Magazine for the auto service professional
Issue link: http://asp.epubxp.com/i/780462
35 | ASP February 2017 Circle 113 on Reader Service Card Technical water, that it will protect the braking system from corrosion. While silicone does not "hold" water, any airborne moisture (humidity in the air) can still enter the system and be carried on the surface of the silicone fluid. While the use of silicone fluid definitely helps to prevent internal system damage, it's not a cure-all to prevent moisture contamination. e real downside of silicone is that it may aerate/foam under rapid braking situations, such as might be experienced in repeated and rapid modulation of the brake pedal at high speed. Foaming results in air globules, which leads to an unexpected soft/lower brake pedal. For this reason, silicone fluid should also never be used in an ABS- equipped brake system. Silicone brake fluid can have a very undesirable effect on ethylene propylene rubber found in most brake systems, as silicone fluid may tend to cause seal swelling. In addition, silicone may tend to be some- what compressible when heated or in high altitudes, resulting in changes to the pedal travel. Primarily due to silicone's benign characteristic in terms of preventing damage to a painted surface, it remains popular for many show cars that are not intended to be driven routinely at higher speeds and potential hard braking. If the vehicle is stored for periods and rarely driven, and never exposed to performance For high performance appli- cations where the potential for extreme braking heat is likely, a variety of brands and specification level brake fluids are available that offer higher dry and wet boiling temperature performance.