what happens to car brakes if you get air in them?

Answer 1

Spongy is one description.

You find that you hit the pedal and nothing happens for just long enough to 'carp' yourself!

Answer 2

Air In Brakes

Answer 3

If you have air in your brake pipes your brake pedal goes spongey and your brakes hrdly work and can stop. To make sure you need buy some brake fluid. Careful with this it will strip cat paint. Lift your bonet and locate the brake oil container. This is normally towards the back on the left hand side. (White frosted plastic with two cables going to either side of the screw cap.
Remove one of your front wheels and you will see the "Brake Calliper" on the top around the back you will see a little valve (Called a nipple) you will need a 8mm or 10mm spanner to loosen it off.
To get rid of the air in the pipes you will need a second person sat in the drivers seat to push the break pedal.
With the brake oil container tighened and the nipple tightened ask the person in the drivers seat to push the brake pedal three times and on the forth hold the pedal down. At this point loosen of the n ipple and brake fluid will splurt out, tighten up the nipple and ask the person in the drivers seat to release the brake pedal again.
Repeat this several times until the flow of brake fluid from the nipple is smooth.
*Maker sure the blake fluid container does not run out of fluid*
Once this is done repaet the same on the other front wheel.

Please note this adjustment can only be done on the front wheels. It may be possible that the back brakes have a leak causing spongyness, this is normally told by seeing the fluid running down the inside of the wheel. This means that the brake caliper needs replacing cost usually £50 pair

Answer 4

It is the pressure of the fluid in the brake lines that pushes the friction part of the brakes against the moving part to stop the car. It works because if you push on one end of tubing with fluid in it (like the part by the brake pedal) the same pressure will show up at the other end (the part at the wheels). However air is compressible so if you have some air inside that tubing then the pressure on the fluid at the brake pedal will just end up compressing the air and will never get through to the rest of the fluid out by the brakes. The result is no brake movement and no stopping.

Answer 5

The brakes will feel spongy and you won't be able to stop as quickly as you would with no air.
It really depends on how much air is in the brake line.
So, is this a question of curiosity or should I stay off the street?

Answer 6

Air can be compressed while brake fluid cant so 1. your brakes will not work as well and 2. they will feel soft or spongy You need to bleed the air out

Answer 7

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
what happens to car brakes if you get air in them?

Answer 8

The answers are correct but, if your question is to do with your vehicle having air in it`s breaking system get it sorted out in a hurry, the more air that gets into the system, the less the brakes work, untill they get to the point where the brake pedal will go down to the floor, at this point.......NO BRAKES.... you `aint gonner stop....

Answer 9

Car brakes are hydraulic and rely on having all of the air bled out of the system. Air is compressible, unlike liquids. when air gets in, you lose the solid link to the wheels. Now you have to push the pedal further to make up for the compressing of the air in the lines.

Answer 10

Do you mean air in the brake fluid? They will not work. You bleed the brakes to get the air out.

Answer 11

If you get air in the LINES, the pressure from your foot will not transfer through the brake fluid to the brakes. Thus, stoming the break peddal will not slow down your car. I don't reccomend doing that. :-)