workhorse brakes

[max77713]

drove in to destin today after stopping and starting for about 20 miles, noticed abs light came on and pedal was soft, stopped to check in and saw fluid coming from right front wheel, restarted and abs light went off but pedal was still soft, checked line and it was ok, could fluid have just boiled out , thanks.

[DriVer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by max77713 drove in to destin today after stopping and starting for about 20 miles, noticed abs light came on and pedal was soft, stopped to check in and saw fluid coming from right front wheel, restarted and abs light went off but pedal was still soft, checked line and it was ok, could fluid have just boiled out , thanks.

Check that fluid. Does it smell like gear oil? It maybe possible that you boiled the gear oil out of the bearing cup. Check the fluid level via the sight glass and make sure you have at least 1/2" of fluid showing from the bottom of the sight glass.

Unless you broke a brake line the fluid you are seeing is not brake fluid.

The feel of the pedal should improve as soon as the fluid cools.

[jjonas9019]

Max, Be sure to check the brake fluid level in your master cylinder reservoir. If you are loosing brake fluid, the level will be going down in at least one of the two chambers. If the level is getting low, it will turn on the ABS light on your rig dash. Sometimes, when you are getting right at the low point, the light will come on and then go back off. Your soft brakes concern me. If the fluid is not brake fluid, then it is your wheel bearing fluid as suggested by DriVer. Workhorse chassis have had their share of brake problems as of late. If you are having problems with the brake caliber seizing, one of the signs is soft brakes. The calibers generate a lot of heat when they are dragging. This can lead to the brake pedal going soft. When the brake caliber frees up and cools down, the pedal can go back to normal and feel fine. See Workhorse web site for details on the brake problems and the warning signs. Check it out but do not fool around with them. Get help if there is any doubt in your mind about the brakes or wheel bearing issue. Either problem will require professional help.

Jeb