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Brake pads are designed to absorb heat as they create friction against the brake rotor. The brake pads ride against either side of the brake rotor and are held in place by the brake caliper that is typically mounted to the spindle or backing plate. Hydraulic pressure is provided by the brake system via a brake master cylinder. When the brake system is activated the brake pads are forced against the brake rotor causing it to slow down, in turn slowing the motion of the car. Heat is created and dissipated through the brake pad and rotor. If a bake pad or rotor become overheated it can hinder the brake operation until cooled. Unlike the shoes on a drum brake which convert motion into heat, pads on a disc brake literally hug the wheel. The amount of pressure a driver applies to the brake pedal is a relative amount of force that will be applied to the brake pads. This means that the driver can feel how much pressure he is applying to the brakes. The driver may also apply a pumping motion t...

Brake drums play a very important role in the overall performance of your vehicles entire braking system. In this article we will explain what a brake drum is, what it does and hopefully everything else you will need to know about them. Brake drums are usually found on the rear of vehicles, but prior to the late 60’s and early 70’s they were standard equipment as the front brakes as well. Brake drums are the friction point where the brake shoes contact to slow a vehicle. They vary in size depending on the application: large work trucks will use a larger drum brake, while passenger cars use a much smaller brake. Brake drums can be made of different materials such as cast iron, on some vehicles they have used aluminum to save weight and improve the cooling of the brakes. Drum brakes are part of the overall car braking system which includes the brake pedal, master cylinder and front disc brakes. When the brake pedal is pressed, brake fluid under pressure flows through the brake lines an...

A brake caliper is designed to utilize brake fluid under pressure to transfer force the brake pads. In-turn the brake pads contact the rotating brake rotor to slow the car. A brake caliper is typically mounted to the spindle or backing plate. There are two basic designs of brake caliper mounting, fixed and floating. A fixed position brake caliper is bolted to the spindle and is not allowed to move. This kind of brake caliper is constructed with caliper pistons on both sides of the caliper. The floating style of caliper is mounted to the spindle or backing plate using a slide bolt. This slide bolt design allows the caliper to slide on these bolts. This design uses pistons on just one side of the brake caliper. Brake calipers are a crucial part of the braking system of any vehicle, as they perform the mechanical aspect of the braking action. Properly understanding brake calipers, their function and operation, helps you to identify issues when the brakes do not work correctly. While basi...

The antilock brake system or the ABS control unit helps to maintain control and directional stability of an automobile in case of extreme braking circumstances. This is achieved by controlling the rotational speed of every wheel by metering the brake line pressure at the time of extreme braking. The system works on most types of road surfaces and decreases the risk of an accident and severity of an impact. Research has shown that an antilock brake system can decrease the chance of a vehicle accident by 18%. ABS brake systems were introduced in the late seventies and have enjoyed great technological advances since that time. Not only does ABS provide non-skid functionality but it also supports electronic stability control, brake assist, traction control, etc. Recently, additional sensors have been added to the system, gyroscopic sensors and steering wheel angle sensors. Both synchronize to match the direction of the car with the direction of the steering wheel. The wheel angle sensor a...

The odometer is a device that informs the user on the miles traveled by a particular vehicle. An odometer is designed in two types, mechanical and electronic. The readout of the mechanical odometer uses 6 rolling disks with numbers 1 through 9. Electronic odometers give you a digital readout of the mileage. Digital odometers are usually part of a larger digital display panel in newer vehicles, odometer displays are usually under the speedometer. When your odometer ceases to work, most people assume they must replace the unit, which can get quite expensive. However, you can repair an odometer fairly easily. The odometer stops working because the gear within the odometer has worn out. You'll need no special tools to do this, but you must know what to watch out for or you could permanently damage the speedometer that is housed in the same gauge as the odometer. Don't worry about messing with the car's recorded mileage when you repair an odometer; you will not and cannot chang...

The expansion valve is placed at the evaporator inlet tube. The expansion valve is used to control refrigerant flow into the evaporator. Excessive refrigerant circulation into the evaporator can cause evaporator surging, which can result in decreased ac efficiency and possible air compressor damage.Too little refrigerant circulation can cause evaporator frosting or decreased ac efficiency. The Expansion valve device contains a diverse hole that is handled by a feeling light placed in the evaporator air conditioning bout. The feeling light is a made pipe containing a bit of refrigerant. The changes in temperature of the evaporator cause the refrigerant in the feeling light to grow or contract. The action of the internal stress of the feeling light handles the quantity of refrigerant that moves through the Expansion valve device by different the size of the hole. Expansion valves are used more often in ac techniques equipped in brought in and older domesti...

A windshield wiper is a component on a vehicle that is designed to remove rain, debris, and moisture from the windshield. Wipers are created with corrugated ridges to maximize the wiping action. When a windshield needs to be cleaned the windshield wipers along with washer solvent can be effective in removing dirt and road grime. Windshield wipers are standard equipment on almost all vehicles. Windshield wipers make it possible to drive in the rain and snow, and also clean the windshield when it is dirty, so that the driver can drive safely. The windshield wiper system is comprised of the wiper switch, the wiper motor, the washer switch, the washer motor, the delay box and wiring from the ignition and the fuse panel. Power operates from the join section, when the windsheild wiper swap or the machine swap is triggered. The windsheild wiper swap is merged by the key. When it is triggered, the energy goes from the windsheild wiper swap to the windsheild wiper generator or the wait box. I...

Seat belts, also known as safety belts, are a safety feature that secures the passenger in the vehicle seat in case of an accident. Seat belts are part of the occupant restraint system that helps to avoid harmful movement of the passengers, which could lead to injuries and also protects the occupants from being ejected from the vehicle. Many seat belt designs have been developed for several different applications. The most common safety belt is the three point seat belt found in most cars. This belt is attached in three places; two mount near the rear of the seat bottom and one towards the top of the side pillar.A seat belt is a device used in motor vehicles, boats and airplanes designed to reduce the chances of injury and death in the event of a crash. A seat belt usually consists of one or more flexible but sturdy cloth straps that bind a passenger to his seat. The most common type of seat belt in cars are three-point belts which consist of a lap belt around the waist, and a shoulder...

Important: if an air bag warning light is illuminated while driving the air bag safety system has been disabled and will not activate in the event of an accident. The center of the steering wheel contains the airbag inflation module, which contains the nylon airbag and inflation unit. In case of an accident, an electrical signal is sent to the system that releases gas through a hole located behind the airbag inflation, which immediately fills the bag. The electric signal is passed through the coil assembly located on the steering column beneath the inflation module. Air bags aren't generally considered to be within the realm of the typical do-it-yourselfer (and rightly so) but of course, if you've got the right tools and manuals, anything is possible. A typical air bag system consists of several sensors located at various places within a car's structure along with the air bag itself. All cars today have two front air bags but their application has now proliferated with man...

Power locks or electric locks allow the doors of a vehicle to be locked or unlocked automatically. A keyless entry remote control using a key fob can enable a user to activate the door locks from a short range outside the vehicle. The basic system components include: lock actuator, switches, wiring and a circuit breaker. Voltage is sent to the actuator by using a control switch which is connected to the 12 volt power source of the car through a circuit breaker.There are only a few main components of a power door lock system. Inside the car door, approximately behind the exterior door handle, is a metal latch that is the actual component that keeps the car door shut. A metal rod protruding from the bottom of the latch is connected to an actuator, which is a small motor that moves the latch up and down. Another metal rod protruding from the top of the latch is connected to the door lock button that sticks up at the top of the door. The exterior door handle is connected to a metal rod ins...

What is a convertible top? Convertible tops are a type of vehicle top that folds, or retracts. They are usually soft, but recently, some vehicles have been manufactured with hard tops that fold down and can be concealed. However, these hard tops are not known as convertibles. Instead, they are called retractable hardtops because their frames are usually made out of steel. A convertible top is usually made from canvas or vinyl and fits over a steel, rigid plastic or aluminum frame. When convertible cars were first manufactured, they initially were made with only two doors. This holds true today. The production of convertibles spiked between the 1950s and 1970s and used to be available with only a plastic rear window. These days, tops are more durable, and a heated glass window has replaced the plastic window in many convertible models. However, quite a few convertibles still do come with the plastic rear window. A convertible car is a type of automobile which has a retracting or fol...