barryh46au@yahoo.com.au

I have an almost new Elantra with ABS. Sometimes, especially on a very
rough road, the brakes seem to suddenly stop working. The wheels seem
to spin freely, then suddenly grab again. Occasionally the pedal seems
to go to the floor and the car just doesn't stop, then the brakes cut
in.

Is this a problem with the ABS? Is it a known problem with this model?
Is it made worse by rough roads?

Thanks

Barry

Brian Nystrom

barryh46au@yahoo.com.au wrote:
> I have an almost new Elantra with ABS. Sometimes, especially on a very
> rough road, the brakes seem to suddenly stop working. The wheels seem
> to spin freely, then suddenly grab again.

Spin or skid? Are you referring to braking (ABS) or accelleration (TCS)?

> Occasionally the pedal seems
> to go to the floor and the car just doesn't stop, then the brakes cut
> in.

That doesn't sound normal. Have you checked the brake fluid level?

> Is this a problem with the ABS? Is it a known problem with this model?
> Is it made worse by rough roads?

I've never heard of this before, but perhaps Hyundaitech has. Rough
roads should not affect braking, other than perhaps causing a bit more
slippage. ABS should maintain traction and steering control, but on
really loose and/or slippery surfaces, ABS (any ABS system) will result
in longer stopping distances than properly applied non-ABS brakes.
That's one of the reasons that I didn't get the ABS/TCS package.

hyundaitech

This could be normal ABS operation. On rough pavement, a wheel could
momentarily stop turning and cause ABS to engage. The thing to remember
is that when the ABS engages (you'll be able to feel it in the brake
pedal, and can probably hear it as well), you should continue to press
harder on the brake pedal. If the ABS engages under light braking and you
don't depress the pedal any further because the ABS has engaged, you'll
never be able to slow the vehicle any faster than you're currently
slowing. But you can still press harder and slow the vehicle more,
especially if the ABS is only modulating one wheel. It will continue its
work and modulate that wheel and will begin modulating other wheels as
necessary. It's now been about a year and a half since I've moved into an
ABS vehicle and that's one of the things to which I've had to adjust.

If you're not sure, you should definitely take it to your local dealer,
make sure they are able to duplicate what you're experiencing (even if
this means riding with them), and let them determine what's actually
occurring.