Most of the wear takes place when you are braking, not cruising on the highway. With light carefully planned braking, I've gotten by for a week without doing significantly more damage. This is not true with Ford products. The metal parts are made from softer metal to reduce noise in the passenger compartment. The trade-off is by the time you hear the grinding, you have junk.
Be aware that you will hear the anti-lock brake system pressure pump cycle on and off while driving. On my '93 Dynasty, the twin to your car, my pump runs after about every three brake pedal applications because this pressure is also what provides the power assist when stopping. You might be hearing the pump, not grinding brake rotors, especially if you hear it when you are standing still and pumping the brake pedal. In that case, if the brake ABS brake light is on, you will just have regular brakes, not the anti-lock function. A mechanic will connect a hand-held computer to retrieve the diagnostic fault code memorized in the ABS computer. Common problems are a cracked tone ring on the axle shaft or a defective wheel speed sensor.
Caradiodoc
SPONSORED LINKS
Sunday, March 29th, 2009 AT 5:41 PM
