This is a problem I have had on several occasions. Twice on Saturday but the hill was straight and open enough that I had plenty of room to roll backwards in a straight line.
What happens is after an unsuccessful climb, red-line and lost all forward momentum, I slam the clutch and brake to the floor. Problem is the brake is hard and there is nothing there. It kind of feels like ABS but it is not stopping the Jeep. Rolling backwards down the hill.
This is how I crunched my rear bumper last year. Much luckier this time.
I finally found this forum and there was an answer there that makes all kinds of sense and I just wanted to share it here because I think it is really important to know.
http://www.wranglerforum.com/f274/jk-loss-of-brakes-125423.htmlHere is the answer:
Too bad it seems the original guys from this thread never figured out the issue.
from what I've read, the issue is this:
It's a BLD/ABS issue. In all the cases mentioned here the wrangler was working it's way up a hill with slippery surfaces. Therefore traction was compromised. That leads to wheel spin. since they are open diffs Wrangler BLD (brake lock differential) system kicks in. It uses the ABS system to brake individual wheels trying to mimic a locker to get other wheels to turn. In an extended slippery climb, the BLD system is working overtime/heavily non-stop and eventually uses up all the vacuum in the braking system. So the the BLD stops working, uphill progress halts, the driver then puts foot on brakes but the pedal is hard (no vacuum), and starts rolling back for a a couple-few seconds until vacuum is restored and brakes function again.
That is the cause of the issue. sounds like a scary situation and in a rare but possible situation could cause a dangerous situation. Something to be aware of for sure.
