While working on my front suspension this weekend I noticed how little slack there was in the ABS sensor wire from the upper control arm to the sensor. I'd long ago sorted out that my ABS/DSC alerts were associated with the connector and not the cleanliness of the sensor, and I now believe that the wire length may have been the root cause. There was so little slack that the right wire would almost be pulled tight in a full right turn (same on left side).

As there was plenty of slack in the wire between the control arm and the fender liner, I cut the zip ties and moved the rubber cushions to just outward of their tangs on the control arms. I would have repositioned the rubber cushions on the wires and reinstalled them onto their tangs, but they were stuck pretty tight to the wire sheaths and I didn't want to force anything. Maybe someday I'll spray some silicone on them and try to slide them up a bit.

Since I started focusing on the ABS sensor connections over a year ago, I haven't had a single ABS/DSC problem. I think giving the wires a little more slack will ensure the problem never returns.

 

It's not unusual to have a wire break inside the insulation and separate when strain is on the cable, then make contact again.

 

In my case, it was just the contacts in the connector. Every time I cleaned the sensors the problem would disappear for a while, but when it returned it frequently happened when I was backing up with the steering wheel turned full right.

So instead of worrying about cleanliness, I started playing with the front connectors and found that if a bent the pins ever so slightly, so that they were "leaning into" their female counterpart, the connector didn't break contact any more. I've also sealed the connectors with dielectric grease. And now, after giving the wires some slack, I believe I've solved the problem altogether.