If the rear is locking up with the drums then you have a problem with your
ABS system as all Dakotas since at least '94 have had RWABS standard.
Switching to the 2003 rear disc set up, or even the SSBC rear disc
conversion is a very worthwile mod. It WILL help with braking performance
even on a daily driver. The rear drums on Dakotas have always been marginal
at best, even when adjusted properly.
brian cropp
_____
From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
[mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net] On Behalf Of
jon@dakota-truck.net
Sent: Wednesday, February 02, 2011 9:14 AM
To: dakota-truck-moderator@bent.twistedbits.net
Subject: Re: DML: Brake Upgrade
"M.B." <mailinglists@moparhowto.com> wrote:
> Depends on what year truck you have. When they went to the 12" brakes
> in what, 2003? I think that was about as big as you could get.
> I personally would rather convert to discs on the rear as my drums are
> my limiting factor. They lock up long before the fronts do and the ABS
> kicks in hard. I think my drums need replacing here pretty soon though.
If your rear end is locking up with drums, I should think that
swapping to discs which will grab even harder would exacerbate the
problem. Plus, switching a vehicle from drums to discs is generally
difficult and/or expensive and not worth the time or the money, IMHO.
I like rear discs from a maintenance standpoint and thus would spec
them on a new vehicle, but to swap to them from drums is just not
worth the effort. Perhaps in a road racing vehicle with a better
weight bias a case could be made, but your rear brakes are only doing
something like 20% of the braking, so increasing the braking power in
the rear doesn't do a whole lot for you. If better stops are the
goal, any improvement to the front brakes is 4 times as effective as
that same improvement made to the rear brakes.
Regarding your specific problem of the rears locking up, I suspect
you can eliminate that with some adjustment. It may be the pads are
too close to the drum and are engaging too early/hard. I don't know
if the Dak has an adjustable front/rear bias valve, but if it does (or
one were added) that could be another way to go.
--
-Jon-
.- Jon Steiger -- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com -.
| '96 Kolb Firefly, '96 Suzuki Intruder, Miscellaneous Mopars |
`-------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
_____
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