Hey guys i'm a land rover noob in some desperate help. just bought a 1996 land rover discovery for a bigger vehicle for the wife to cart the kids in. she drove it for a week and suddenly lost all brake pressure. i started looking at the brake system and figured it was the brake booster cause the master cylinder was great. so i changed it tonight and found out that the back brakes arent even getting any pressure! and now the front passenger brake caliper is locking up! the abs light was on when i got it, but i just figured, ya know, its an old car. thought it was a fouled sensor or something simple. but now my wife doesnt have a ride and i gotta take my kid to school and her to work in my trans am, which isnt the easiest to get the little man out of the back of. does this sxound like a bad abs system? maybe just need a new abs chunk?

 

also, the brake booster gave me the pressure back in the system. but when i tried to bleed the back lines, i got nothing out of the bleeder valve

 

well you can simply pull the abs fuse and that SHOULD rule out the abs.

How are you checking pressure?

When you tried to bleed the brakes you did have someone applying pressure to the brake right?

 

Not checking pressure, just no fluid coming to the back. Front calipers work great, just have that one that's locked up. If I can get it unlocked, she can drive it. And yeah I had someone keeping pressure on the system

 

Sounds like your brake lines are clogged or crimped. If you don't get fluid under pressure to the calipers in the rear you got basic hydraulic issues. You need all four brakes to stop these trucks. Even when they're working good, they're not that good. I put speed bleeders on mine. They allow you to bleed the brakes yourself. But ayway, if you bleed the cr@p out of them and can't get any fluid out of the rear bleeders, you will have to find out where the blockage is, maybe working from back to front. It's not rocket science, but it is a pain in the ...

 

I had the same issues 3 months after geting my 97. Was laying in the shop working on it when something of more importance came about...so left the truck sitting on jack stands with rear bleeders loose. Finally got a chance (4 days later) to get back under the disco...and found the rerar calipers have some how leaked all the fluid out of master. Refilled and rebleed entire system...and no more issues since! Not shure how it cleared itself, but the mystical LR fariy took pitty on me.
I am now in the throws of getting togeather all the parts to do a 2in lift/tires, and am going to rebuild/replace all the calipers. What the hell....its all apart and might save me down the road.
Rick

 

When you say it lost all brake pressure, are you referring to the pedal feel? Because if you've got a soft brake pedal I recommend a thorough bleed. This can take a few minutes. Go to each corner, put your wrench and a clear plastic hose over each bleeder screw, and bleed the brake fluid into a container. Have someone hold pressure on the brake while you open and close the bleeder screw. Then have them release the brake, and repeat the process multiple times. You'll know it's working because after the first few times you'll start hearing air coming out, then eventually the fluid will sputter out. Keep going until you have no bubbles whatsoever. That's why using a clear plastic tube helps, you can see the bubbles. As you bleed the fluid, periodically check the reservoir so you know you aren't introducing new air. Repeat for all four corners.

Once the bleed is done, drive it for a few days and bleed it again to see if any air is getting back into the system. If it is, find & replace the faulty component, perhaps a leaky caliper.

If you've already done the above and are completely sure that the master cylinder is not feeding the rear calipers, then yes you have a blockage, and yes it needs to be diagnosed and repaired. Start with a careful visual inspection along the entire length of each line. Look for kinks and such, though I'm not sure where to turn if that doesn't reveal your problem. You'd probably need a way to test the master cylinder at that point, or to pressure test the lines.

You need the brakes working first, then worry about ABS when you get around to it. Just be aware that if the light stays on, you don't have ABS. There are some good write-ups on that here.

While you're under the truck, make sure your e-brake is properly adjusted, it sounds like you may be needing it... There's a hex bolt head on the backer plate of the e-brake drum, lift your rear axle (be sure the front wheels are chocked and t-case is in normal, not diff-lock or neutral) spin the rear drive shaft. You should just barely be able to hear the shoes contacting the drum. Tighten if needed. It should not give any noticeable resistance to spinning when it's off, but since it's a drum brake you should hear it drag. Test it by seeing if it can hold your vehicle on a hill in neutral. Fix the real brakes of course, but this will give you some peace of mind.

 

i'll try the recomendations, but any help with the locked front brake right now? cant even drive it

 

Haven't done calipers on any rovers yet, but for starters remove the caliper (you don't have to undo the brake line to inspect it) and see if you can identify why it has seized. Could be that your caliper mounting hardware is rusty or bent, or simply needs a dab of grease to move properly. If everything looks normal, try compressing the caliper and reinstalling it. That requires a C-clamp or special caliper tool you can borrow from any auto parts store.

If you can't get the caliper off you may have to take the disc off at the same time and see if you can wiggle it loose, preferably without breaking anything.

One thought for next time you buy a new vehicle for the wifey, is thoroughly inspect it (or have it thoroughly inspected) first. I usually quarantine mine for a few weeks and won't let anyone else touch or drive it until I'm sure it's solid. Saves headaches in the long run.

 

What do you mean when you say "locked front brake" ? You mean the truck won't move because the brake is locked ? Or does the front right wheel lock up when you hit the brakes ? I had the front right brake locking up on me recently. It was because the left front caliper was leaking. I got a seal kit for the caliper pistons, installed it, and leak went away and brakes fine. If the caliper is actually locked on the rotor, the only thing to do is pull that caliper and either replace, rebuild, or get it working somehow.