ABS problem?

[minimad1970]

Occassionally when I brake I get a scraping scuffing (like if you were on a bike and used your foot to slow down!) kind of noise that feels and sounds like it is coming from the front driverside. I can feel it through the brake pedal. Would this be the ABS sensor kicking in, sometimes I'm only going about 10 mph. Sometimes when it happens the ABS light comes on, but not all the time. If it is this does anyone know the approximate cost to replace it. It's a 2003 Mini One. Thanks for any help.

[mab01uk]

The ABS makes this kind of sound and feels through the pedal during braking when a tyre starts to loose grip on a slippery road, ice or wet leaves, etc. This can happen at low speed and is normal in that situation. If it happens under normal braking in dry conditions the ABS may be faulty, does the ABS warning light self check come on and go out on start up as normal? This is tested for MOT.

Some people take their foot off the brake on hearing the noise thinking something is wrong......which is the opposite of what is required!

Wheel sensors are not that expensive to replace and in the worst case a good used ABS pump is around £150:
Mini BMW MINI One / Cooper / S ABS ASC Pump R50 R52 R53 - Mini Spares UK

[minimad1970]

Thanks for your reply. It happens under dry conditions as well but usually only if it's been cold over night and then it's when I first brake. The light goes off when I restart the engine. It does make me take my foot off the brake very slightly sometimes as it's a horrible feeling. As I'm aware it might happen I never get too close behind another car. I assume I would have to take it in for a diagnostic check to know for definite. The tyre pressure light comes on as well.

[harvey94]

hi,

Wait for mab01uk to reply, i think the reason he mentioned the the part about taking your foot off the brake was for the likes of my partner! she thought that there was something wrong with the car and didn't realise it was actually trying to help her! i know it sounds mad but when some people feel abs kick in their first reaction is to release the brake!

[minimad1970]

Hi Harvey, When it first happens that is your first instinct, it's a horrible noise and feeling. I just keep on braking now though. It never happens when I have to brake suddenly and press hard on the brake, only when I'm going slow and braking gently.

[mab01uk]

Quote: Originally Posted by minimad1970 (original)

Hi Harvey, When it first happens that is your first instinct, it's a horrible noise and feeling. I just keep on braking now though. It never happens when I have to brake suddenly and press hard on the brake, only when I'm going slow and braking gently.

The noise of your ABS when activated is normal......but it should not activate under gentle braking on a good road surface with good grip conditions. Probably best to get it checked out by a good local garage/mechanic.

[minimad1970]

I took my car in on friday to have some things done and they were going to do a diagnostic test on the car. When I collected it they said a problem was showing with the front passenger side ABS but they had reset the code and the light might stay off. If the light came back on he said to bring the car back and they would give the sensor a clean and see if that worked. He mentioned it might be a damaged ring but they don't replace the ring the whole part has to be replaced, I can't remember what part he said, drive shaft maybe? I wasn't feeling well and I don't know a lot about mechanical things so it kind of went over my head. Well the light came back on 2 days later so I've got to take it back, the head mechanic is going to look at it this time. As I've said I'm not very knowledgeable but I've googled reluctor rings and that sounds to me what it is, ABS light comes on, noise occurs when braking at slow speeds and pedal fluctuation (brake judder). So if anyone has managed to read to the end of this my question is do most garages not just replace reluctor rings? Obviously this would be much cheaper, also I can't seem to find a stockist online for Mini reluctor rings so perhaps this is the problem. Anyone else had any experience of this problem? Thanks for reading this.

ps. Does a diagnostic test tell you exactly what is wrong or isn't it that specific?