Front Disc Brakes

COMPONENTS
The front disc brake system on the Viper is made up of the components listed below.
- Steering Knuckle
- Hub And Bearing Assembly
- Brake Rotor
- Shoe and Lining Assemblies
- Brake Caliper Assembly, 4 Piston Opposed Fixed
These components are described in detail below.

Steering Knuckle

Brake Caliper Mounting To Steering Knuckle:

The steering knuckle is used as the mounting location for the caliper assembly and the hub and bearing assembly. The steering knuckle also reacts against the braking forces when stopping the vehicle.

Hub And Bearing Assembly
The Front Hub And Bearing Assembly is used to mount the braking disc to the vehicle. The braking disc is mounted to the front face of the hub assembly by the wheel mounting studs. The braking disc is retained to the hub by the front wheel and the wheel attaching nuts.

Brake Rotor
The purpose of the brake rotor is to slow down and stop the front wheels of the vehicle. This is accomplished by applying tile brake shoes against the braking surfaces of the rotor. The rotor is made of iron and vented to help cool it during brake applications.

Brake Shoe and linings

Front Disc Brake Caliper Assembly:

The purpose of brake shoes is to slow down and stop the front wheels of the vehicle. The brake shoe lining material is a semimetallic non-asbestos formula. The brake lining material used has been specifically formulated to meet the braking requirements of this vehicle. When brake shoes are replaced, only brake shoes meeting the Original Equipment Manufacturer formulation (such as Mopar replacement parts) should be used to maintain the original braking performance of this vehicle.

Brake Caliper
The brake caliper applies the brake pads to the brake rotor. This is done using the Viper's 4 piston opposed fixed caliper. The caliper body is cast aluminum, and is 2 individual pieces which are held together by 4 attaching bolts. Each caliper half houses 2 pistons, 38, and 42 mm. in size. The pistons are mounted in the caliper halves so that the 38 mm piston is on the bottom and the 42 mm is on top when the caliper is mounted on the vehicle. The 2 halves of the caliper are hydraulically connected by means of an external brake tube on the bottom of the caliper assembly. Each caliper half has an individual bleeder screw at the top of the caliper half and each side must be individually bled. The caliper bolts directly to the steering knuckle of the vehicle by means of 2 machined mounting bosses on the inboard caliper half.

Fig. 2 Piston Seal Function:

One square cut rubber piston seal is located in the machined seal groove of each piston bore. There are 4 piston bores, 2 located in each half of the caliper assembly. This provides the hydraulic seal between the caliper pistons and the caliper assembly.

The piston seal also provides a means of pulling the piston back into the piston bore of the caliper assembly. This will maintain the proper brake shoe to rotor clearance. The ability of the piston seals to pull the pistons back into the caliper bores is illustrated. As the piston moves out of the caliper bore, as the brake pedal is applied the piston seal becomes distorted. When the brake pedal is released and hydraulic pressure removed from the piston, the piston seal returns to its original shape pulling the piston back into the caliper bore.

A molded rubber dust boot is installed in a groove of each caliper bore and piston. The purpose of this dust boot is to keep contamination from the wall of the caliper bore and piston.

The dust boots mount in the caliper bore openings and in a groove of each piston.