Browse Publications Technical Papers 1999-01-0346
1999-03-01

Aluminum Alloys for Automotive Disc Brake Calipers 1999-01-0346

Disc brake calipers for the automotive industry have traditionally been made from ductile iron, but more of the calipers are currently being converted to aluminum, with weight savings of nearly 40 percent. Amcast Automotive has been involved in the development and manufacture of aluminum caliper castings since 1984 when it first supplied service production aluminum caliper castings for the four-wheel disc brake Pontiac Fiero. Presently, Amcast is introducing several new high volume automotive calipers using heat-treated aluminum 354 and 357 alloys.
The paper presents alloy optimization and mechanical property information of aluminum 354 and 357 alloys to aid brake engineers in the design of calipers. In addition to microstructure evaluation, mechanical properties obtained from test bars cut from actual heat-treated caliper castings are presented. The mechanical property include:
  • Room temperature tensile, yield, and elongation values
  • Elevated temperature tensile, yield, and elongation values
  • Axial fatigue strength values
  • Hardness
The two alloys exhibit similar room temperature properties with 354 showing marginally higher values. The elevated temperature tensile values of 354 alloy is slightly higher because of its higher copper content. Similarly, 354 fatigue data shows slightly higher values. The 354 alloy has 1% higher density than 357 alloy. However, both of these alloys are suitable for the caliper application. This paper attempts to assist the brake caliper designer in the conversion from iron caliper to aluminum caliper.

SAE MOBILUS

Subscribers can view annotate, and download all of SAE's content. Learn More »

Access SAE MOBILUS »

Preview Document Add to Cart
Members save up to 16% off list price.
Login to see discount.
Special Offer: Download multiple Technical Papers each year? TechSelect is a cost-effective subscription option to select and download 12-100 full-text Technical Papers per year. Find more information here.
We also recommend:
TECHNICAL PAPER

Fabrication of Reinforced Aluminum Brake Calipers Via Pressureless Metal Infiltration of Multi-Piece Preforms

970786

View Details

TECHNICAL PAPER

Rust Is Not a Must. Improvement of Discs Corrosion Resistance by Tuning of Grey Cast Iron Alloying Elements and Microstructure

2020-01-1624

View Details

TECHNICAL PAPER

A Low-Cost Material Design of Gray Iron for Heavy-Duty Brake Drums

2009-01-0216

View Details

X