Ford offered the 1996 Taurus with two-wheel front disc brakes and rear drum brakes. After-market options allow you to add four-wheel disc brakes, and newer models came stock with four-wheel disc brakes. Some higher-end 1996 models offered the four-wheel disc option. When replacing any component in the brake system, you need to bleed the air out of the brake lines. The process takes about an hour and is the same method for rear drum or rear disc brakes on the Taurus as well as for other models of Fords manufactured during that time.
Instructions
- 1
Raise the Taurus's passenger rear wheel off the ground with a jack. Place a jack stand under the vehicle's pinch weld located about four inches from the wheel well toward the center of the vehicle along the seam. Remove the tire by using the lug wrench to loosen and remove the lug bolts.
2Locate the bleed screw. On drum brakes, the screw is on the back side of the drum just above the axle. On disc brakes, it is on top of the caliper. Loosen the screw sufficiently with a wrench so it is easy to loosen and tighten rapidly. However, don't leave it so loose that fluid drips out.
3Attach the rubber tubing to the bleed screw. Submerge the other end of the tubing into a clear plastic bottle partially filled with brake fluid.
4Raise the hood of the vehicle. Locate the brake fluid reservoir. Clean the top of the reservoir and remove the top. Set it aside. Fill the reservoir to the fill line. While bleeding the brakes, make sure the reservoir does not drop below half-full. Fill the reservoir as necessary. Once you complete the process, top off the reservoir and replace the cap.
5Have an assistant depress the brake pedal firmly and hold it in position. Loosen the bleed screw for a few seconds, and watch for air bubbles in the plastic container. When the flow into the plastic container stops, tighten the bleed screw and have the assistant release the pedal. Repeat this process until no air bubbles come out of the tube. Repeat the process three more times. Completely tighten the bleed screw.
6Replace the tire and lug nuts. Raise the vehicle with the jack to remove the jack stands. Lower the vehicle to the ground with the jack. Tighten the lug nuts to factory specifications.
7Repeat steps one through six for the driver rear brake, then the passenger front brake and then the driver front brake. Even if your rear brakes are the only ones that need bleeding, failing to bleed all four can result in air bubbles in the line. Check the brake fluid level in the reservoir, and fill it as necessary with DOT-3 brake fluid. Replace the cap on the reservoir. Test your brakes.
