About Car Brake Parts?

It is essential to keep car brake parts in good working order so you do not get into an accident. It is extremely import to keep the brake system maintained because failure leads to dire consequences. There are many elements to a brake system, and they should be checked every four to six months.

Function

The various parts of the brake system work together to slow down and stop the vehicle. If one of the pieces is faulty, the entire braking system may fail. The system includes an emergency brake, which is meant to hold the car in place, not to stop or slow it down.

Warning

In time, certain parts of a brake system wear out from normal use. Brake pads and shoes wear out faster than the rest of the system. If not replaced, these parts can cause damage to the rest of the brake system.

Types

The brake system consists of the brake pedal, the master cylinder, brake hoses, ABS (anti-lock braking system) computer, brake sensors, pads, shoes, calipers, drums, wheel cylinders, a power booster and rotors. Depending on the year, make and model of the vehicle, it may contain all or some of these parts. Cars that do not have ABS brakes do not have an ABS computer or brake sensors. Some cars have pads and calipers on the front and rear; others have pads and calipers on the front and shoes and drums on the rear. All cars have a master cylinder, brake hoses, and some combination of pads, calipers, shoes and drums.

Features

An ABS system uses sensors and an computer. The system senses when a wheel locks up and releases the brakes on that wheel, then engages the brakes again. It will release and engage as long as it senses the wheel is locking up. A locked wheel can cause a car to go into a skid and spin out of control.

Brake pads and calipers work with brake rotors. When the driver steps on the brake pedal, the master cylinder pushes brake fluid through the lines to the calipers. The calipers push the brake pads against the rotor, which creates friction and slows the car down. Wheel cylinders work with shoes and drums. When the brake pedal is pushed, fluid travels through the brake lines, engaging the wheel cylinders, which then press the shoes against the drum to slow the car's speed.

A power booster is what gives you power brakes. Without the power booster, the driver would have to press on the brake pedal very hard to get any response. The power booster helps push the fluid through the lines so the driver does not have to put all of his weight into the brake pedal.

Considerations

Check your brakes regularly. The pads and shoes wear out from the friction. Once they wear down to the metal, the metal scrapes the rotors or drums and wears them down. It can also cause the calipers or wheel cylinders to over-extend. Once they over-extend, they will need to be replaced, as they tend to stick in one position (open or closed). If the calipers stick closed, they can hold the backing of the brake pad against the rotor, which can grind a large groove into the rotor. The rotor needs to be smooth in order for it to work efficiently.