I replaced the front pads and rotors on my 1999 Dakota 4x4 and here is what i have:

Very poor braking, with lots of fade and can't lock up the front wheels.

Here is what i did:

1. inspected the front pads and noticed they do not contact the rotor evenly anymore. They contact the rotor closest to the hub and not near the outer edge.
2. replaced the pads and turned the rotors to remove the rust from the unused portion. Result is the same
3. bleed front calipers and top up fluid. no result

Let me tell you that the brake pedal is rock hard all the way to the floor, just no power. I read on a forum somewhere that the front flex hoses can wear over time and swell...? In my opinion this is unlikely because i think the hose would burst before it swelled, however, if someone has experience with this tell me what you think.

I am willing to spend the money on parts, i just don't want to do it blind. I was going to replace the following parts in the order listed:

1. flex hoses
2. calipers
3. as a result of this an entire brake fluid flush and re-bleed
4. brake booster
5. brake master cylinder.


Any help is much appreciated and thank you in advance.

 

what I would do first is check your flex hoses. queeze them to see if there getting soft. ive heard that sometime when they get weak the fluid gets hot in them and they will callapse like heater hoses. and cause the same effect. but if i were you i would replace that flex hoses first. then if that doesnt fix the problem i would go for the master cyl.

 

are your front calipers working?if your pedal goes to the floor you either have air in your lines, a leak, or your master cylinder could be bad.and you have front abs on that truck. the wheels souldn't lock up.

 

Thank you for those that replied. I should have made myself more clear. My truck has only rear abs and the brake pedal is rock hard for the full range of motion (pedal travel). This is why the situation is confusing.

If anyone has more input that would be helpful before i start throwing money at this problem. The calipers seem to be working in the sense that they close and open and are not sticking. Visually, the seal around the piston looks good, not ripped, cracking or leaking fluid.

 

check the groves the caliper slides on, sand it down with some emery cloth and put some never sieze on the slides, go from there

 

I already ground the caliper hangers to remove the groove that was worn into them. I also bought spacer clips that attach to the pads to prevent the pads from hanging up and jostling back and forth. Anti seize was applied to everything. No change in the pad contact.

As a result of this uneven pad contact, my braking force is reduced by at least 50-60%. The front tires (no abs) can't even lock up on wet ground with full brake pedal applied. The rear start to lock up until the abs kicks in.

Anybody have suggestions? This one is a real mind stumper....!!!:)))