Brake Failure: Fine Line Between Life And Fatal Accidents

Brake failure is a common problem with automobiles. Failure of Brakes can be fatal in any situation. Every year, several precious lives are lost as a victim to brakes failure but no one identifies the real cause of brake failure. Car owners and drivers are not aware of the causes that leads to failing brakes. In a survey conducted last year, NHA (National Highway Authority) identified failure of brakes as one of the top three reasons of deadly accidents on Motorway. Let’s talk about some common causes of brakes failure.

One common myth is that Anti-lock braking system does not lead to failure of brakes. But the fact is that all braking systems can fail in different situations. But yes! the probability differs.

Brake failure can have multiple causes. Some of them are:

Overheating

Overheating of brakes is termed as Brake fade or brake fluid boil condition. These conditions often occur as a result of hilly area driving, aggressive driving, racing, vigorous braking on short intervals or riding the brakes on long haul routes. As heat emerges in the brake linings, it tries to acquire more and more pressure to maintain the same level of friction and braking strength when brakes are applied. You might feel the brake pedal firm but on applying brakes, you will notice the reduced stopping power. Heated brakes may also cause the fluid inside the brake fluid container to boil. This creates a steam vacuum that reduces the brake pedals’ travel to a great extent and such a situation does not allow you to apply brakes anymore due to reduced pedal travel. Overheating of brakes is more common in Automatic gear transmission as compared to manual gear transmission cars. The best recommended solution for this problem is to stop your car on a road side and wait for some time allowing the brakes to cool down.

Leaks

One of the most common causes of brake failure is low fluid pressure or loss of fluid pressure in your brake system due to leakages. The functionality of brakes depends on hydraulic pressure. In case a leak occurs in a brake line, brake hose, brake cylinder or caliper, the loss of fluid pressure in the lines does not let brakes to be applied.

In a situation when a serious leak occurs, the red brake warning check light should illuminate when brakes are applied. This indicates that there was some loss of pressure in some component of your braking system and that it is not safe to drive your car in the present condition. In such a situation, you are supposed to immediately check the fluid level in the reservoir. If the level of fluid in reservoir is extremely low or the reservoir is drying up, it shows that your braking system has gone through a serious brake fluid leak. The entire brake system should be inspected for leakages.

A broken or cracked rubber hose, or a rusted steel brake line can result in a sudden fluid loss. Old vehicles exposed to road salt or immense moisture have rusty brake lines in them. If the protective coating on the steel brake lines is slight or of low quality, salt can prove to be extremely corrosive. Once rust spreads in the brake line it results in a brake line failure.

Faulty ABS Modulator

One possible cause of brake failure can be a defective ABS modulator that is resulting in loss of brake pressure internally and is not asserting appropriate pressure to the brakes on applying brakes. Rust in the brake system can enter the modulator or some dirt can prevent the accumulator valve in the ABS from sealing, letting the modular to leak within.

Other reasons

Many more factors can contribute in loss of brake pressure of failure of brakes, e.g:

So make sure you keep an eye on your car’s brake system because you and your passenger’s safety depends on it.

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