99 Lincoln Towncar – pulls to the right *ONLY* in rainy conditions when braking

Hello – I am writing in hopes of coming across someone who has had this issue on their vehicle, and finally figured out what is causing it.

To be clear this condition (pulling while braking) only occurs when the brakes have not been applied for some time while driving in the rain. On the first press of the brakes the car jerks excessively to the right. Of course I have to counter the pulling and steering wheel movement when this occurs, and I have to let up on the brakes to regain control. Then I press again, and the pulling is not a severe, and again let off to regain control, and 3rd it is generally a smooth straight braking experience. If I drive a short distance while the brakes are still hot/warm it brake evenly. If I go several miles in the rain it will again pull to the right when brakes are applied. As you can imagine this is a dangerous scene.

On a clear dry day there is NONE of these issues, nor any subtle symptoms of pulling while braking. No pulsations, no vibrations, no ABS kicking in.

I have searched the internet, and have found some other people who have had this issue, but non of the (really old) threads ever explain what anyone has done to solve the problem. I am wondering if people just get rid of the vehicle. It’s like chasing ghosts because it only happens in wet conditions.

The car has relatively high mileage on it (205,000) but this issue has existed ever since I took ownership of the car with around 30,000 miles. The reason for the delay in addressing this is that this is an extra vehicle in our house, and I have had unsuccessful and expensive attempts at solving it in the past. It was my dads before passing away. So I inherited it with low mileage 12 years ago. The car has never seen winter. There were some years I only put 5000 miles on it. Also I work a good distance from where I live so when I do drive it to work, I will put 800 miles on it in a week, and that would be during months with little rain. But this year I will be driving it in the winter due to loss of a vehicle, and too many kids in college. The pulling on slippery conditions of winter has me pretty concerned. I think I have learned to adapt to it in just rain, but it is definitely a safety concern. Even more of a concern if it is a freezing rain situation, which I have not yet experienced, but will sometime soon. I live in southern Maine along the coast. The higher the speed the bigger the pull effect. Had 5 of us in the car this past week, in heavy rain, and when I hit the brakes the car was doing a slalom while trying to restrain it.

ABS never kicks in during this. I have had the car at the dealer and they too are mystified. The have replaced the front calipers and hoses and the issue still persists. At the 200K checkup they had flushed the brake system also.

I have asked for help on a lincoln town car forum, and folks have been helpful, but I am really looking for someone who has experienced this issue and has solved it. Otherwise I am just continuing to throw money at possible solutions.

I have done many auto and boat engine repairs, but never brakes. I have watched many of ETCG videos on brakes in the last week but still have never gotten dirty with them.

A relatively low cost next step is to replace the brake pads. A theory is one of them is holding moisture.

Thanks in advance, Ed