Tone Ring ???

[kyratshooter]

ABS light came on in my Escape. Brakes acting funny. I do not like it when the brakes act funny.

It seems I have all the classic symptoms of a "Tone Ring" failure.

I did not know I had a tone ring.

I am basically tone deaf and did not know my vehicle had a ring tone!

Anyway, it is a little gear on the axle half-shaft that keeps the ABS system calibrated. Why they call it a tone ring I do not know. The ring will crack due to pressure of corrosion build up, but still work until the first really hot day of summer comes along and heats things until the ring expands and starts slipping on the half shaft. Then the ABS light comes on due to the system being disabled. The brakes still work, just no ABS and the previously mentioned "crazy pedal".

Naturally the part costs $10 and the labor $200 and this is not something I want to do myself. I do not have the tools or a comfortable place to work.

I have a good mechanic but this will take an appointment, a whole day, and a big chunk of my patience, not to mention my money, and I have a short road trip to take this weekend and that light being on will grate on my nerves the whole trip.

Irritating!

[LowKey]

Black electrical tape will do wonders for that light. At least in the short term.

[pete lynch]

I prefer the 1" Gorilla tape when covering those idiot lights. But not on my personal vehicle; only the truck I drive at work.

[natertot]

I have never heard it called a tone ring. When I went through the Ford program, it was deemed a part of the wheel speed sensor. This is used for ABS and traction control systems. If it detects wheels spinning and all of a sudden they stop, ABS will go into action. If the wheels have too sudden of an increase in speed then traction control will come into play. The reason it is throwing on a light is that the other three are working which doesn't match the fourth and the ABS system doesn't like it. I have never heard of the ring itself going bad except for getting cracked in accidents or severe rusting which was usually farm vehicles. Now the electrical sensor that detects the ring, I have replaced those several times for being faulty, corroded, or road debris catching them.

$210 for a mechanic to replace that ring is worth it. Those things are a pain to get off, especially when rusted on.

[Lamewolf]

I have worked in Honda service since 1998 and other automotive service since 1974 and have never seen a ring go bad but the wheel speed sensors do go bad or get damaged. I did see a ring that was damaged once but the only way to get the ring was with a new axle, couldn't get just the ring by itself. BTW, we always called them an ABS ring.

[hunter63]

I have to say I haven't heard or had to deal with this either.
.....and will have to say that $250 bucks for about anything is a good deal when it comes to vehicles....
Heck it's about $200 to change oil and service the diesel pickup.

[kyratshooter]

It appears that this is a common problem with the Escape and there are several U-tube videos on the repair. There are also lots of complaints that Ford should recall this item, but it is not failing until several years down the road and does not really seem to be a "faulty original part" or dangerous engineering.

My Escape is a 2007 model and living where I do we get plenty of corrosion from road salt. Apparently the rings do not rust, the half-shaft rusts and causes expansion which cracks the ring. Then expansion from the heat allows the ring to slip around the half shaft causing the sensor to alert. In almost every case the problem presents itself on a hot summer day.

At 8 years age on the vehicle I am just considering this a normal maintenance thing and will be alert for the other three to fail. I have been driving this rig for 9 months and this is my first general repair. I can't really complain, especially after the lemon I had prior to this Ford.

[Lamewolf]

Hey Kyratshooter, what part of KY do you live in ? I work in Ashland, KY

[kyratshooter]

I am in the fringe of the bluegrass region about 50 miles south of Cincinnati.

Ashland is a bout 2 hours drive because I can not get there from here. I have to go either north or south for 45 minutes before I can go east!

[kyratshooter]

Wild day today.

Got to the mechanic at the crack of dawn and they put the Escape on the rack. Before removing the tire the mechanic found that I had a worn out tie rod. The wheel was flopping. Then there was the broken ring, which was going to require a new axle shaft.

I must say that the shop got me in and had the work done and I was gone in 3 1/2 hours.

Also cost me 3 1/2 hundred dollars!

I am not even complaining. I'm TDO to be crawling around under a car these days. That seemed like a fair price and it is the first money I have had to spend on the Escape.

[hunter63]

Doesn't sound bad to me either, I would have done the same.........and most everything required special tools to even work on stuff.....

I'll be in the waiting area, having free coffee....

[Rick]

Having free coffee with me. I'll be thumbing through that six month old copy of Lady Man Caves or Off Roading for Geezers. When they started putting radar on cars I figured they needed some kid fresh out of the military to work on it. I'm afraid the only thing I'd be able to do was set off the anti-missile flares. I haven't found them yet but I know they are on there. I have no business poking around on anything that does 4 systems checks every 60 seconds. $350 sounds like a bargain to me.

[kyratshooter]

Nope, my mechanic is not only a trained tech, he has discovered TV!

The shop is right across the street from a breakfast buffet, so I spent the first hour stuffing my face, then the following two watching reruns of rednecks fighting with alligators on the History channel. I don't know why they call it the History Channel since there is absolutely nothing historical on there.

I did talk to him about a tune up to solve my sporadic gas mileage problems. Does it involve points and plugs, a timing light, turning the distributor or adjusting the carb? If course not! My car does not even have half those things any more.

I asked about replacing the "chips" and he looked at me like I was from Mars. My can does not even have computer chips! Imagine that, the technology that replaced what I used to know is now obsolete!

A tune up now features a reset of the computer back to factory specs since over the years the program "degrades". He told me he has a special lap top designated to that use.

[Rick]

Breakfast buffet across from the mechanic? Location, location, location. I might have to start driving to Kaintuck to get my vehicle worked on. Sausage and egg stuffing while someone does the work sounds like a REAL deal.

Oh, on the history channel, think about it. You watched it yesterday so......

[Wise Old Owl]

Hey guys I own a 2006 Ford Escape.. the ring issue never happened. The pop up Monkey Wrench? What the hell? Every 50 miles it would glow... After lots of reading there appears to be a small insignificant air filter on the left side of the trunk behind a piece of plastic to vent the large battery.. keep it clean!

Back to the ring. I drive several late model Ford Focus. It turns out many places that do fleet work give changing tires to newbies who just got hired. They frequently break the tire sensor. Also if you run flat even for a short period to get off the road the sensors are toast.

[Wise Old Owl]

Having free coffee with me. I'll be thumbing through that six month old copy of Lady Man Caves or Off Roading for Geezers. When they started putting radar on cars I figured they needed some kid fresh out of the military to work on it. I'm afraid the only thing I'd be able to do was set off the anti-missile flares. I haven't found them yet but I know they are on there. I have no business poking around on anything that does 4 systems checks every 60 seconds. $350 sounds like a bargain to me.

I was about to give you the big thumbs up and then I got to the Off Road for G.... Never mind...Rick you have a just a few quirks.

[hunter63]

Off Road For Geezers..... discusses how to handle ripple strips and speed bumps in retirement Manufactured Housing gated communities.....While headed for Micky D's for coffee and BS....in your Escalade.
"To engage or not to engage".....4 wheel drive, that is.....

[Wise Old Owl]

Never say Never - I ain't going there. Its unobtainium.

[Rick]

There is an art to ripple strips with coffee in the cup holder. Hitting a speed bump with a DQ M&M blizzard in the cup holder makes it look like a volcanic mud pot. Old dogs can still learn new tricks.

[Wolfhound]

Just pull the ABS fuse if you are comfortable driving without it. We have removed the ABS on all of our vehicles. It is no substitute for the human brain and gets in the way more than it helps.