Nissan Sentra Owners Manual: Brake precautions

Nissan Sentra Owners Manual / Starting and driving / Brake system / Brake precautions

Vacuum assisted brakes

The brake booster aids braking by using engine vacuum. If the engine stops, you can stop the vehicle by depressing the brake pedal. However, greater foot pressure on the brake pedal will be required to stop the vehicle and stopping distance will be longer.

Using the brakes

Avoid resting your foot on the brake pedal while driving. This will overheat the brakes, wear out the brake pads faster, and reduce gas mileage.

To help reduce brake wear and to prevent the brakes from overheating, reduce speed and downshift to a lower gear before going down a slope or long grade. Overheated brakes may reduce braking performance and could result in loss of vehicle control.

WARNING

While driving on a slippery surface, be careful when braking, accelerating or downshifting. Abrupt braking or accelerating could cause the wheels to skid and result in an accident.
If the engine is not running or is turned off while driving, the power assist for the brakes will not work. Braking will be harder.

Wet brakes

When the vehicle is washed or driven through water, the brakes may get wet. As a result, your braking distance will be longer and the vehicle may pull to one side during braking.

To dry the brakes, drive the vehicle at a safe speed while lightly pressing the brake pedal to heat up the brakes. Do this until the brakes return to normal. Avoid driving the vehicle at high speeds until the brakes function correctly.

Parking brake break-in

Break-in the parking brake shoes whenever the effect of the parking brake is weakened or whenever the parking brake shoes and/or drum/rotors are replaced, in order to assure the best brake performance.

This procedure is described in the vehicle service manual and can be performed by a NISSAN dealer.

Brake system

The brake system has two separate hydraulic circuits. If one circuit malfunctions, you will still have braking at 2 wheels. ...

Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)

WARNING The Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) is a sophisticated device, but it cannot prevent accidents resulting from careless or dangerous driving techniques. It can help ma ...

Other materials:

Washing
Wash dirt off with a wet sponge and plenty of water. Clean the vehicle thoroughly using a mild soap, a special vehicle soap or general purpose dishwashing liquid mixed with clean, lukewarm (never hot) water. CAUTION Do not use car washes that use acid in the detergent. Some car washes, es ...

Preparation
Special Service Tool The actual shape of the tools may differ from those illustrated here. Commercial Service Tool Clip list Descriptions for Clips Replace any clips which are damaged during removal or installation. ...

Component parts
Component Parts Location EPS control unit (view with steering column removed from vehicle) EPS motor (view with steering column removed from vehicle) Torque sensor (view with steering column removed from vehicle) ABS actuator and electric unit (control unit) EC ...