Strange brake problem

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Mar 15, 2013 | 12:33 PM

altruego

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Strange brake problem

I've got an '05 F350 DRW.
Was driving yesterday when the ABS light came on. When I get home and get out of the truck I smell something hot. Turns out the front left is scorching hot. Not a big deal. I assume it is a brake dragging. I take off the wheel today and everything looks great. I can easily spin the hub with the wheel off. A tiny bit of drag but not enough to cause a problem.
Any ideas what could be going on here? I've got a long tow next weekend and want to be sure everything is in good order.

Mar 15, 2013 | 01:26 PM

Yahiko

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From: Spanaway

You did not say the miles on the truck.
One thing it could be of many.
Maybe the hose on that side is bad. What happens is they act like a balloon
and store pressure in the lining of the hose as they go bad and apply pressure
to the pads. The pressure will leak down as it sits.
But with the ABS light on could also be the unit bearing.

Sean

Mar 15, 2013 | 01:37 PM

altruego

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Truck has 162K on it. When you say the unit bearing do you mean the wheel bearing?

Mar 15, 2013 | 08:29 PM

Yahiko

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From: Spanaway

Yes, If you have 4X4 then you have a unit bearing that is the same as wheel bearings.
If you have 2 wheel drive then you don't. You have normal wheel bearings.

Sean

Mar 15, 2013 | 10:26 PM

altruego

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I think you are onto something. I jacked up the other side and it turns much easier. it doen't sound or feel like a bad bearing but I'm new to this unit bearing stuff.
the obvious next question is how much $ and is it something that it easily done at home.

Mar 15, 2013 | 10:52 PM

Ian123

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From: Virginia beach, VA

When my caliper got stuck, it would only do it sometimes. So even though you can spin the wheel by hand, it might still be a bad caliper its just not stuck at that exact moment.

However, the ABS light leads me to believe its something else. If it is a unit bearing, they are not cheap. Prices vary a lot depending on quality, but expect 200-300. It can be changed at home. The hardest part (or so I've heard) is getting out the snap ring. You need a long set of snap ring pliers that is of good quality or else they will break.

Mar 18, 2013 | 11:22 PM

altruego

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UPDATE

I wanted to post what the final outcome was.
I took off the brake caliper and the hub was difficult to turn even though there were no sounds coming from the bearings. Decided it had to be the hub and got the part at Autozone. After trashing 3 snap ring pliers trying to get that Fn snap ring off... I got the Snap-on SRPC-9000a. Nothing like having the right tool for the job. The ring came out easily.
Got the new hub installed and everything is turning easy now.