Brake And ABS On/Off When Hitting Bumps - Dodge Diesel

EverydayDiesel · 12-15-2007, 07:19 PM

It seems to be when I hit a bump then my ABS/BRAKE lights will turn on and when I hit another bump they sometimes turn back off.

If I am stopping and they start flashing on and off, then when the lights are off the pedal seems "spongy". But when the lights come back on they are back to normal.

I have replaced both of the ABS sensors about 500 miles ago because the lights were on all the time.

Any ideas on what to trouble shoot?

Cougsfan · 12-16-2007, 12:48 AM

The first thing I would suspect is your stop light switch mounted near your brake pedal. Those things seem to go south fairly often. I had a similar experience. I found if I pulled the brake pedal up with my toe, My ABS Brake light would stay off. I screwed around trying to position it closer to the brake pedal, but gave up and bought a new one, which fixed the problem. Don't remember what it cost, maybe $17 or so.

EverydayDiesel · 12-16-2007, 12:58 AM

ill replace it, would the stop light switch cause the abs light to come on and off intermittently?

Cougsfan · 12-16-2007, 07:34 PM

It did cause mine '96 to come on and off intermittently. I am sure that there could be other reasons, but if a bump causes it to come on, it seems the most likely suspect.

Shovelhead · 12-16-2007, 08:03 PM

Mine was doing the same thing last summer.......'bout drove me nutz.

My problem was caused by the ABS wire harness from the rear wheel speed sensor rubbing on the driver's side emergency brake cable.
It had rubbed clean through the outer sheath of the harness, through the insulation on one of the wires and through the plastic outer sheath of the E-Brake cable.

Reinsulated everything, tied up the harness to prevent rubbing, and haven't had a problem since.

oilfield-trash · 12-16-2007, 08:05 PM

Your abs sensors are located in your front hub bearing assembly. A lot of times if you have a front hub going out it will cause the ABS light to flash.

just a thought

Your abs control module (has all the metal tubes coming out of it) will also cause ABS light to flash. This very seldom goes out but you might check this out also.

EverydayDiesel · 12-24-2007, 06:10 AM

Thanks for the help. I finally found the problem on the drivers side...the upper control arm had cut the wire in half. I soldered a little bit more of wire to get it out of the way. It works great now. Thanks for the help

12-16-2007, 12:48 AM	#2
Cougsfan Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Eastern Washington State Posts: 109 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	The first thing I would suspect is your stop light switch mounted near your brake pedal. Those things seem to go south fairly often. I had a similar experience. I found if I pulled the brake pedal up with my toe, My ABS Brake light would stay off. I screwed around trying to position it closer to the brake pedal, but gave up and bought a new one, which fixed the problem. Don't remember what it cost, maybe $17 or so. __________________ '96 4wd Dually w/ Auto trans. KDP neutralized , 3000GSK & #10 fuel plate, full set of gauges.

12-16-2007, 08:03 PM	#5
Shovelhead Administrator / Scooter Bum Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Northern VA Posts: 8,927 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	Mine was doing the same thing last summer.......'bout drove me nutz. My problem was caused by the ABS wire harness from the rear wheel speed sensor rubbing on the driver's side emergency brake cable. It had rubbed clean through the outer sheath of the harness, through the insulation on one of the wires and through the plastic outer sheath of the E-Brake cable. Reinsulated everything, tied up the harness to prevent rubbing, and haven't had a problem since. __________________ Ed Anderson '99 3500 SPORT Black Totaled 8-16-2012 Now 2012 Ram 1500 Quad Cab 5.7 Hemi Powered DTR Site Moderator If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck.

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12-16-2007, 12:58 AM	#3
EverydayDiesel Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 915 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	ill replace it, would the stop light switch cause the abs light to come on and off intermittently?

12-16-2007, 07:34 PM	#4
Cougsfan Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Eastern Washington State Posts: 109 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	It did cause mine '96 to come on and off intermittently. I am sure that there could be other reasons, but if a bump causes it to come on, it seems the most likely suspect.

12-16-2007, 08:05 PM	#6
oilfield-trash Banned Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: NW Corpus Christi TX Posts: 186 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	Your abs sensors are located in your front hub bearing assembly. A lot of times if you have a front hub going out it will cause the ABS light to flash. just a thought Your abs control module (has all the metal tubes coming out of it) will also cause ABS light to flash. This very seldom goes out but you might check this out also.

12-24-2007, 06:10 AM	#7
EverydayDiesel Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 915 My Photo Gallery My Classified Ads	Thanks for the help. I finally found the problem on the drivers side...the upper control arm had cut the wire in half. I soldered a little bit more of wire to get it out of the way. It works great now. Thanks for the help