Abs Light On After Cleaning Sensors

[79 sierra grande]

i took the front end apart today to clean the sensors up front on my 05 sierra 1500, see if it would take care of my pedal pulsating problem. they had some rust and junk between the sensor and hub mount, so i cleaned it up and put them back in. the battery was disconnected the whole time. i noticed on the passenger side, the bronze colored wiring that wraps around the sensor post, was starting to come unraveled. but, since i dont have an extra one laying around, i put it back in. i put everything back together, and now my ABS light is on! as far as i know, the abs is still working. i locked on the brakes at 70mph and it just gave an initial "chirp" then slowed like it was supposed to without any more skidding. is there a way to reset the system so the abs realizes there isnt anything wrong? i have a scanner, but its just the cheap obd II autozone one for checking the codes. would my scanner tell me what's wrong? thanks.

[minibike132]

You do have something wrong, you need sensors. You should not have seen any wire when you pulled out the sensor you should have seen a black plastic casing around those wires. It sounds like the sensors casing broke off and stayed in the hub.

[MS3DALE]

If the ABS light is on you don't have ABS brakes,Just the "regular" non-ABS braking system. (I believe it even mentions this in the owners manual)

 

If you have a scanner it should tell you the code if its setting one.

[MS3DALE]

You do have something wrong, you need sensors. You should not have seen any wire when you pulled out the sensor you should have seen a black plastic casing around those wires. It sounds like the sensors casing broke off and stayed in the hub.

 

+1 I agree,you shouldn't have seen any wires,just the protective sleeving around them.

[minibike132]

Here take a close look at the end of the sensor on the right in THIS picture. This is what it should have looked like.

[79 sierra grande]

yeah, both sides actually had no casing on the wires. when i took the sensors out, there was what looked like a plastic sleeve in the hub itself. is there a special tool or something your supposed to use to take these sensors out? i just pulled the bolt, grabbed the top with pliers and wiggled a bit till they slid out. i consider myself pretty mechanically inclined, and i know when stuff isnt comin out like it should. these didnt feel like there was anything wrong. the truck is still under the warranty from the dealership, so i'll just take it back there and play dumb and have them fix it for free. (hopefully)

[iron_786]

yeah, both sides actually had no casing on the wires. when i took the sensors out, there was what looked like a plastic sleeve in the hub itself. is there a special tool or something your supposed to use to take these sensors out? i just pulled the bolt, grabbed the top with pliers and wiggled a bit till they slid out. i consider myself pretty mechanically inclined, and i know when stuff isnt comin out like it should. these didnt feel like there was anything wrong. the truck is still under the warranty from the dealership, so i'll just take it back there and play dumb and have them fix it for free. (hopefully)

 

 

just had the same issue now the lights on...what was the outcome of this? new sensors? how do you get the sensors in/out with the little hole in the dust shield stoping your from just pulling it out straight?...

[iron_786]

someone must know about this? are they wrecked when they come apart like that or..... didnt really think i was that rough with them just gave them the persuasion they needed to come out..

[BigC]

had the same problem. Initially had the intermittent abs activiation, so I pulled both sensors, and saw the copper coils. Didn't think much of it...used the eraser method to clean them both, and then reinstalled them. This made it considerably worse...so much so that the truck wouldn't stop!!!! So i just pulled the fuse and am living with the light. If there should have been covers over the coils, i may just be able to replace the sensors and have abs again. please keep us posted.

C

[iron_786]

i'm still waiting for someone to pitch in, it sounds like a frequent problem so i'm hoping someone can tell me if the sensors are scrap or can be tested/salvaged....and then we will both know