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2008 Chrysler T&C & Dodge Caravan brake life expectancy!

424 messages,  Last post on Mar 16, 2013 at 5:46 PM

You are in the Chrysler Town & Country/Dodge Grand Caravan Forum.

What is this discussion about? Chrysler Town and Country, Brakes, Van

Messages Page 36 of 44

#342 of 424 Brakes an ongoing expense!! by ggraham

Nov 17, 2011 (2:46 pm)

I have spent too much money on brake pads, rotors and calipers. This is the third time I've had every thing replaced - both front and back with 90,000 kms on my 2008 Town and Country. I was told the caliber was sticking due to very dirty brake fluid (my fault). I just had the van in in March 2011 when they replaced all brakes and rotors and checked all fluids. Now, 6 months later I am replacing it all again, including calipers, and was told it was my fault due to extremely dirty brake fluid.
 
It is almost a relief to find this website today and know that there is something drastically wrong with the 2008 vans. Now the fight with Chrysler begins!!!
 
Going in to trade it in tomorrow - not wasting another dime!!!
 
Where do I begin to file a complaint with Chrysler in Canada?

#343 of 424 Re: noise when breaking [pamelaleb] by ggraham

Nov 17, 2011 (2:48 pm)

Replying to: pamelaleb (Oct 28, 2011 8:27 am)
Yes, I have the same noise and have taken it in to the dealership a few times but every time I take it in they say I need new brakes. I get the new brakes but still have the noise every once in a while. They tell me they can't hear the noise when they test drive it and don't know what it could be.

#344 of 424 Re: noise when breaking [ggraham] by jgill1

Nov 25, 2011 (6:17 pm)

Replying to: ggraham (Nov 17, 2011 2:48 pm)
45k miles just told today that the new updgraded rotors need to be turned. We have already had the pads and rotors changed 3 times and there screwed up again. We also have bad wheel bearings at 45k. The break problems are due to the breaks holding too much heat and I am now curios if the bad wheel bearing is due to the heat issue caused by the breaks. Does that make sense? Bearing grease heats up too much and breaks down so the bearings fail.
 
Thoughts?

#345 of 424 Re: noise when breaking [jgill1] by qbrozen

Nov 25, 2011 (8:31 pm)

Replying to: jgill1 (Nov 25, 2011 6:17 pm)
sure, it makes sense.
 
But what upgraded rotors are you referring to?

#346 of 424 How to solve the issue by thomasx

Nov 28, 2011 (7:12 am)

FINALLY!
 
Finally I find some more chrysler owners with the same problem as mine. I've been looking around for some time on the internet and have been more surprised not to find anything, than I was today when I found all the info here.
 
I'm in sweden, my car is out of warranty as it is a 2008 and there are no class act law suits or anything alike going on here. So, I am mostly interested in how to actually solve the issue, rather than how to deal with chrysler or dealers. I also do all of my service etc my self.
 
I've noticed that the breaks are often actually applied during normal driving, they do not release properly. This goes for all four wheels. It causes excessive wear and excessive heat AND excessive fuel consumption. The heat destroys the disks/rotors and can also, as in my case destroy the bearings. I have checked multiple times, the pads are not stuck and the calipers are not stuck. The problem has to be in the hydraulic system one way or another, or on the other side of the hydraulic system. I have also noted, which is a bit odd, if pressure is applied to the brake pedal continuously, it will slowly go all the way down to the bottom.
 
So, does anyone know or have any idea of the root cause for the problems, or how to solve them once and for all?
 
Thanks
 
    Thomas
 
Gothenburg
Sweden

#347 of 424 Re: How to solve the issue [thomasx] by qbrozen

Nov 28, 2011 (7:49 am)

Replying to: thomasx (Nov 28, 2011 7:12 am)
If your pedal is slowly going to the floor and you have a release problem, it sounds to me like you have a leak in your system. Most likely the master cylinder. Sounds like your fluid is slowly seeping past the seals. This doesn't mean fluid is leaking outside the system, just that pressure is not building and releasing properly between chambers.

#348 of 424 Re: How to solve the issue [qbrozen] by thomasx

Nov 28, 2011 (12:56 pm)

Replying to: qbrozen (Nov 28, 2011 7:49 am)
As you say a leak would explain the pedal going to the floor, but how would it explain the release problem?

#349 of 424 Re: How to solve the issue [thomasx] by qbrozen

Nov 28, 2011 (1:15 pm)

Replying to: thomasx (Nov 28, 2011 12:56 pm)
Well, I can't say I am intimately familiar with the inner workings of hydraulic valves or what have you, but I'm imagining the leak prevents a proper transfer of fluid, so when you release the pedal, the leak is letting fluid by at the leak, which is slowing down the release at the caliper(s).
 
Picture pushing a cup upside-down into a bowl of water. As long as the cup is solid, the air pressure prevents the water from moving up inside the cup. And when you pull that cup out, it comes out quickly and easily thanks to the air pressure from within.
 
Now put a small hole in the bottom of that cup. When you push it into the water, it pushes the water down at first, but the air slowly pushes out the hole and the water rises. Now go to pull that cup out. Rather than releasing quickly and easily, it tries to pull the water out with it while that small hole struggles to allow enough air in to release the vacuum hold on the water.
 
This really is a wild guess on my part. Just attempting to apply logic to the problem. I could be way off.

#350 of 424 Re: How to solve the issue [qbrozen] by thomasx

Nov 28, 2011 (1:31 pm)

Replying to: qbrozen (Nov 28, 2011 1:15 pm)
Well, normally not I would say. Here's a simplified illustration of how a master cylinder works. Hit the red arrows to see the action.
 
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/auto-parts/brakes/brake-types/master-brake1.htm
 
If there is a loss of pressure, as in the case of an internal leakage, it is in practice almost the same thing as if the piston went back to the original position, and the brakes release.
 
I don't know exactly how the chrysler team designed the brakes in this car (well we do know they did it in an exceptionally bad way ) and playing with the thought, one could see a scenario where a leak would cause the effect, but it would involve a one way valve controlled by the piston position, opening the valve for return when the piston returns to the original position. And in addition, that the piston does not return to the original position as a result of the leak which in that case only leaks oil from the primary (pressurized) side to the secondary side, and not back again, and a rather weak spring. In that case, the piston could get stuck at the activated end and the oil activating the caliper and break pads wouldn't return. Seems a bit far fetched, but hey, who knows. Would be interesting to see exactly how the chrysler break system is designed.

#351 of 424 Re: How to solve the issue [thomasx] by qbrozen

Nov 28, 2011 (3:51 pm)

Replying to: thomasx (Nov 28, 2011 1:31 pm)
I see what you are saying.
 
So what do you mean by slow to release? You lift off the pedal and... the car doesn't roll? You could have one bad caliper causing all of this.

Messages Page 36 of 44

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