Odd Brake Problem 1997 Continental

[lyndsey]

Hi All

I'm glad i found this forum! Anyway... i bought a used 1997 continental very recently (and i love it!) however the front passenger brake seemed to have been sticking intermitently. It usually happened after the car was warmed up and i drove through town or stop-&-go traffic. At times it would stick so bad the brake would start smoking. All most all of my driving is highway, so it's definatly noticable when i run to the store or something like that.

I took it to my dad, and we changed the brake pad and caliper today. The other side looked brand new, and the dealer said he just changed the brakes, so we did not change that one. Guess what, as i was driving home, it did it again. The other thing we thought of was it might be a collapsed brake line, but the line looked new and in perfect condition - no crimps or weak spots... so... i dont know what it might be. I've looked through other websites where people can post problems with their lincolns and complaints, as well as the recall sites, and i havent found anything that was the same description. The closest i found was low end rotors (?), which i'm not sure apply to this problem. Any ideas?

Cant wait to hear from you.

Lyndsey

 

[William]

There is a few things about the brakes in the owners manual, one being about the fluids. I cant remember all the details, but would strongly suggest checking it, as well as checking your brake fluid and bleeding your lines, as air in the lines can cause stuff like this to happen also. I had a similar problem with my 88 Crown Vic, I'm can't remember what the exact solution was, but I had installed the brakes myself, and started getting the "intermittent" brake lock on one side. So I re-installed the same setup, and then bleed the lines, and never had the problem again.

 

[MichiganTeddyBear]

change the rubber hose to the caliper. they are a 'double' hose, and the internal portion can collapse (leaving the external look and feel ok) and it can act like a one way valve (only letting brake fluid into the caliper, not out).

air can cause similar problems as well.

if it was me, since you do a lot of highway driving, and if you have anywhere near 100k miles on it, I would change both front hoses, and the rear hoses as well. after all, you dont want one to fail when you need it most (which is when it WILL fail completely if its going to fail at all).

also, once you get the sticky caliper situation corrected, carefully check over all the parts on that wheel. if they have been hot enough to smoke, they have been overheated, and may need attention.

 

[lyndsey]

Hey Will and MTB,

Thanks for your replies. i spent last night reading the 5 billion posts on Lincoln brakes - problems and potential solutions This is really a great site! I'm so glad i found it.

We did have a little bit of a problem bleeding the brakes at first, but seemed to work it out, I’m still going to read the owner's manual to make sure there isn’t anything else i over looked. Also, since the problem was happening before i changed the caliper, I’m thinking it's not air in the lines, but you never know. I will keep that in mind and make sure i bleed them properly.

As far as the hose, i had to order one, they don’t have one in stock, so I’m hoping to get it on the car by next weekend. My fingers are crossed that that's all it is. When we changed the caliper, we did inspect for other damage due to the over heating, there was nothing that stuck out, but it was obvious that the dealer i bought it from changed the brakes and possibly the rotors before i purchased it. When i bought it 4 weeks ago, it was $3K and 60K miles (car pics in profile ), and the car history shows for the most part, a local lady drove it around town most of the time. If there was brake problems, i would think they would have been present when she traded it in - not that they would tell me, but they did tell me they put new brakes rotors, and i thought they said calipers too... the one i replaced was certainly not new, the other side looked newer. Maybe they only replaced one?? Who knows.

I did have one other question... in some of the other posts I’ve read, i saw a lot of talk about rotors possibly being sub par when it comes to heat resistance and warping... and some folks either change or turn their rotors every time they change their brake pad. Is this a 'best practice' in Lincoln maintenance and is there a better rotor than another? I'm thinking if this is a known problem i don’t mind paying for an upgraded rotor if there is one out there - i also get all my parts at mechanic cost, so I’d just rather have something that lasts longer and doesn’t give me reason to wonder if it's only a little more.

Lyndsey

 

[MichiganTeddyBear]

as far as rotor quality goes, the cheaper ones are usually cheaper quality. there have been reported instances of the cheapo (usually chinese made, thats why they are cheap), not lasting as long as they should.

I couldn't tell you what brand is better, other than most people who dont extensively modify the cars for more performance, usually recommend Motorcraft for most of the parts.