'03 Eddie Bauer brakes shudder?

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lapenr

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Have an '03 EB which is has a shudder when applying brakes at anything above 30-40 MPH, have replaced rotors, pads in front and rear - initially this made the shudder go away, this last time however there was no change. the shudder seems to come from the front end, and the pulsing from the ABS does not change with speed. seems like the ABS is doing its job but maybe too soon in that you feel the pulsing all the time , not just when the wheels would normally lock up ? ??? not sure where to look next. Stuck/sticky caliper? ABS??
 

Stoned06

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Sounds as if your rotors are warped. If you recently replaced them, then I would look at the calipers.....they might be sticking. I just changed my rotors and pads, and I made sure to lube up the caliper guides/slides and the pistons.

Is the pulsing in the steering wheel or pedal? Pedal would be the ABS, steering wheel would be the rotors.
 

BerndM

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I have a similar condition on my 03 EB. The really odd thing is that it doesn't do it consistently. It is totally variable. Sometimes I will feel it on city streets and sometimes on freeway offramps. Speed does not seem to be the determining factor at all. If the rotors were warped, I would think it would do it all the time.
I can HEAR it more than feel it. I don't feel it in the brake pedals and only very slightly in the steering wheel.
There are ZERO indications of an ABS issue on the dash BUT, this problem TOTALLY disappears when I remove Fuse #16 (ABS Module), however then the Brake AND ABS lites are lit on the dash.
I had a OBD2 (ABS) diagnostic done and nothing showed up at all, and I do mean no error codes whatsoever of any kind.
I'm confused.
 

Norexp

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Also had brakeshudder. Brakeparts all good. Had just a tad loose lower ball joint up front, and after replacing these no more shudder.

Just my experience.
 

2004XLT

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Is it 4wd? If so the shudder could be drive shaft "clunk". Gotta grease the slip joints for that. Also these calipers are really picky about the hardware, shims and the grease used on the slide pins.
 

Norexp

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How did you zero in on that problem?
Did that loose ball joint result in weird cupping or wear on that tire?

No extra wear on tires. When checking front suspension I felt just a hair of movement in lower balljoint. They had been there in 190 000 km, so better just change them, and that also removed brake shudder as an extra bonus.
 

BerndM

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I will do some more checking on the ball joints.
But how does that factor in to the fact that the problem disappears when I disable the ABS module. It sure sounds t there is some sort of issue with either the ABS unit itself or a wheel sensor issue. Very strange though that no error codes are logged.:(
 

steelnewfie

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Agree w 2004XLT. Check the driveshaft u-joints. One bad one was causing me intermittent shudder in brakes, tranny, suspension... Believe it was the front ujoint on rear driveshaft. 2006 4wd.
 

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