Hi All,
Very Long time lurker, used this site for some time now, and a lot of great info here. But today, I can't figure this problem out, and there doesn't seem to be a thread that addresses this specific issue. So I have finally registered as I need to ask a question and get some input.

Here is the Problem:

1999 Dodge Ram 2500 V10 4x4 - 2 Wheel ABS

BOTH Front Hubs get very hot to the touch, even after only driving about 4 miles. The front brakes seem to not be releasing completely, but rather the pads are still just touching the rotor. With wheel removed, the rotor can be turned by hand, but only with a lot of effort. Remove caliper, turns easy.

Since we found this problem,
Here is what we've done so far:

*Front Drivers Hub Assembly Replaced with New Assembly (This was due to noise coming from that wheel, which upon disassemble and inspection, we found that someone had taken the hub apart and had lost a bearing ...... not to mention these hubs are not made to be taken apart in the first place...)

*Brand New Front Calipers
*Brand New Rear Wheel Cylinders (bleeders on the old one's were rusted shut/broke off bleeder, very old so needed replaced anyway)
*Brand New Master Cylinder
*Brand New Drivers Brake Hose (someone bent the brake hose bracket nearly 90 degrees, which made the hose to rub the tire when turning )
*Passenger Side brake hose inspected and is in good condition

*Brake Fluid drained and replaced with new (what little was left after replacing everything)
*Entire System was bled, good clean fluid flow from all bleeders

But After All of this, it Still has the same Problem....
Both front Hubs/Wheels still got Very Hot after just a short 4 mile round trip test drive.

Does anyone have any idea of what could cause this ?????


I'm tired of driving back and forth to the autoparts store, as it is a 60 mile round trip drive (I live out in the country and this is the closest 'city'), and I've made 3 trips in the past 3 days, not including the trips I made a couple weeks ago when this all started.

If I can't figure this out, I may have to use this truck for practice.

Any Help and Input is much appreciated!

 

Anyone have any input on this??????????????

 

Are the rotors true/flat and not out-of-round? Are the caliper pins/sliders greased with brake caliper grease to allow the front brake calipers to properly slide back and forth? Regarding the passenger side front brake hose, how was it determined that it was good?


Lastly, what part of the country are you in?

 

hmmm. This is a tricky one. Have you checked the brake booster? Maybe your pedal is sticking?

Not much else is a part of that system

 

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply, really been busy lately.



Hi AtomicDog! Thanks for the Reply!

I'm in south missouri, but the truck is from Indiana.

The rotors are true, and not out of round. They look to be newer, and do not have any grooves, or even an 'edge'.

The brand new calipers came pre-greased, and do slide easily. But both wheel get just as hot as they did before I replaced them.

I inspected the hose, it also doesn't look that old, no checking or anything of anykind. I know that they can collapse internally, and if only the passengers side wheel was getting hot, that would be my first guess. But both wheels/hubs get equally hot.

 

Hi Ham Bone! Thanks for Replying!

The brake booster... hummmm. I guess it is possible, maybe just beginning to go out or ? Usually a brake booster has other symptoms, or just goes out completely, but anything is possible.

The brake pedal sticking, or not returning fully is also a possibility. As brake caliper pads sit much closer to the rotor, than do the rear brake shoes, as the shoes have springs to return them. So if the pedal was just a hair down, then it could be causing the fronts to touch but not the rears. I'll have to check this for sure.

It almost has to be one of these two items I would think. As, like you said Ham Bone, there isn't much else left.

There is the two blocks that the brake lines go into from the master cylinder. One of which is the rear abs block, as this truck only has 2 wheel abs. The other I'm not sure what it is... a portioning valve?? Which if I remember right, again only controls the amount or % of brake force to the rear, and doesn't adjust the fronts.

So, I'll look into the brake booster and the brake pedal, see if I can find anything there.

 

Jack up the front, take off the tires. Pump up the brakes. If the rotors are still hard to turn, crack open the bleeders, if they are now easy to turn, replace the soft lines.

 

Hi HeyYou, Thanks for replying!

Did this already, and have already replaced drivers brake hose due to someone bending the bracket 90 degrees, which made the hose come in contact with the tire when turning.

However, even after replacing the drivers hose BOTH wheels/hubs still get hot, just like they did before replacing, even after only a short test drive.

If only the passenger side was getting hot, then that would be the first item I would replace.

 

Wonder if your brake fluid is contaminated - might want to flush your brake lines completely and install new fluid - personally, I used DOT4 brake fluid.

 

Already done with dot 3, good clean fluid flow from all bleeders.