ABS Pump

ABS Pump provide the pressure your car needs to prevent its wheels from locking. Your car’s ABS Pump receives commands from the ABS controller. This in turn obtains speed-related data from sensor rings on each wheel. When the sensor ring detects that one of your wheels is spinning at a different speed than the others, the controller tells the ABS hydraulic unit to close the solenoid valve. This then reduces the braking force on the offending wheel and stops it from locking for more than a nanosecond. A faulty ABS hydraulic unit could cause your car to fail its MOT. If your wheels are locking and you see a warning light appear on the dashboard, it could be that your ABS hydraulic unit is not working as it should.

The ABS System. Anti-lock brake pump and valves. The theory behind anti-lock brakes is simple. A skidding wheel (where the tire contact patch is sliding relative to the road) has less traction than a non-skidding wheel.

Symptoms of a Bad or Failing ABS Control Module. The anti-lock braking system on a vehicle is an additional safety feature found on many modern vehicles. When the ABS system is not functioning then loss of traction, skidding, and hydroplaning are far more likely to occur under heavy braking conditions.

The Anti-Lock Braking System or Anti-Skid Braking System is commonly abbreviated as ABS and is an advanced braking technology installed on motor vehicles to prevent the wheels from locking up (ceasing motion) and skidding uncontrollably. It does so by pulsating the braking force delivered to the wheels similar to threshold braking, which is a technique commonly used in motor racing and the idea is to control the brake pedal pressure and apply maximum braking force to a point just before the wheels are about to slip. The ABS system improves vehicle control and will greatly reduce the stopping distance on dry and slippery surfaces, however, it can significantly increase the stopping distance on loose gravel and snow-covered roads where traction between the tyres and road surface is limited. ESP (Electronic Stability Control) works seamlessly integrated with ABS to further maintain tractive contact with the road surface by electronically controlling the front-to-rear brake bias. The ESP system, depending on the specific capabilities and implementation is also known as Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Traction Control System (TCS), Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and Dynamic Traction Control (DTC).

There are four main components that make up an ABS system; wheel speed sensors, hydraulic valves, a pump and an ABS controller, which is also known as an ABS Module or ABS ECU.

Wheel Speed Sensors
Hydraulic Valves
ABS Pump
ABS ECU / ABS Module / ABS Controller
ABS Ring
ABS Sensors

The wheel speed sensor is used to determine the acceleration or deceleration of the wheel. These sensors use an ABS ring which spins with the wheel and differential and creates a magnetic field around the wheel speed sensor, which in turn will generate the voltage in the sensor.

In each of the brake lines, there is a hydraulic valve which is controlled by the ABS module. On some setups, the valve will have three positions. Position One The valve is open and any pressure from the brake master cylinder passes directly through to the brake. Position Two The valve is closed, blocking the brake line and isolating the brake from the master cylinder. This prevents the pressure from rising further if the driver presses harder on the brake pedal. Position Three The valve opens partially, releasing some of the pressure from the brake. The majority of issues with the valve system occur because of clogged valves. A clogged inoperable valve will be unable to open, close or change position and the system will fail in trying to modulate the valves and control the pressure supplied to the brakes.

The pump in the ABS unit is used to restore the loss in pressure to the hydraulic brakes after the hydraulic valves have released it. Signals from the wheel speed sensors are processed by the ABS ECU Module and if a wheel slip is detected, the module will signal the valve to be released to avoid the wheel slip. After the valve is released and pressure lost, the pump is used to restore the lost pressure to the braking system. The ABS controller will modulate the pumps status to control the and provide the desired amount of pressure and reduce slipping.

The ABS controller, also commonly known as an ABS ECU receives input signals from all wheel speed sensors and can interpret the information received to identify if there is a wheel slip on any one wheel. If a wheel spin is detected and a wheel loses traction, the controller will limit the braking force (EBD) and send the signal to actuate the hydraulic braking valves on and off.

Yes, your car is not safe to drive; however, you should have us look it over if the light stays on. It's also important to note that if both the ABS and Brake System warning lights come on at the same time while you're driving, you must stop your car as quickly and safely as you can.

Sometimes, the worst part of getting your car fixed is having to bring it to the garage. We are therefore happy to offer our customers a free collection and delivery service If you prearrange a collection, we will pick your car up from your home or place of work and drive it to our premises, carry out all the necessary work (having consulted you) and deliver it back to you at the end of the day.

We are able to tow, jump start or repair your vehicle if you are experiencing problems or broken down for a small fee. If we can't sadly start your vehicle, we can contact a local recovery firm to collect your vehicle for a very competitive price.

Don't want to waste your day off?
You don't have the time to take your car in for a service or repairs?
Have you got problems with getting to and from the garage?

Here at Car Services in Reading, we believe that we offer a valuable product with our Free Collection and Delivery Service, we can collect either from your place of work or from your home address. If you are unsure about whether the address you are considering having your vehicle collected from is not within our range, then please do contact us.

Car Services in Reading operate a fleet of pool cars with a dedicated driver, so wherever we are collecting from, we need to be able to leave one of our pool vehicles either in your work car park / parking space, or if in a residential area, we would need to be able to leave our car either at your house or on the road with a permit if required. We would be grateful if you could bear this in mind when booking to use our free Collection and delivery service