Wheatgerm

I had a bad bearing for the second time on the front left, the first one was under warranty, the other some 50 thousand miles later so I purchased Timken bearings for both sides but only replaced the front left in need right now.

It went smooth and easy but when back together my Anti Lock Brake light was on which I attributed to the new hub and its anti lock plug in and the vehicle recognizing like new hardware on a home computer.

The problem at hand is I have a low brake pedal now that came with the problem onset, fine before now, and right now low when applied, will pump up but pedal travel upon first braking tends to take more application of foot movement than prior. It stops straight so both sides are being equally pressured by the master cylinder and I'll assume the Anti Lock System Computer.

Is there anything to reset in the system when a new component is introduced to the Anti Lock Brakes?

I thought of Master Cylinder and tried to get it to turn [Bypassing internally?] the brake light on to no avail, the anti lock light never came back on either since starting the vehicle the very first time after the repair it went out by itself.

No leaks anywhere, no fluid loss in the reservoir, adjusted the rear brakes no leaks at the wheel cylinders or calipers pistons nor hoses..

What ever it is changing the hub assembly was the turning point in the brake problem.

It's a 2008 2LT 2.4 Automatic Transmission purchased new with 80,000 miles on it right now.

Anyone have any ideas before I start changing parts like the Master Cylinder to start with. Is there a necessary reset after a hub bearing with anti lock brakes is changed done with the scanner the dealer uses?

Thanks for Reading it for those who have no idea what the problem is same as myself..

John Ryan Rosenberg, Texas

prod

Check for bulging brake hoses, sometimes they stretch or kink when doing a job like that. Once weakened they expand and could eventually burst.

Oldblue

How worn are the brake pads? Did you slowly pump the brake pedal with th engine off to push the pads back to the rotors? Like all computers you have to reboot when new hardware ( in this case the ABS sensor in the new hub ) try the inexpensive negative terminal at the battery disconnect for 30 minutes. And when you replace th other side hub disconnect the battery again to avoid the ABS light issue.
Let us know how you made out if this helps in any way!

Lucky

I would recommend jacking up the wheel you changed the wheel bearing on and check for any play in the wheel bearing.

I'm thinking that the axle shaft didn't get seated correctly so it's not preloading the wheel bearing.

If the bearing is loose the first pedal push has to take up that slack.

843de

All good suggestions above, but if you're still having issues with a soft/low brake pedal after you check things out, get your HHR to a mechanic or brake shop A.S.A.P.

Wheatgerm

The brake pads are about a year old or less, installed slotted and drilled rotors at that time as well, the caliper was slid off and slid back on with no change in piston position, the caliper was hung from the coil spring with OTC tool number 7661, a great made in USA tool that comes in pairs that I purchased with the Timken Wheel Bearing Hub Assemblies. I think that rules out brake hose damage but will check for it anyway since that avenue has not been looked into yet.

I have jacked up and removed the wheel and caliper again, checked for anything left loose or slipped hoping to find a mistake I made but none, all is tight and right.

Checked the axle seating, purchased a new nut again for one time use, torqued down tight again.

All good suggestions but all looked into already except the disconnect of the battery which i will try today as soon as it is light out again and I will report any findings that solves this problem.

I appreciate the rapid response to this question and all of the suggestions as well.

Prod, Old Blue, Lucky and 843de this is a thank you to all of you, I wish it turned out to be one of those problems listed and suggested but the fight is not over yet and I will continue until I have to take 843de's advice, the thing I was trying to avoid by changing the hub bearing myself in the first place.

The adventure continues and will be updated when solved and in the time being any other suggestions are welcome as well. Old Blue's suggestion is first on the agenda.

donbrew

Brake fluid level?
Bleed the brakes?

Nobody asked the age of the pads, the wear is what counts. Is the slot still there?

Wheatgerm

The brake pad wear was minimal, good thickness and of course the slots were still there on the rotors.

I put a new master cylinder on and did not change a thing as far as the problem already listed but today while driving in the rain I drove the car instead of my wife and I tend to have a heavier foot on initial acceleration so the front tire spun a bit a few times until it spun a bit more than it had until that point and I heard something kick in on the left front side "kick in and spin" as well and at that instant the problem was gone, pedal returned to how it was prior to ''Fiddling" with hub bearing.

I did not mention the period of time I ran the car on jack stands verifying which bearing was humming even though it sounded like the left front I wanted to be sure I didn't need both since I had them on hand, the wheels turned in different directions during that process is all that was out of the usual for things to that point so someone who knows the systems will be able to figure out what happened I think if I explain the chain of events as they took place..

Once again, bad hub bearing and replaced the left side, had transposed wires but after installation I put the old bearing back by the plug only to see if it made a difference on the sinking pedal problem/soft brakes etc.. and it didn't so back to connecting the replacement part the way it came, transposed wires and all..

Installed a new master cylinder which offered the exact same brake spongy and soft feel to it but it stopped fine through out the entire process so we used the car since it even panic stopped fine too. again just a spongy and low pedal overall.

After all was completed and the car was set back on the ground I started the car to test drive it and the anti lock brake light was on but went off within a few seconds so I figured all was well but it wasn't..

Since it was raining today I put off bleeding the entire system since I had already done the fronts to no avail anyway and drove it myself today, the rest all explained above..

I post this for the main reason that someone else will create this problem as I did by running the car off the ground is my take on things, why it did not reset prior to wheel spin causing it to I won't know unless one of you out there knows that HHR anti lock and traction control system well enough to explain what happened and what can be done in the case it happens or can be avoided from happening which my guess is simply don't run the car in gear off the ground in the first place with those options installed...

Hope this helps someone out there, all have been a huge help to me and this ''Man Made Problem'' that had me baffled for over a week..

Now I have a good used Master Cylinder in stock in my garage for when I actually do need one..

I replaced it with a new one but it turned out to be from China, used it anyway just to see if it would change anything, it was Raybestos Brand, good quality anyway and now I have a great pedal and all is back to normal or abnormal, we'll see if this self repaired problem rears it's ugly head again!

Everyone that has replied, I thank you Very Much for the suggestions and comments and I am looking forward to some new ones that might make me chuckle now that the problem is resolved, hopefully forever... If it comes back I'll let the forum know IMMEDIATELY ..

Lucky

Glad to here you got it fixed. Sounds like maybe an abs valve was leaking internally and the traction control activation cleared/ reseated the valve.

donbrew

I was referring to slots on the pads not the rotors.

How did the wires get transposed?

I don't understand any of your follow up post.