2006 Tahoe/Locking brakes - car won’t move

[B-train]

You most likely have a hose that is collapsing and causing a check valve situation - holding pressure at the caliper.

Or, you have a caliper that isn't retracting when it gets warmed up - sticking piston. It could also be caliper slides, etc.

Another option I can see is that the master cylinder is overfilled and when the engine bay warms up, the fluid expands and has nowhere to go, so it pushes on the calipers.

There is a possibility the ABS module is holding pressure on a circuit for some reason as well. Have you tried unplugging the ABS to see if that changes anything? Or, you can try a couple ABS stops on a slippery surface and see how it acts afterwards.

 

[OR VietVet]

Really should start your own thread to get more responses.

 

[7575js]

06 chevy Tahoe z71

 

[Kungfubenny]

Hello did anyone ever figure out what's causing the brakes to lock up while driving...i am having this same issue i explained to my mechanic the issue and he said that it was the master cylinder so we went to oreillys and purchased a brand new master cylinder it seem to have fixed the problem until about a week later it started doing the same thing about 10 minutes into driving the vehicle i can feel it starting to slow down so I'm giving it more gas to try to keep a steady pace with other vehicles but it's like I'm mashing the brakes and the gas at the same time...so i found some information on Google where a guy was having the same problem and he said that when his would lock up he would pull over and get out and loosen the lines that go to the master cylinder so last night as I'm driving my tahoe z71 it starts to act up so i pull over get out and loosen the lines on the master cylinder and let the pressure off of the calipers i tighten the lines and I'm able to move again freely until about 15 to 20 minutes it does it again if anyone has any info on how to fix this issue please chime in my name is Jeffery my email address is [email protected] just in case anyone wants to reach out to me...thanks in advance

I’m having the same issue, so far I’ve changed abs sensor in the rear left tire, and the wheel hub/bearing of front right wheel.
I’ve pulled the abs fuse as well to no resolve.

My next moves were to address the master cylinder and brakebooster. If you are able to find a solution please let me know I’ve been trying to get my truck back on the road for almost a month.

If learn or find a solution I will be updating this thread.

 

[Fless]

I’m having the same issue, so far I’ve changed abs sensor in the rear left tire, and the wheel hub/bearing of front right wheel.
I’ve pulled the abs fuse as well to no resolve.

My next moves were to address the master cylinder and brakebooster. If you are able to find a solution please let me know I’ve been trying to get my truck back on the road for almost a month.

If learn or find a solution I will be updating this thread.

See post #11 (by @B-train) in this thread. Sounds to me like a hose might be collapsing or a caliper not retracting.

 

[rockola1971]

I’m having the same issue, so far I’ve changed abs sensor in the rear left tire, and the wheel hub/bearing of front right wheel.
I’ve pulled the abs fuse as well to no resolve.

My next moves were to address the master cylinder and brakebooster. If you are able to find a solution please let me know I’ve been trying to get my truck back on the road for almost a month.

If learn or find a solution I will be updating this thread.

Your master cylinder and booster are not the culprits here. Everytime you crack open a brake line connection you are letting air into the system. That is a no go. The brakes will have to be bled....but likely they will need bled anyway AFTER you replace the collapsed rubber brake hose that is causing your problems or replace/rebuild the bad brake caliper that is not retracting.
Put it back together. Drive vehicle until it starts acting up and hit each brake rotor with a IR thermometer (they are cheap at harbor freight) and the rotor(s) that are the hottest out of all of them is the problem wheel. Check the problem wheel(s) for collapsing brake hose and caliper sticking and not retracting. You can do both of these inspections with the problem wheel jacked up off the ground and tire removed. Have someone push on brakes with engine running and watch what the brake hose does and see if it is collapsing. Check that brake caliper squeezes the rotor and the slightly retracts when brake pedal is released. There is a remote possibility that your ABS manifold is at fault here but not the common fault that happens.

 

[Kungfubenny]

Your master cylinder and booster are not the culprits here. Everytime you crack open a brake line connection you are letting air into the system. That is a no go. The brakes will have to be bled....but likely they will need bled anyway AFTER you replace the collapsed rubber brake hose that is causing your problems or replace/rebuild the bad brake caliper that is not retracting.
Put it back together. Drive vehicle until it starts acting up and hit each brake rotor with a IR thermometer (they are cheap at harbor freight) and the rotor(s) that are the hottest out of all of them is the problem wheel. Check the problem wheel(s) for collapsing brake hose and caliper sticking and not retracting. You can do both of these inspections with the problem wheel jacked up off the ground and tire removed. Have someone push on brakes with engine running and watch what the brake hose does and see if it is collapsing. Check that brake caliper squeezes the rotor and the slightly retracts when brake pedal is released. There is a remote possibility that your ABS manifold is at fault here but not the common fault that happens.

Very logical analysis! The caliper piston in the rear had completely shattered due to depleted brake pads. It release most if not all of the brake fluid. Upon realizing this I replaced the caliper and the presumed amount of brake fluid. All pads are new front and rear.

I did need to bleed each one to be able to pressed the pistons in just in order to be able to set them in place over the brakes pads.

*which I thought was odd being that I’ve never had that experience during a brake change*

Before bleeding each brake the pistons would protrude even after applying pressure to push them inward via c clamp they’ d push themselves back out.

 

[LeanMachine]

Did anyone ever solve this issue? I am having this exact same issue with a 2006 Cadillac Escalade. All brakes lock up and service stability light comes on.

 

[rockola1971]

Did anyone ever solve this issue? I am having this exact same issue with a 2006 Cadillac Escalade. All brakes lock up and service stability light comes on.

If you are sure all 4 wheels are locked up then you either have a bad wheel sensor or its wiring causing the ABS computer to think your tires are breaking traction OR you have a bad EBCM (ABS manifold) but the odds that all solenoids on it are bad instead of being told to open/close are slim to none. Pull your traction control fuse or your ABS fuse and see if all the brakes unlock.

 

[6977Gregyver]

Hello everyone my name is Jesse I own a 2006 Tahoe that is in near perfect condition with one exception the BRAKES.

I had a new cylinder cylinder out on which did not fix the problem. I have had removed Stabilitytrax fuse which I was told by a YouTuber would fix the problem. Which did help but now it is doing it every time I drive the car or test it.

I am lost at this point. My next check is calipers and replacing break fluid.

Any ideas or is this a known issue ?

I have a 2006 Yukon and I went through the same problem a year ago. I replaced the the pads, the rotors, the calipers, a new master cylinder and reservoir and a new power steering pump and hoses. Nothing solved the problem so I got on this forum and asked some questions. The reply I got that seemed the most unlikely solution turned out to be the only solution. Someone told me to replace all of the brake hoses, which I did, and that solved all of my problems. Apparently when the brake hoses get old sometimes they collapse on the inside so when you apply the brakes the collapsed hoses expand and let fluid get to the calipers but when you release the brake pedal the hoses collapse again and dont let the fluid back out of the calipers keeping the brakes locked