Activitate

What Is A Master Cylinder?

A master cylinder is a central component of your braking system. The entire braking process relies on your master cylinder, and without it, your brakes wouldn’t be able to function.

In this article, we’ll demystify the brake master cylinder for you.

What Is The Master Cylinder?

The brake master cylinder is a component in your car’s braking system that drives the pressure generated by the brake pedal to the braking mechanism at your vehicles’ wheels. It’s essentially the heart of your car’s brake system.

When you press down on the brake pedal, that force pushes a piston through the brake cylinder, converting the force into hydraulic pressure.

This pressure pumps hydraulic fluid through the brake lines, transmitting pressure to a secondary cylinder at each wheel’s braking mechanism.

The secondary cylinders drive the caliper piston to engage the brake calipers in disc brakes (the wheel cylinder in drum brakes). This action then goes on to stop the wheel.

The clutch system in manual cars also employs master cylinders, but they’re not the same kind as brake master cylinders.

Where Is The Master Cylinder Found?

For manual brakes, the master cylinder is attached directly to the firewall and linked to the brake pedal.

In power-assisted brakes, the master cylinder is attached to a brake booster, which supplies more power to the braking system. The assembly is attached to the firewall in the engine compartment, with the brake pedal linked to the booster.