good miles on it.
Left front wheel is getting hot to the point of smoking and severe brake drag. Changed the first thing that came to mind, the caliper and brakes. That didn't help so went with brothers recommendation and changed bearing hub, it was a nightmare since everythig was frozen together. Still getting hot to the point of now heavy smoke. Where do I go next? I am hesitant to keep thowing money at this. If it wasn't for that fact my deceased father in law gave me this car and it regularly gets 28 mpg, I probably would have moved on.
Any advice would be appreciated. Tim

 

[theamcguy]

First thing to do is figure what is wrong rather than throw parts at it. Is it the brake or the bearing? If the brakes are stuck then there are 3 things that it could be, caliper, hose, master cylinder.

 

[Tloon]

Bad Hose?

Calipers been changed. Would a bad master cylinder just show on one wheel? Hose is next cheapest and easiest and would be working my way up the line. Funny thing is that when I changed the caliper, no fluid was dripping out of the loose hose. Could it be collapsed and not allowing the caliper to retract? I had to open the bleed valve to pull the pads in to put the caliper back on. Sounds like it's leading to something.

 

[danhasenauer]

First thing to do is figure what is wrong rather than throw parts at it. Is it the brake or the bearing? If the brakes are stuck then there are 3 things that it could be, caliper, hose, master cylinder.

It could also be bad slider pins on the caliper mounting bracket. Often overlooked, they need to be clean, greased, and easy to move with good boots on them. And the tend to go to hell in the Northeast after a few years.

 

[danhasenauer]

Calipers been changed. Would a bad master cylinder just show on one wheel? Hose is next cheapest and easiest and would be working my way up the line. Funny thing is that when I changed the caliper, no fluid was dripping out of the loose hose. Could it be collapsed and not allowing the caliper to retract? I had to open the bleed valve to pull the pads in to put the caliper back on. Sounds like it's leading to something.

If you couldn't push the caliper piston back in without opening the bleeder valve, it sounds like a plug in the line to that brake somewhere. Can you bleed that wheel from the pedal, or no?

 

[Tloon]

Hose?

Caliber, bracket and pins are all new and slide with no effort. Will pull hose tomorrow and see what it takes to pump fluid through. I am concerned on how corroded the fittings will be on the other end as I already replaced all the rear lines thanks to New England weather.

 

[danhasenauer]

Caliber, bracket and pins are all new and slide with no effort. Will pull hose tomorrow and see what it takes to pump fluid through. I am concerned on how corroded the fittings will be on the other end as I already replaced all the rear lines thanks to New England weather.

Yeah, welcome to the Salt Belt, right? Don't forget, steel brake lines usually rust through from the inside first, no matter how bad the outside looks in this part of the Country. This is partly due to the hydrophyllic (moisture absorbing) nature of DOT-3 brake fluid. That means chunks of rusty crud trying to flow through very small hydraulic openings. I would disconnect the new caliper and pump that pedal until it runs clear or something blows out from failure. It's gotta be fixed one way or the other, right?

 

[Tloon]

All Set- It was a bad hose!

Took the flexible hose off at the caliber, could barely get fluid through. Disconnected at the hard line, plenty of fluid. Changed hose, all set now.
Car felt so good, I'm thinking of changing the original struts and all the bad ball joints, etc.
Thanks for all your help. Tim

 

[danhasenauer]

Took the flexible hose off at the caliber, could barely get fluid through. Disconnected at the hard line, plenty of fluid. Changed hose, all set now.
Car felt so good, I'm thinking of changing the original struts and all the bad ball joints, etc.
Thanks for all your help. Tim

If it doesn't show signs of terminal rust, go for it! Nothing perks up an old Taurus like new suspension components. Lot's of good write-ups on this site for doing all of those parts, too.