How Do I Determine if a 95 Tercel Has ABS?

I'm using a 1995 Toyota Tercel. It has no owner's manual. I need to determine if this vehicle has anti-lock brakes. How does a non- mechanic do this?

~ Mark

Reply to
Mark Morse
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When you start the car, you look at your dash. If you have ABS, you should see a light that says "ABS" that indicates you have ABS. If not, either light is burned out or you don't have ABS.

Alternatively: wait until Winter. Go as fast as you can on ice. Then stomp on the brakes as hard as you can. If you write back, we'll know that you have anti-lock brakes. If not, we'll understand. ;-)

Actually, if you have ever locked your brakes you don't have ABS. If you have gotten into a situation where your brakes would lock up, and you feel a pulsing sensation in the brakes, you have ABS.

If you have the original sticker, you should be able to look at that and tell, too.

Jeff:

Reply to
Jeff

Or.... Find a wet or very bumpy largish patch of pavement somewhere where's there's little or no traffic. Drive along at 25 - 30 mph, then slam on the brakes when you hit that particular patch. You'll be able to feel the ABS kick in if you have them.

Cathy

Reply to
Cathy F.

Sure, suggest the easy and safe way. ;-)

Reply to
Jeff

Rather tame by comparison, I know...

Cathy

Reply to
Cathy F.

Would such a low end vehicle (pardon me, Tercel owners) ever have offered ABS? Do Echos and Scions offer ABS? I find ABS relatively unnecessary myself. I've had occasion to have it kick in twice in 10 years in my Camry, but I've never had to brake hard enough to activate it in the Avalon in three years. But I guess it's like airbags, nice to have if you need it.

Reply to
mack

Mine kick in several times/year. No - or little - snow or ice in your area, maybe?

Cathy

Reply to
Cathy F.

I don't believe ABS was available on Tercels. I had a '95 and it didn't have it, and it had almost every option available (It was essentially a "Blackhawk" without the stickers and alloys). No ABS on that one.

Reply to
Hachiroku

Thanks for all of the info, everybody. Based on the following facts, I conclude that this vehicle almost certainly does not have an ABS. There is no ABS light on the dashboard. I have locked the brakes many times in the past 10 years.

Cheers,

~ Mark

Reply to
Mark Morse

LOL! That would be the number 1 indicator!!!

In case of locking, the pedal will 'kick back' as the system modulates the brakes. If you've managed to lock them, then I guess you don't!

You have a '95? What model (2 or 4 door, DX, CE or?) and waht options? (AC, AT, etc).

About 3 years ago I REALLY wanted to buy a Supra, and put my '95 Tercel DX and my '94 Chrysler LHS for sale, both for $1600. Needless to say, the Tercel sold in about 10 days, for $1400 (What I paid for it.) It had

130,000 and was MINT! (Mint Green Metallic, but the condition was mint, too!)

Shortly after that, the price of gas started heading for the sky, and I was driving my 27 MPG (Overall) LHS and my 21 MPG (Overall) Supra, while the Tercel's new owner was enjoying 45 MPG (OVERALL!!!)

OOOPS! Guess I should have held out for the LHS to sell, but *IT* was a nice car, too...just didn't get the mileage...

Reply to
Hachiroku

"Mark Morse" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@p77g2000hsh.googlegroups.com:

You lie down on the driveway, looking at the back of a front wheel. Somewhere very close to the CV joint's corrugated boot will be an electrical wire. That's for the ABS pickup coil.

If you're looking at the left wheel, turning the steering wheel all the way to the left or all the way to the right may enable you to see the electrical wire without lying on the driveway. Vice versa for the right wheel.

If all you see is a hydraulic line and no electrical wire, you don't have ABS.

If you do have ABS but the dash light doesn't work, chances are good there was a problem and the previous owner simply removed the ABS fuse or the bulb so you wouldn't know.

Reply to
Tegger

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