How to bleed the 91 abs system without the T wrench

I did the AC blower motor service the other day on my car and I saw some connectors unplugged from some of the electronics under the glove box. I think my abs system had been disabled since ownership.

FOLLOWUP

Well, only 10 months later and I finally got time to revisit this :smile: I got a complete low-mileage (like 24K at take off) ABS system from Ben (redbird92) at Daisy last year, for way less than the price of a new solenoid. I swapped the accumulator over the weekend and that appears to have been the problem. I relieved the pressure from the original accumulator per the manual, and there wasn't any.

The pump took a couple of rounds of running it about 25 seconds, with a cool-down in between, and it finally fully pressurized and I could hear the pressure switch activate. Bled that part of the system and now that the air is out it pressurizes in about 5-8 seconds. Ran through the solenoids 4 or 5 times and got nice clear fluid back into the reservoir after a few rounds. So it appears I won't need to use Warrens seal kit quite yet. We'll see how it all works after it's back on the road; several other maintenance chores til then.

Thanks very much Kaz and everyone else for the expert advice!

Great news! Did the stopping power of the car change at all? I'm curious as I have never had a working abs.

It's still on jack stands waiting for more work, but I'll let you know for sure! The ABS was actualy working before this, but the pump ran a lot, and would start running immediately whenever the ABS was activated.

I am amazed no-one has tried the old reservoir system as used in normal bleeding when the T-wrench is no available. I got Warrens seals, followed the guide faithfully and when it came to bleeding I got a large (2 litre) plastic bottle put a small amount into it, ran a hose from the nipple and bled away to my hearts content.
300 psi may sound frightening but when the bleed is opened the pressure after 18 inches of hose is quite low. No splash no spillage.

Jinks I'm in the same boat where I have been running with no ABS and stopping power is just fine without it. HOWEVER if you ever do a hard brake, you can bald spot your tires which is how I killed my last pair of front tires. I had a number of times this happened especially in traffic where you go from 50mph to a complete stop. Since I am a noob and my car has a BBK installed, it was then I realized I may want to invest in a functioning ABS system.

I'm looking into a newer ABS system but the costs are quite high so I have to be patient for the right time. Considering the SOS upgrade to the newer NA2 system or the AS Motorsports option. Even if I got the NA1 system working I heard it just wasn't too great.

Pierce said:

I am amazed no-one has tried the old reservoir system as used in normal bleeding when the T-wrench is no available. I got Warrens seals, followed the guide faithfully and when it came to bleeding I got a large (2 litre) plastic bottle put a small amount into it, ran a hose from the nipple and bled away to my hearts content.
300 psi may sound frightening but when the bleed is opened the pressure after 18 inches of hose is quite low. No splash no spillage.

Click to expand...

That's exactly what we're doing. The risk is the hose popping off at the nipple. Eye and paint protection required. It works fine, but the purpose of the T-wrench is in accurately measuring the output with the cup at the top.

furinax said:

Jinks I'm in the same boat where I have been running with no ABS and stopping power is just fine without it. HOWEVER if you ever do a hard brake, you can bald spot your tires which is how I killed my last pair of front tires. I had a number of times this happened especially in traffic where you go from 50mph to a complete stop. Since I am a noob and my car has a BBK installed, it was then I realized I may want to invest in a functioning ABS system.

I'm looking into a newer ABS system but the costs are quite high so I have to be patient for the right time. Considering the SOS upgrade to the newer NA2 system or the AS Motorsports option. Even if I got the NA1 system working I heard it just wasn't too great.

Click to expand...

The few times I drove my car in the rain, I realized the purpose of the abs as I approached a yellow light and had to brake hard. Other than those times, I didn't feel it was needed. But I agree, I wanted to incorporate the sos upgrade into my engine build but,,, damn does a C-engine build cost cash.... But the car isn't going anywhere soon so maybe in the future.:wink: