Abs Brakes

[Guest mkeats02]

Hi,

 

I have seen a sierrs ABS unit for sale, I would like to know if it would be ok to use this on my kit, my sierra, uses vented discs on the front with drums on the rear. Would it be a complex change or fairly easy??

 

Mike

[Guest Battery Bill]

Mike

We have a ABS setup on our second donor the Granada, You can have it if you want it, I cant imagine it being that easy to set up the Granada has disks all round also its a big hulking thing to fit under your bonnet

[Guest Guy]

My Sierra DOHC has ABS, it looks a bit complicated. Lots of wires, pipes and things. I did considder using the car as a donor for my next project but decided it was too complicated.

[Guest Charles B]

I really wouldn't recommend trying to fit ABS. All the cables to the sensors are screened and very difficult to shorten. Even the cable length can affect the operation, and once fitted, it's part of the MOT test, so one more potential problem.

The other problem is that the dynamics of the ABS is programmed for a much heavier car, I'm not sure how that would affect things. Practise your cadence braking, it's much less hassle!

[Guest paul thompson]

Fitting ABS to a previously non ABS car... are you mad!! You will need all the electronics, the ABS has a seperate controller on the Sierra looks like an engine management unit, you need brake pipe from every wheel to the unit, a big thick wiring harness to connect the unit to the brain, and sensors on every wheel, with wiring, (doesn't work on drum rears btw! as there are no sensors deigned for the drums) and I'm not sure if there is a sensor in the booster can on sierras but modern cars have one, sounds like a nightmare. If you had a car with ABS the transplanting it is not such a big deal if you can find a place to put the unit, Sierra ones are big buggers, not like the new ones you can get these days. Remember what mobile phones used to be like in the 80's when sierras first came out? thats what the ABS is liek compared to todays ones!!

 

[Guest mkeats02]

Hello,

 

Thanks everyone for your input, it sounds pretty complex so I think I will leave it, it was just an idea. Thanks again.

 

Mike

[Guest ash]

on the subject of "upgrades" i'm thinking of fitting air-con,central locking,sat nav and electric windows!!!

sorry i couldn't help myself

[Guest bugsy]

i'm thinking of fitting air-con,central locking,sat nav and electric windows

Wot no DVD Player, Under body neons and them washer jets that light up blue, how do you expect to get noticed!!

[Guest mkeats02]

Already fitted me sound system with amp, sub and strobe lighting effect!!!

[Guest Andy Rathbone]

back to the thread of ABS if you have already passed SVA you could in a moment of extreme insanity try and fit ABS, if you have not passed SVA, dont even consider it. you could probably fail for thinking about it as for all your bolt ons i'm just going to fit chrome door handles

rgds

[Guest paul mercer]

I asked about fitting ABS when i was looking for my donor car. I was told that there was no way it would fit, it wouldn't work properly if i diod fit it due to the weight differences and many other reasons not to fit it.

 

I know that as it is electronic ABS on the sierra, the weight won't make a bit of difference. The brain of it senses when one wheel locks up, and then reduces braking force to it. Ok so if designed from scratch the rear discs may have been smaller on the 2b than the sierra, but all this means is that under emergency breaking the brain has to work a bit more. I don't think this should bother you and you certainly will never even notice it.

 

As for the fitting. It was a bit of grief. The loom will fit nicely, and there are only 6 wires that you have to wire into the vehicle loom, like pos1 feed, pos2 feed, perm live and earth. You have to seperate the unit,(as it is on granadas or lhd sierras) so that it fits under the bonnet, and the fire wall has to be made slightly differently. Easy though. You also have to cut down the resevoir, and make sure you seal it up again afterwards. You can still see the min line, so as long as you keep an eye on the levels more regularly than a normal sierra driver does, you'll be fine.

 

If you want pictures of it installed, i can get them for you.

 

it is after all a good safety device worth fitting if you can.

 

Paul