With our brake repair maintenance secrets, you can enhance the safety or your vehicle.

During a brake inspection and a garage mechanic tells you that you need the shoes or pads replaced, always ask them how much life is left on those brake linings. Anything higher than 30% is still OK to drive for a few thousand miles. This is particularly important if you are press for time or need to raise the money to afford the brake repair. In a worst case scenario, you can wait for up to 3-4 weeks before any serious repair can be done as long as there is no noise coming out of your brakes when to step on the brake pedal (at this time, the brake pad or shoe has no linings left and touching the rotors metal to metal.

When faced with situations where the brake repair is delayed for any reasons, watch out for any brake fluid leak which must be attended to right away because if this is left unattended, you risk the chance of an unwanted brake failure in strange places which could for you to do an emergency repairs in strange places or might need to tow the vehicle for an expensive cost. Actually, when you push the brake pedal, you are actually pushing the compressed brake fluid against the rotor surfaces via the fluid pressure exerted by the caliper pistons. During inspection, make sure the rotor is not warped distinguished by bluish color or presence of scoring surfaces. Also monitor the caliper pistons for sticky operation which can be seen by over extended rusty pistons. If you are doing the brake repair overhaul yourself, always do it one side at a time, this way you can use the other side as reference in case you forget how to assemble it.

To understand how your brake system is working, by pushing the brake pedal, the master cylinder will pressurize the brake fluid that will send hydraulic pressure to the hydraulic lines to activate the brake caliper or the brake wheel. This process creates the braking action to slow down the rotation of the brake rotors and the drums.

When servicing newer vehicles, a computer controlled ABS is used which is designed to maintain steering alignment when the vehicle is stopped suddenly to avoid wheel locking up. This is made possible by incorporating ABS wheel speed sensors which are installed in each brake wheels. Prior to having this ABS brakes, all drivers were instructed to pump the brake pedal when approaching icy roads which makes the vehicle to steer erratically. ABS prevents this by controlling each tires so that the vehicle still stops in straight forward position. This happens because the ABS controls the individual brakes for you. This is one of the most important brake maintenance secret.

Even during sudden brake applications, the ABS brakes make your car steerable in most icy roads. The ABS brakes work on the premise that by increasing the input force thru a servo to the master cylinder, it will convert that force into that focus pressure that can be applied to the affected wheel. Example is when the rear brakes is about to lock up and turn the vehicle, at a milli-second time, the ABS computerized unit will adjust the pressure of the front brakes to equalize the reaction of the rear brakes to make the vehicle steer straight.

Take note that the mechanical components of the both conventional and ABS brake system are basically the same like brake pedal, master cylinder, brake power booster, hydraulic lines, wheel cylinders, brake calipers and brake linings and pads. As a matter of fact, until the brake starts to sense a slippery conditions, the ABS works just like ordinary brakes. Just make sure that if you suspect that the ABS brakes is failing to have the brakes scanned properly or make sure to bleed the ABS brake hydraulic control unit (HCU) by an authorized ABS mechanic.

When working on the ABS brakes yourself, make sure to dis-able the ABS accumulator which is pressurized upwards to 3000 psi that can posed a hazard when brake pressure is suddenly released. This reliving of brake pressure normally occur when replacing a brake component of the ABS system. If you are not familiar with this, make sure to contact an online ABS technician to prevent personal injury. Most of the times, repairing conventional brakes is easy but could be dangerous on ABS brakes. To protect yourself, always get the latest brake repair maintenance information not only for your safety but to prevent replacements of unwanted parts.

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