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All braking systems on cars are hydraulic and uses brake fluid to send the signal from the brake pedal to the brake caliper. This makes brake fluid essential in the correct function of your brakes and ultimately the safety of your car.
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As you apply pressure to the brake pedal this squeezes the brake fluid along the brake lines. As you do this it creates heat in the brake fluid, this heat can exceed 200°C. Now this is not a problem because brake fluid is designed and used specifically to deal with these heats. Dot 4 Brake fluid has a boiling point around 230°C which is why it works so well.
Brake fluid is hygroscopic which means it attracts and holds water molecules from the surrounding environment. Over time these water molecules dilute the Brake Fluid which lowers the Brake Fluids boiling point. As the Brake Fluid becomes more and more diluted the boiling point continues to get lower. As the brakes get used during general driving and with a lower boiling point the Brake Fluid will start to evaporate into a gas. This gas can't escape form the brake pipes and so forms 'air pockets'.
You may have heard people say that their brakes feel 'spongy' and the most common reason for this is air pockets that have formed over time. As you put your foot down on the brake pedal there will be and initial level of slack before the brake is engaged. Secondly to get the same level of performance you will have to press the brake pedal harder and further to try and depress the air pockets with the brake pipes. Over time this will get worse and worse as you your brake will be less effective. The only way to resolve this and restore correct brake function is to replace the Brake Fluid.
As best practise Ford Motor Company stipulates that Brake Fluid should be changed every 24 months (2 years). A Brake Fluid change is a very routine job for our Factory Trained Technicians and is commonly done alongside a Vehicle Service. If your vehicle is coming into one of our Service Centres, either in Sandwich or Deal, we will carry out a Electronic Vehicle Health Check (eVHC). The eVHC consists of a multi point check of your vehicle. Along side Tyre Tread Depth, Battery Charge Level, Engine Coolant Strength to determiner the anit-freeze point we also check the Brake Fluid.
BOOK A BRAKE FLUID CHANGE
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