ABS light on

The ABS light started coming on on my 93 SL2 once the car gets above 60
mph. Then it stays on and does not go out until the car is shut off
and restarted. It will stay off until the car is driven above 60 mph
again, and it will come on again and stay on.

Does anyone know how to troubleshoot or diagnose this light?

Thanks.

 

You can read the codes yourself with a paperclip with the instructions here:
http://www.differentracing.com/tech_articles/index.html

See OBD1 diagnostics. But, since the charts that site provides may not
include ABS codes, you can also stop by Autozone and they will read the
codes for free.

And last but not least, you can make an appointment with the service
department at your Saturn retailer for a diagnostic. There's usually a fee
involved, but if their diagnosis saves you from buying ONE part you don't
need due to guessing, it has paid for itself.

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]

 

Possibly the wheel speed sensors are worn. Could even be the teeth on the
axle that the speed sensor reads are rusted and the gap has increased. The
increased gap may degrade the signal enough that at high speeds the output
becomes intermittent and shows as an ABS fault.

 

OK, I replaced the wheel speed sensor that I suspected (the right
front- since the problem started there after I removed the c/v joint
from the steerign knuckle).

And now, the ABS light comes on at 35 mph instead of 60 mph.

Do you know what the air gap is supposed to be? What is better, less
or more of an air gap?

Can I just sand the rust off the teeth on the axle and increase the
signal (hopefully?)

Thanks.

 

hello there just a bit of experience here with my 93 sl2 abs , the rear abs
conector wire that goes to right rear wheel was (faulty),the piece of wire
was about 18 inches long ,the wire was corroded inside the insulation, i
pealed the insulation off and wire had crumbled to a greyish powder

 

OK- I will definitely check this.

I was actually able to find out the trouble code and what it means.
It is ABS code 26- right front wheel jitter.

Does anyone know what that means and how do I correct it?

I will check the wiring, and check the teeth on the axle.

Thanks!!

 

There is a 'sweet spot' in the air gap. The sensor has a small magnetic
circuit in it that is completed when the teeth of the 'gear' teeth of the
axle. Two raised teeth complete the magnetic circuit while the grooves break
it. There should be enough of a low to high difference to trigger the
sensor. You can wire brush the gear teeth to clean out the grooves or
possibly shim the sensor out to get about .020" gap to the teeth.

As also posted, worth pulling gently on all wires to look for corrosion.
Pull the connectors off and spray the faces with white grease to make them a
bit more water resistant.

Sensors vary in technology so it is hard to give exact electrical
troubleshooting. Sometimes there is no DC voltage on the sensor, it
generates a voltage similar to a electric guitar pickup. Others have a dc
voltage on the sensor which is pulled low when the teeth pass by. Difficult
to measure with a handheld meter though.

 

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied.
Your ideas were extremely helpful. Thanks!!

I found out the problem- two of the gear teeth on the axle are chipped.
The two that are chipped are right next to each other.

I have no idea how I'm going to fix that, or if it even is fixable
without replacing the axle (oh no), but at least I figured out what it
was. Thanks again.

 

Don't know if there is an iron filled epoxy??? The teeth need to be able to
be attracted to a magnet. Surely there must be some sort of repair kit
available for this. For that matter, perhaps you can get someone who is good
at arc welding to drop a couple of beads and then grind them out to the
correct tooth profile again. If you weld, make sure the ground is to the
axle and not the strut. Welding current should *never* pass through
bearings.

Seems really stupid to have to change an axle for this. You may have to do
something if your state requires mechanical/ emission inspections.
Here in NY, any MIL indicator and immediate fail...
good luck
Oppie

 

See Lane's post above. he lists a link that lists the ABS codes
and and some trouble shooting ideas.
ernie

 

Reman ABS axles at Advance start around 70 to 80 bucks and there will be
45 dollars off of that with a core exchange. Paying to have the old axle
welded would cost more than its worth especially considering it may fail
at any given time with its age.