2003 Dodge Caravan Brake Service (ONLINE REPAIR MANUALS)

Master Cylinder

Except Caravan, Town & Country & Voyager

The cylinder body containing the primary and secondary pistons is made of aluminum. The removable fluid reservoir is made of nylon reinforced with glass fiber. The reservoir is the only serviceable component.

The fluid compartments of the nylon reservoir are interconnected to permit fluid level equalization. The equalization feature does not affect circuit separation in the event of a front or rear brake fault. The reservoir compartments will retain enough fluid to operate the functioning hydraulic circuit.

Caravan, Town & Country...

Height Sensing Proportioning Valve

1999-2000

• Raise and support vehicle, allowing rear suspension to hang free.
• Remove rear wheel and tire assemblies.
• Support rear axle.
• Disconnect track bar from rear axle, then the shock absorbers.
• Loosen, but do not remove, both leaf spring to front spring hanger pivot bolts.
• Loosen adjustment nut on actuator,. Fig. .
• Ensure hooked end of actuator is properly seated in clip on valve lever and clip is properly positioned on lever of valve.
• Pull housing of valve actuator toward spring hanger until lever on valve bottoms on body of valve. Hold valve actuator i...

Manual

• Remove reservoir filler caps and fill reservoir with proper brake fluid.
• If calipers or wheel cylinders were overhauled, open all caliper and wheel cylinder bleed screws.
• Close each bleed screw as fluid starts to drip from them.
• Fill master cylinder reservoir once more before proceeding.
• Attach one end of bleed hose to bleed screw and insert opposite end in glass container partially filled with brake fluid,. Fig. . Ensure bleed hose is immersed in fluid.
• Open up bleeder, then have an assistant press down brake pedal.
• Once brake pedal is down, close bleeder. Repeat bleeding un...

Front

Removal

• Raise and support vehicle.
• Remove front wheel and tire assemblies.
• Remove two caliper-to-knuckle attaching bolts, then remove caliper by sliding away from adapter and lifting off rotor,. Fig. . Support caliper firmly to prevent weight of caliper from damaging flexible hose.
• Remove outboard pad by prying pad retaining clip over raised area of caliper, then sliding pad down and off of caliper.
• Pull inboard pad away from caliper piston, until springs release from piston.

Installation

• Check piston seal for leaks and for ruptures in piston dust boot. Replace all seals, boots ...

Brake Lines & Linings

Remove one of the front wheels and inspect the brake disc, caliper and linings. The wheel bearings should be inspected at this time and repacked if necessary.

Do not get any oil or grease on the linings. It is recommended that both front wheel sets be replaced whenever a respective pad is worn or damaged. Inspect and, if necessary, replace rear brake linings also.

If the caliper is cracked or fluid leakage through the casting is evident, it must be replaced as a unit.

Brake Roughness

The most common cause of brake chatter on disc brakes is a variation in thickness o...

When wheel slip is detected during a brake application, the ABS enters anti-lock mode. During anti-lock braking, hydraulic pressure in the individual wheel circuits is controlled to prevent any wheel from slipping. A separate hydraulic line and specific solenoid valves are provided for each wheel. The ABS can decrease, hold, or increase hydraulic pressure to each wheel brake. The ABS cannot, however, increase hydraulic pressure above the amount which is transmitted by the master cylinder during braking.

During anti-lock braking, a series of rapid pulsations is felt in the brake pedal...