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Brake Fluid & Cleaner
Brakes are fundamental to both the vehicle user and all others using the road at the same time. To ensure safety whilst out on the road, brakes need to kept to the highest standard, making Quantum's Brake Fluid & Cleaner an essential item for all vehicle users.
What are Brake Fluid and Cleaner
Brake fluid
What it does - Brake fluid is hydraulic fluid that is used in braking and clutch systems. Fluid is the ideal medium in transferring force into pressure because liquids are not easily compressed.
Why we need it - When a vehicle is in the process of braking, kinetic energy is converted into heat. Brake fluid has a very high boiling point so no vapour bubbles form within the system. This allows the force created by the pressing of the brake pedal to be maximised when it’s transferred to the brake disks/drums. Brake fluid also acts as a lubricant of all movable parts, and helps prevent corrosion.
Brake cleaner
What it does - This is usually an aerosol spray. It’s designed to degrease and clean metal parts and metallic surfaces. Its solvents quickly evaporate and leave no residue after being applied.
Why we need it - This is used to remove any loose material that would cause friction and potentially reduce the effectiveness of the braking system.
How brakes work
Brake fluid
Before we start we need to stop – and give a little thought about how brakes work.
Brake fluid is a hydraulic fluid specially developed to transfer force into pressure and amplify the braking force of a moving vehicle. When the brake pedal is pushed, the brake fluid transfers the force being created by the action directly to the brake disk or brake drum.
Types of brake fluid
The three main types of brake fluid are DOT 3, DOT 4 and DOT 5.
Quantum DOT 4 ESP Brake Fluid is specifically designed to ensure braking systems are functional and clean. Quantum DOT 4 ESP Brake Fluid is a high boiling DOT 4 fluid with low viscosity.
It has been specifically formulated to operate across the majority of ESP (Electronic Stability Program) brake systems and all hydraulic brake systems where a DOT 4 or DOT 3 fluid is specified.
DOT3 and DOT4 are both glycol-based fluids, while DOT5 is silicon-based. The main difference is that DOT3 and DOT4 absorb water, and DOT5 doesn't. All brake fluids are backwards compatible, meaning that each new release meets or exceeds the specifications for the previous grade.