ABS codes 33/34, just want speedo back
06-03-19, 10:12 AM
#31
Advanced
Thread Starter
After spending 3hrs yesterday, accomplishing just seeing what bolts would come off (after 20yrs and 200k+ miles), back to it today, for another 4hrs. And... (partial) success! Lessons learned...
Yes, you can remove a cv-axle by disconnecting only one axle-carrier lower control arm: all you need is a bit of wiggle room, to get the outboard-cv out past the lower control-arm, and be able to wiggle the inboard-cv up/forward above the diff.
Inboard-CV was seized to the diff output shaft: might post a pic, yet this was a mess. After removing the inboard-cv (6) bolts, ended up putting the wheel back on, lowering the car, and putting it in to Drive, to spin the diff, and break the diff from the inboard-cv. Scary snap, yet that separated the diff from the inboard-cv. Don't try this at home, fellow Mythbusters.
Had to beat out the outer-cv from the axle-carrier: this is one of those... if the shaft doesn't just slide out of the axle-carrier, you have problems, and most probably related to the reluctor ring, and axle-carrier dust-cover.
The axle-carrier dust-cover was a mess: Yup... rust had formed, bending the dust-cover in, grinding down the reluctor ring. Holding the old and new dust-cover up to each other, you can see the aged deformation of the old dust-cover... actually, kinda amazing...! The dust-cover was a bear to remove, too, since it rusted to the axle-carrier. Yet after getting out the dust-cover, and using a Dremel to grind down all rust the out, and make the inside surface shiny...
Once the axle carrier is rust-free, the dust-cover will almost slide in: once the axle-carrier surface was shiny, the dust-cover went in with taps... taps... from a small hammer. Not too hard, not too soft, no wood block or bearing-inserter required.
Once the dust-cover is properly prepped/replaced, the cv-axle slides in to the axle-carrier: after having to beat out the old cv-axle, once the axle-carrier and dust-cover were properly prepped/replaced, the new cv-axle shaft slid in/out of the axle-carrier freely. A sign that (a) the old cv-axle/dust-cover were toast, and (b) how a new cv-axle/dust-cover should fit together.
So the rear right is back together, the rear left will have to wait until tomorrow or Wed. Yet here's status/observations:
Clean your ABS sensor: once all the work was done, with the ABS sensor being magnetic, had to clean everything. the outside of the sensor, the inside, wipe down all the surfaces, etc. And after putting it all back together, had to remove the sensor from the axle-carrier, and clean it again. So presume there will be rust/shavings/etc when you are finished, that should be cleaned off.
ABS code 33 is gone, and just 34 remains: makes sense... I've replace the rear right axle (+ reluctor ring), so that took care of 33. 34 should go away when the rear left axle is replaced.
The abs/vsv/vsv-off lights are are back/still on: this time, it went from lasting 1/2-block to a full-mile, yet the lights lasted a bit more then last time.
ABS activity went from always-on to barely-there: previously, the ABS would activate full-time below 25mph, then go crazy near a complete stop, until the ABS lights went on and all ABS functionality stopped. Now, until the ABS lights came on, and all ABS functionality stopped, it would give maybe (5) clicks, then stop. Attributing that to there is only (1) bad ABS sensor, when (2) must completely throw things through a loop.
and the best one, and why all the excitement...
The speedometer appears functioning again!!!: the speedometer went from, after resetting the ABS system, jumping from 0-20mph (it wouldn't show any speeds below 20mph), then stopping when the ABS lights went on... to showing all speeds, and not stop working when the ABS lights went on. So it appears the ABS system can handle one rear ABS sensor with bad input, yet throw it two bad inputs... and all heck breaks loose, including losing the speedometer..
Going to enjoy the speedo today, then go after the left cv-axle, tomorrow or the next day. The left-side should be much easier, as this is a MI-car, and with the salt here, the right side of the car is usually more rusty/corroded, as that's where the salty-water in the winter pools (the right side of the road). So the left side should be simple, compared to today's half-day journey.
Yes, you can remove a cv-axle by disconnecting only one axle-carrier lower control arm: all you need is a bit of wiggle room, to get the outboard-cv out past the lower control-arm, and be able to wiggle the inboard-cv up/forward above the diff.
Inboard-CV was seized to the diff output shaft: might post a pic, yet this was a mess. After removing the inboard-cv (6) bolts, ended up putting the wheel back on, lowering the car, and putting it in to Drive, to spin the diff, and break the diff from the inboard-cv. Scary snap, yet that separated the diff from the inboard-cv. Don't try this at home, fellow Mythbusters.
Had to beat out the outer-cv from the axle-carrier: this is one of those... if the shaft doesn't just slide out of the axle-carrier, you have problems, and most probably related to the reluctor ring, and axle-carrier dust-cover.
The axle-carrier dust-cover was a mess: Yup... rust had formed, bending the dust-cover in, grinding down the reluctor ring. Holding the old and new dust-cover up to each other, you can see the aged deformation of the old dust-cover... actually, kinda amazing...! The dust-cover was a bear to remove, too, since it rusted to the axle-carrier. Yet after getting out the dust-cover, and using a Dremel to grind down all rust the out, and make the inside surface shiny...
Once the axle carrier is rust-free, the dust-cover will almost slide in: once the axle-carrier surface was shiny, the dust-cover went in with taps... taps... from a small hammer. Not too hard, not too soft, no wood block or bearing-inserter required.
Once the dust-cover is properly prepped/replaced, the cv-axle slides in to the axle-carrier: after having to beat out the old cv-axle, once the axle-carrier and dust-cover were properly prepped/replaced, the new cv-axle shaft slid in/out of the axle-carrier freely. A sign that (a) the old cv-axle/dust-cover were toast, and (b) how a new cv-axle/dust-cover should fit together.
So the rear right is back together, the rear left will have to wait until tomorrow or Wed. Yet here's status/observations:
Clean your ABS sensor: once all the work was done, with the ABS sensor being magnetic, had to clean everything. the outside of the sensor, the inside, wipe down all the surfaces, etc. And after putting it all back together, had to remove the sensor from the axle-carrier, and clean it again. So presume there will be rust/shavings/etc when you are finished, that should be cleaned off.
ABS code 33 is gone, and just 34 remains: makes sense... I've replace the rear right axle (+ reluctor ring), so that took care of 33. 34 should go away when the rear left axle is replaced.
The abs/vsv/vsv-off lights are are back/still on: this time, it went from lasting 1/2-block to a full-mile, yet the lights lasted a bit more then last time.
ABS activity went from always-on to barely-there: previously, the ABS would activate full-time below 25mph, then go crazy near a complete stop, until the ABS lights went on and all ABS functionality stopped. Now, until the ABS lights came on, and all ABS functionality stopped, it would give maybe (5) clicks, then stop. Attributing that to there is only (1) bad ABS sensor, when (2) must completely throw things through a loop.
and the best one, and why all the excitement...
The speedometer appears functioning again!!!: the speedometer went from, after resetting the ABS system, jumping from 0-20mph (it wouldn't show any speeds below 20mph), then stopping when the ABS lights went on... to showing all speeds, and not stop working when the ABS lights went on. So it appears the ABS system can handle one rear ABS sensor with bad input, yet throw it two bad inputs... and all heck breaks loose, including losing the speedometer..
Going to enjoy the speedo today, then go after the left cv-axle, tomorrow or the next day. The left-side should be much easier, as this is a MI-car, and with the salt here, the right side of the car is usually more rusty/corroded, as that's where the salty-water in the winter pools (the right side of the road). So the left side should be simple, compared to today's half-day journey.
Last edited by sbagdon; 06-03-19 at 10:16 AM.
You should be back in biz once you get the other side done. Doesn't it SUCK that they didn't protect those rear rings with something better, more like the front???
06-04-19, 03:27 PM
#33
Advanced
Thread Starter
The speedo will work to 70mph, then fail (to 0)... work commute. Validated multiple times. Then it'll come back after a few miles of stop-and-go, or after a reboot (stop/start car...). Today was all city-driving (highway construction), so had the speedo all the way in to work. Also, when I got home from work, it was throwing code 33 again, so either I damaged the reluctor ring or sensor (I'll clean the sensor, to see if it captured random stuff), or the right side is tripping over the left side.
Thanks for the encouragement, I'll just keep replacing stuff until it works. None of it is "expensive".. .$20 here, $90 there. Yet darn, with 20yrs and 200k+ miles of aging and corrosion, it's a lot of time and effort...!
Last edited by sbagdon; 06-04-19 at 04:37 PM.
06-06-19, 03:56 AM
#34
Advanced
Thread Starter
And... the journey continues...
2nd cv-axle took about the same time, 4hrs. There's just no fighting it, 20yo Detroit cars are joys of rust and corrosion. Had to break the cv-axle from the diff with engine-torque... that usually pops the inner-cv cover, which leads to axle-grease everywhere... ugh... yet it works. More thoughts:
Even if it's shiny, it's not rust-free: used a Dremel to remove the rust from the axle-carrier, and the dust-protector wouldn't tap in. Checked the inside surface with an LED flashlight, and there's two kinds of shiny... bare-metal shiny, and polished-rust shiny. And you have to really look, to see the difference, and different angles of light help. Once a combo of different Dremel bits were used, all the rust was gone, and the dust-protector tapped in.
Journey is almost over, yet appears there's a little fork in the road. The ABS light is still coming on, at highway speeds, then will go out with city-driving or restarting the car. Pulled the codes... 33, right rear. Pulled the abs sensor, and inspected the reluctor ring teeth, and appears a few are damaged... it either happened in shipping and didn't notice, or I damaged them in handling, yet either way, enough of the teeth are damaged to set off the abs computer. A new reluctor ring and shipping/time is about the same as a "new" rebuilt axle, so will probably just order another. Yet at least this time, it'll take an hour, as all the dust-protector work is complete.
In the city, it's just a joy now, to have a speedometer, and have all the"bad" dash lights out ("ECT power" and headlights, both green, don't count...!). And even on the highway, having a working speedo, with random ABS lights, is livable, until we can order a new cv-axle, in the next week or so.
2nd cv-axle took about the same time, 4hrs. There's just no fighting it, 20yo Detroit cars are joys of rust and corrosion. Had to break the cv-axle from the diff with engine-torque... that usually pops the inner-cv cover, which leads to axle-grease everywhere... ugh... yet it works. More thoughts:
Even if it's shiny, it's not rust-free: used a Dremel to remove the rust from the axle-carrier, and the dust-protector wouldn't tap in. Checked the inside surface with an LED flashlight, and there's two kinds of shiny... bare-metal shiny, and polished-rust shiny. And you have to really look, to see the difference, and different angles of light help. Once a combo of different Dremel bits were used, all the rust was gone, and the dust-protector tapped in.
Journey is almost over, yet appears there's a little fork in the road. The ABS light is still coming on, at highway speeds, then will go out with city-driving or restarting the car. Pulled the codes... 33, right rear. Pulled the abs sensor, and inspected the reluctor ring teeth, and appears a few are damaged... it either happened in shipping and didn't notice, or I damaged them in handling, yet either way, enough of the teeth are damaged to set off the abs computer. A new reluctor ring and shipping/time is about the same as a "new" rebuilt axle, so will probably just order another. Yet at least this time, it'll take an hour, as all the dust-protector work is complete.
In the city, it's just a joy now, to have a speedometer, and have all the"bad" dash lights out ("ECT power" and headlights, both green, don't count...!). And even on the highway, having a working speedo, with random ABS lights, is livable, until we can order a new cv-axle, in the next week or so.
06-06-19, 07:32 PM
#35
Advanced
Thread Starter
NAPA says there are three right cv-axles on the west coast, and they'll make it a defect-claim. Great customer-service. Have to purchase, install, then return, yet parts/core will be refunded, have to pay for shipping.
06-16-19, 11:50 AM
#37
Advanced
Thread Starter
Axle went in this morning, and they took back the old one as a warranty return, on the way to work... reluctor teeth were crushed, two-zones with two-teeth each, with no obvious drop/impact marks, can see how that would confuse the abs sensor. Reset the abs, no lights, haven't gotten up to highway speed, will do that on the way home after work. For the first time in memory, wheels slipped in the rain today, and the VSV alert-light (the one with the rear-end and the wavy tire lines, under the fuel gauge) lit up.
Replacing axles 2nd time is easy: pull the lower control arm bolt, take off the axle nut, remove the suspension brace, take off the axle bolts, and it all slips out... no fighting the axle-to-diff, or axle-to-carrier (with the now-new dust-protector)... took a quarter of the time... so this is what working on a southern-car is like...!
Replacing axles 2nd time is easy: pull the lower control arm bolt, take off the axle nut, remove the suspension brace, take off the axle bolts, and it all slips out... no fighting the axle-to-diff, or axle-to-carrier (with the now-new dust-protector)... took a quarter of the time... so this is what working on a southern-car is like...!
06-17-19, 07:02 PM
#38
Advanced
Thread Starter
And time to close this out... after two full days of driving, with a fair amount of highway miles, the speedo is working well, the ABS light has not come on, and appears to be no codes. Thanks much to engin_ear for pointing us in the right direction, and all the helpful tips!
06-17-19, 08:29 PM
#39
Glad you got this worked out finally man 
11-29-19, 12:38 PM
#40
Advanced
Thread Starter
Got back in the forums, to post some stuff, and a follow-up on this... running like a champ, all lights off, speedo work, cruise works, had our first snow and got to play with VSV, and ABS works. Definitely makes the car much more fun to drive, and one of those things that will have you pull your hair out.
04-25-23, 03:24 AM
#41
Driver School Candidate
sorry to revive this old thread, but I'm really glad for the 70 mph reference, because I did not find it anywhere else and it is exactly what is happening to my GS430. Recently I got the right front ABS sensor replaced which was shot and the ABS/VSC worked for few miles, but I still have the highway issue. I'm thinking if I can get away with just cleaning the ABS sensors for now, but I can see how I cannot avoid the CV/ring replacement in the future anyway. Also good point about the sensors ittself not going bad as they are not cheap.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
andym666
GS - 2nd Gen (1998-2005)
14
07-29-17 11:16 AM
fdibugnara
ES - 1st to 4th Gen (1990-2006)
1
05-04-17 08:10 PM
scbuddy
GS - 2nd Gen (1998-2005)
1
06-08-09 05:17 PM
drewefx
2Gen GS430 / 400/ 300 Classifieds (98-05)
3
05-17-08 08:13 PM