T&C Brakes Lock-Up

[BigBlackHemi]

My wife has a 2002 Chrysler Town & Country. On days she does a lot of driving, it gets to a point where the brakes seem to engage themselves. At first a little bit, then harder and harder until she has to really push hard on the gas pedal just to get the van moving. :huh:

When she gets to her destination. The brake smell is very pronounced. After letting the van cool off, the problem goes away. This only happens when she does heavy driving. If she lets the van sit long enough between trips, the problem never happens.

We took it in for service, and of course, they cannot replicate the problem. One idiot at the dealership even suggested we push the overdrive button on the sterring column every time we use the van! :crazy:

Anybody have any ideas? :help:

Thanks!

[mcmotors]

I have seen this problem before, unfortunately it could be a few different things.
1: (and the most probable) Brake pads of poor quality, the pads will actually swell with heat, and if they are newer, the piston of the caliper will retract as much as it can, then the brakes will apply without intervention from the driver.
2: A bad brake master cylinder (will not let the brake fluid return to the reservoir)
3: Not enough free-play between the brake booster and the brake pedal (miss-adjusted) will slightly apply brakes until they get so hot that the pads swell and lock up.
3: Calipers frozen won't retract (sounds unlikely because of the age os the vehicle
Anyhow, I recommend you tell the driver not to force the vehicle when this happens, as you could damage the transmission clutches or bands.

[BigBlackHemi]

Wow, thanks for the insight. Let me go harass the dealership...

[96Grand]

Don't rule the hoses either, they are very prone to collapsing under high heat and pressure, which, in turn, causes the sticky caliper. Once this happens and the caliper sticks on a constantly repeated basis, they stay stuck most of the time and you may need to replace the calipers along w/ the hoses. If there is too much pressure in the system, you can also experience the same problems.

My suggestion, go to a brake shop, stay away from the dealer if at all possible.

Get lifetime warranty brakes, it really helps w/ these vans. No matter what quality brake parts you put on it, they will wear out quicker than they should. It's just how these vans are.