Preface: P38 4.6 HSE, still completely stock.

So I was coming home on the interstate today doing about 70mph when someone tried switching lanes into a bright red Disco, sending the Disco into the ditch. Looked like he missed the guy in the Disco since I watched it drive back out and continue on down the road. The problem is, everyone jammed on there brakes and I put the brake pedal practically through the floor to avoid hitting the guy in front of me. Now when I'm driving I get a faint clunking sound from what sounds like the front drivers side, and every once in a while it switches to a high pitch grinding noise like somethings rubbing. When I go to stop, the truck stops normal when I'm light on the brakes but shakes like hell and locks up in the front if I apply the brakes with some force. I pulled the front wheels off and nothing looks like its rubbing and the brakes both look fine. Pads are in good shape and the rotors don't look grooved, pitted, or warped. Any ideas? Also, with the truck in park and the parking brake on and the front end lifted, should the front wheels be locked or should they spin freely? Thanks in advance for any help!

 

It sounds as though you have warped a rotor. It might not be readily apparant to the naked eye but a dial gauge indicator might reveal the truth. Are you feeling a pulse from the brake pedal when you apply the brakes ? With a warped rotor, when you apply pressure to the pistons / pads, the pads will want to go to the lowest point but of course the high spot on the rotor would bite on the pads during rotation causing the wheel to lock more readily than normal. You might have a hard time detecting it with eyesight alone since when the brakes are released, the high point of the rotor will force the pads out and thus allow the rotor to turn relatively freely. Regarding the freewheel effect you mentioned at the front wheels while in park, IIRC that sounds normal but transmission driveline is not really my forte, perhaps someone else will chime in and verify that for you.

Chris.

 

I may have 2 separate problems then. I still have the noise there even with the brake pad off, but I do have a pulse when I apply the brakes. Like I said, the brakes are biting hard if I put more than normal pressure on the brake pedal. If I apply a good amount of breaking force to the pedal, it feels like the front drivers side brake is locking up. The tire chirps a bit and the truck pulls that way. It's fine with normal braking, but if I press down with more than normal force I get that issue. (For me, normal is like stopping for a stop sign and more than normal is like when the guy in the other lane switches lanes in front of you and hits his brakes and you have to apply more than 'normal' pressure).

 

Definately sounds like a rotor issue Jeff, if the pistons aren't sticking and the rotors still have plenty of life left in them you should be able to get them cut at a local FLAPS and save yourself a few $$$'s at least in the short term. Getting back to your other enquiry, can you roll the car while in the Park position ? If not, I doubt there is anything wrong since the differential will allow the rotation of a jacked wheel IIRC.

Chris.

 

I would replace the rotors and pads for the sake of it. Go to atlantic british and you'll find sets for a very reasonable cost. The rotors could very well be cracked on the inside too, it is a fairly common and dangerous problem. The parking brake is a transmission brake, so use it sparingly, and it should lock up all four tires if it is applied. They should not spin while in park either. Although, in theory like RR95 pointed out, the differential could potentially allow one wheel to spin depending on how they are designed.

 

Anyone know what's needed to remove the caliper? Looks like 2 bolts, nothing I have is the right size. If anyone knows what size/type tool is needed, please let me know asap. Thanks!

 

I just used some size of a metric wrench..... lol. It was hard to get off if I remember correctly. Here is a tutorial on how to do your brakes, it really helped me. http://www.rangerovers.net/maintenance/brakejob4.html

 

Thanks for that, it'll be a good reference point if nothing else!