I own a 2000 F-150, 4.2L V6 and just recently had my ABS Light on my instrument panel stay on. My owner's manual states that it requires servicing, but am wondering if anyone knows what I have to look forward to?

Is it possible that adding Brake Fluid could correct the problem?

I also have not replaced my brake pads yet and have approx 54K miles on the truck. Could this possibly be the cause for the constant light?

Thanks for any insight.

Desperately seeking to save big $

 

I'm having the same problem. My pads are pretty worn, ABS light is on, brake fluid is full... I'm hoping that if I change the pads, the light will go off.

But I've also seen a couple posts on here about the speed sensor and a sensor right on top of the rear diff. I guess the sensors are like $20.00 apiece from Ford. So maybe I'll try the pads first, then the sensors. I'll let you know if any of them work.

 

Very unlikely it is the pads. (Never heard of pads causing ABS light to come on)
Pretty likely it is the sensor mounted atop the rear diff.
It is about $18 at the Ford dealership and takes about 5 mins to install.
(I think it is a 10mm hex head bolt that holds it in place.)

Let us know.

 

well... I've spoken to atleast 3 shops. And all of them told me pretty much the same thing, It's a sensor. Either the ones on the front wheels (which have a tendency to get hit by a rock and break) or the one on the rear diff. So at some point this weekend I will change the one on the diff. since that one is the cheapest. If that works I'll let you guys know. If not, then it must be one of the ones in the front.

 

I just had the same issue. Check the wheel sensors. If you check them with an Ohm meter, they should be ~1.2-2.5k Ohms. My two front ones were okay, but the back one was open.

Replaced it last night and no more ABS light. Seems to be a fairly common failure.

 

A suggestion: Since this is a BRAKE system issue, you'd do much better looking in the BRAKE forum instead of the V-6 ENGINE forum. If you do, you'll find this is extraordinarily discussed issue.

The shops have a fair chance of being correct in their guess that it's a sensor. However, there are over 20 different possible codes of which only one is the rear diff sensor.

The rear diff sensor is, by far, the most common failure. However, if you replace it without doing any diagostics (such as the aforementioned resistance check) and the ABS light still comes on, you're out about $25 bucks for the part which can be replaced in about 5 minutes in your driveway.

Steve