Disabling ABS- is it legal?

[busta]

I have an old car with ABS on it which is currently not working due to a faulty wheel sensor. The new part is £110. Removing the fuse, which de-activates the ABS but still lets the brakes function normally is free, however the ABS light obviously comes on.

Now baring in mind the ABS was an option when the car was new, and plenty of cars on our roads don't have it, If I disable it am I breaking any laws? and if I was to have an accident, would the courts accept that the brakes are still perfectly adequate without it?

[tegwin]

I suspect your insurance company would decline to pay out atall if you crash given your brakes are effecitley defective.....


Its a safety device, its designed to save your life, its designed to save the life of the person you might hit....


Fix it!!!!




(p.s. What car is it? £110 for a wheel sensor sounds way OTT to me.... )

Edited by tegwin on Monday 26th July 23:29

[mybrainhurts]

It's an MoT fail...

If your car came with ABS, it must be working.

Edited by mybrainhurts on Monday 26th July 23:36

[busta]

It's a Volvo 940.

The brakes are a safety feature, but the ABS just takes out an element of user error doesn't it?

[TheEnd]

I'm sure i've seen posters in MOT places with lists of what cars had ABS, and the order of lights.
Although for the test, would it be ABS if fitted, must be working

[PabloTeK]

busta said:

It's a Volvo 940.

The brakes are a safety feature, but the ABS just takes out an element of user error doesn't it?

I *think* with 'safety critical' systems such as ABS they must work if the car came with them as mybrainhurts said.

[Mr Dave]

On my old car the ABS had failed due to sensors breaking, the light on the dash was "broken" too so it always passed its MOTs and thats in N.I where the DVLNI have centres that do all MOTs and not some shady backstreet garage.


Its fine but as said your insurance company might complain, but they will always find a way out if they can.

[Ninjaboy]

I'm not a big fan of driver aid's like traction control and ESP but ABS does work. If i removed a fuse to stop it working i would feel like i was tempting fate if your car didnt come with it then do without but if it did and you had an accident how would you feel? get it fixed asap.

[tegwin]

In an MOT, if its fitted, it has to work!!

A proper MOT tester should turn the ignition on, the ABS light on the dash will come on for a few seconds and then swtich off if the system is functioning...

If the light does not come on (because you pulled the fuse) then its a fail... (they can tell the car has ABS by looking at the massive ABS unit under the bonnet!)


Yes, its an added driver aid to help you if/when the wheels lockup... but if you have an accident where you slide into another car with the ABS disabled and injure/kill someone, you are going to be in a LOT of trouble!

[mybrainhurts]

PabloTeK said:

busta said:

It's a Volvo 940.

The brakes are a safety feature, but the ABS just takes out an element of user error doesn't it?

I *think* with 'safety critical' systems such as ABS they must work if the car came with them as mybrainhurts said.

That's a fact...no room for negotiation.

[Drive Blind]

to get through the MOT wire the ABS light in series with the oil pressure light

[busta]

Mr Dave said:

On my old car the ABS had failed due to sensors breaking, the light on the dash was "broken" too so it always passed its MOTs and thats in N.I where the DVLNI have centres that do all MOTs and not some shady backstreet garage.


Its fine but as said your insurance company might complain, but they will always find a way out if they can.

I was wondering whether mine would have to become 'broken' too.

To be fair, my only experience of ABS is that it is a real hindrance when trying to brake on loose surfaces. I have a 1/2 mile long dirt drive and it can be a bit unnerving when it cuts in as you try to brake down from 60 before the main road at the end- it almost feels like the car speeds up! Other than that, I'm fortunate enough to have never been in a situation where it's cut in on the public road.

Anyone know where I could find a sensor for less than £110? It's a Bosch part.

[nigel mansell]

Drive Blind said:

to get through the MOT wire the ABS light in series with the oil pressure light

HE,HE,only a poor tester would fall for that,the light is tested with ignition on and should go out after a set time as mentioned on the chart.

[Rubin215]

Yup, as already stated, if fitted, it must be working.

However, I know of a case (my current employer...) where the whole abs system and all its fittings were removed from a specialist vehicle to keep it on the road as the abs system had simply become too unreliable and costly to repair.

A few years later, the vehicle was scrapped completely over repeated issues with brake failures.

Bearing in mind that this was an emergency vehicle which responded with blue lights and sirens...

[VxDuncan]

busta said:

Anyone know where I could find a sensor for less than £110? It's a Bosch part.

Unlikely the actually sensor is broken - far more likely the wiring to it or the connector. Have a poke around and check there is no noticeable damage to the wires, and give the connector a good clean. The cycling of heat near the brakes means the connector heats up and expands, then draws moisture in when it cools and contracts. That causes corrosion over time. Clean everything up and you'll probably be fine. You may need to clear the DTC's on the ABS ECU, not sure how you do it for your vehicle - sure google will tell you.

[matt12023]

I've got this problem on my old e28, I plan to get round the ABS must work if fitted problem by removing the abs and making up some new pipes, job done

[freecar]

Remove the entire system and it's no problem. This is what the drifters do as ABS doesn't work going backwards! As long as the entire system is removed it'll pass regardless of whether it had it standard or not.

My old BMW 325 had an ABS light wired into the oil pressure light, but no ABS fitted, just to fool an old purchaser I suppose!

[Squid Biker]

Disabling ABS is it illegal?

I would imagine to take out a fuse and knowingly run a vehicle in such state would in some way contravene 'construction and use' regulations.

[spaximus]

ABS is the only driver aid I think should be made mandatory on all new cars. The amount of people who cadance brake is in single figures. A skidding high performance car or any for that matter is not a good thing.
Just fix the car.

[lance1a]

If the wheel sensor is on the rear, you can wire the two rear sensors together. This will fool the abs unit into thinking that the wheels are turning at the same speed and cancel the light. The important thing is that the abs will still operate as designed when required as it assumes the system is not faulty.

Should obviously be done as a temp measure only. But sometimes the cost of fixing such issues can far exceed the value of an old car.

Edited by lance1a on Tuesday 27th July 06:59