08 exp spongy brake pedal

[dustindu4]

My 2007 had a problem where I pressed the brakes the whole truck would swerve to the left. Wasn't the calipers or pins, it was the caliper hoses. When you pushed the brake the hose blew up like a balloon. I was told that after 10 years those lines will start doing that. Replace your flex hoses. I had mine done a few months ago.

 

[1955moose]

In most cases brake hydraulic lines crack from age then eventually leak. Sometimes the inside of the hose brakes down, and implodes, causing the ballooning you mentioned. When doing any brake work, always tie up caliper with elastic strap, or a hunk of wire. Those hoses are strong but letting them hang puts undo stress on them, and shortens their life.

Sent from my N9131 using Tapatalk

 

[dyablo]

Guess what part took a crap already. If you guessed booster you at correct. Was working fine then the sensor for the stabilitrac stopped working. Would light up after a few minutes of driving.

Just said f it and went to ford for a new unit. Best 370$ ever spent. Now to try and get my full refund from autozone.

 

[1mpg]

My 2007 had a problem where I pressed the brakes the whole truck would swerve to the left. Wasn't the calipers or pins, it was the caliper hoses. When you pushed the brake the hose blew up like a balloon. I was told that after 10 years those lines will start doing that. Replace your flex hoses. I had mine done a few months ago.

My 07 is doing the same damn thing as yours... but recently it feels like there’s a stuck caliper. I’ve changed all 4 calipers and the damn thing is still having the same issue. It really feels like something is slowing it down while Its in motion. I have a steep driveway and when in neutral it won’t really move. The more you press the brakes it’ll loosen up or lock on. After I did the rear calipers (did front first) I tried moving her in drive but she barely moved. I put her on park with the nose facing down the driveway and I could hear some type of squeak coming from the front passenger wheel. I haven’t used the e-brakes in a few days because I thought they were the issue but apparently it doesn’t sound like an e-brake problem. After hearing the squeaking noise in the front end then I either have a bad new caliper or I guess the caliper hose may need to be replaced.

If this doesn’t solve it then I guess it’s going to the damn dealer.

 

[NASCAR Mike]

My 07 is doing the same damn thing as yours... but recently it feels like there’s a stuck caliper. I’ve changed all 4 calipers and the damn thing is still having the same issue. It really feels like something is slowing it down while Its in motion. I have a steep driveway and when in neutral it won’t really move. The more you press the brakes it’ll loosen up or lock on. After I did the rear calipers (did front first) I tried moving her in drive but she barely moved. I put her on park with the nose facing down the driveway and I could hear some type of squeak coming from the front passenger wheel. I haven’t used the e-brakes in a few days because I thought they were the issue but apparently it doesn’t sound like an e-brake problem. After hearing the squeaking noise in the front end then I either have a bad new caliper or I guess the caliper hose may need to be replaced.

If this doesn’t solve it then I guess it’s going to the damn dealer.

Have you changed the brake hoses and flushed the fluid with new brake fluid? If the hose is the original it could be they have collapsed and are not allowing the fluid to return to the master cylinder.

If you have then I would look at the parking brake. The rear rotors have drum parking brakes. If they have never been changed they could be dragging. The springs that retract them could be weak.

 

[1mpg]

Negative, I have not replaced any hoses nor flushed the fluid. I’ve owned the truck for about 6 years or so but I’m guessing these hoses are the originals.

As far as the e-brakes I haven’t used them for a few days but when I did the rear calipers just 2 days ago I was able to remove the rotors with ease. I would think that if the e-brakes were stuck I wouldn't have been able to remove the rear rotors.

 

[NASCAR Mike]

Here is a quick easy way to see which wheel is sticking. Jack the front end of the truck up. Start the engine and try to spin the front wheels by hand. If both are sticking check the brakes or the front wheel drive 4X4 assembly. I believe the hubs are vacuum assist to engage the 4WD. It's also possible the front hubs have seized.

Do the same for the rear but the truck will need to be in neutral. The rear wheels should spin freely. If they don't then check calipers and rear brake shoes. If those are OK then maybe the rear hubs are sticking.

Have you ever removed the hubs and repacked them with grease? Is your SUV 4X4? The more info you can give us the more likely we can help narrow things down.

One last one and this may sound silly but if your tires are at 20psi, they are less likely to roll than if they are at 35 psi. It's just a process of elimination.

 

[gixer2000]

I had 2 problems a year apart that caused these symptoms in my 07.

Last year my drivers side front flex hose collapsed and would cause the caliper to release slowly. Every time I jacked the truck up and spun the wheels it felt the same as all the others. I then decided to step on the brake and try again while it was in the air. When I released, the caliper held tight for like 2 minutes then finally released. I changed that flex hose and problem was gone.

Now this year my peddle wasn't spongy but almost felt like something was dragging. I honestly didn't do Any troubleshooting because I was doing my brakes,IWE's, wheel bearings and IWE solenoid as preventative maintenance. I found no issues with the brakes and wheel bearings spun free with no play. The IWE solenoid was all banged up and had splits in the body. So my guess was that the solenoid was junk(pic below) and causing my hubs to stay in the locked position. Since I've done all this stuff everything feels the way it should.

 

[1mpg]

Here is a quick easy way to see which wheel is sticking. Jack the front end of the truck up. Start the engine and try to spin the front wheels by hand. If both are sticking check the brakes or the front wheel drive 4X4 assembly. I believe the hubs are vacuum assist to engage the 4WD. It's also possible the front hubs have seized.

I can try jack the front end again and see if I can spin these tires by hand. My driveway is kinda steep so I really don’t feel comfortable working on it. I did all 4 calipers on my driveway but man I was kinda scared of the Exp falling into my 2017 f-150. I can’t really park on the streets but I shouldn’t have taken any chances. I’ll park the f150 on my lawn if I have to.


Do the same for the rear but the truck will need to be in neutral. The rear wheels should spin freely. If they don't then check calipers and rear brake shoes. If those are OK then maybe the rear hubs are sticking.

I didn’t give the rear wheels a full rotation when doing the calipers but I did turn them a little back and forth by hand.

Have you ever removed the hubs and repacked them with grease? Is your SUV 4X4? The more info you can give us the more likely we can help narrow things down.

Nope, all that has been done to this truck in 6 years is the regular oil changes, coolant flush, spark plugs, a couple of coils brakes, rotors and recently all 4 calipers, rotors and pads all around. Truck is an 07 5.4l Eddie Bauer and yes it’s a 4x4 but we rarely use the 4x4. Most of the time is on 2WD.

One last one and this may sound silly but if your tires are at 20psi, they are less likely to roll than if they are at 35 psi. It's just a process of elimination.

Yes, wife is the primary driver and for some reason the tire pressure light comes on like every other week. We had new tires installed almost a year ago but I’m not sure if they replaced the valves. I’ve been meaning to take it back to town fair tire but haven’t had the time yet. I ended buying a compressor pretty much to fill up these tires instead of hunting down a working air pump at gas stations every time the tps light comes on.

 

[1mpg]

FYI, my friend came down with a mitty vac and helped me replaced the front right brake hose. As he was unscrewing it from the main line the damn thing was bubbling therefore it had air in the lines. He used the vac to suck out all of the air on that line and so far knock on wood truck wasn’t being held back.

He did say that my brakes feel a little spongy therefore I have to coordinate a day with him that isn’t cold or raining to make sure the rest of the lines don’t have air.