July/August 2019

JULY/AUGUST 2019 AFTERMARKET 35 www.aftermarketonline.net a professionally finished job. Tim observes: “On older vehicles with drum brakes that have components mounted on them, the MOT manual states they should be inspected for ‘presence and security or brake back plates, wheel cylinders and calipers’ and rejected if ‘a brake back plate, wheel cylinder or caliper securing device is lose, missing or excessively deteriorated’. Disc brake shields/plates on the other hand, are not affected by the MOT unless they are hindering braking performance.” Tim adds: “The ELTA VXPRO brake shield range includes 65 part numbers, which provides aftermarket coverage of more than 9,000 applications for in excess of 25 million vehicles.” Training Braking products change over time as we have seen, so it is important that your training in this area also keeps up. According to Scott Irwin, Head of Technical Training at TMD Friction, a unified training programme is vital: “We have always been committed to supporting our customers -from distributors and garages to the end user. Training is an important part of this. Over the years we have regularly worked with distributors to offer staff training on best practice brake replacement, whilst also going directly into garages to provide support and guidance. “While mechanics are of course experienced in what they do, the evolving technology of vehicles and the brake system requires updated training and refreshers on best practice. We are also on-hand should one of our customers have any fitment issues or questions. “We had one instance during a training session where mechanics were questioning a certain noise on a particular brake pad. The information we received allowed us to look at the pads more in-depth. Upon further inspection, it became evident that the pads were being fitted incorrectly. On the set application, there’s a finger- side pad and a piston-side pad, and they were getting it the wrong way around, causing noise issues. We used this information to go back to product management to see how we can make this easier for garages. We now put a directional arrow on the pad, as well as including the information within our technical training.” Scott adds: “Training is not only an important service we offer customers, but it is an integral part of our product development and R&D. This information is used to influence future product engineering and our training programmes. As part of my role as Head of Technical Training, I implement a standard best practice globally amongst our technical team in the different regions. This ensures that all training is unified from a best practice point of view, as well as being able to share information between ourselves as needs vary from region to region.” Technical tip: Noises and vibrations Brembo shares its tips for replacement that prevents of noises and vibrations. When changing discs and pads, always carry out a more complete check-up and maintenance on the system itself. Replacing brake discs and pads might be a relatively routine job, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Even if you’ve fitted new parts entirely correctly, other factors may still cause squeaks or rattles – and even safety issues. Causes can be found in the poor wear condition of the other braking system components, which have deteriorated over time, thereby resulting in poor operation of pads and discs. Here is Brembo’s 12-point brake maintenance checklist: If changing pads: Check for disc wear too If changing discs: Always replace the pads as well Clean any rust or dirt off the disc and hub coupling surfaces. If there are deposits or dirt on the existing discs, also clean their braking surface Check the oscillation of the brake disc, mounted on the wheel hub. Normally it should not exceed 0.1mm. If there is a problem, also test the oscillation of the wheel hub alone, which should not exceed 0.05mm If the new pads have anti-noise shims, apply them correctly. Do not re-use the old shim Check the pistons, seals, dust boots and sliding elements on the caliper to ensure they are not damaged or corroded and that they can slide. Use a specific grease suitable for each component that does not affect the rubber parts. Replace any deteriorated parts Clean the contact surfaces between the caliper bracket and the pads. Then apply an anti-noise grease If the caliper springs are old and worn, inspect, clean or replace with new components Check that the springs are correctly positioned Assess the brake fluid level – this should be between the min. and max. indicators. The brake fluid should be replaced every two years or when specified by the manufacturer Tighten the wheel screws in the right sequence, using a torque wrench with the correct tightening torque Conduct a brief road test to check the braking system is working well and there are no vibrations or noises