Foot Brake - Volvo V60 PLUG-IN HYBRID Owner's Manual

08 Starting and driving

Foot brake

The foot brake is used to reduce the car's
speed while driving.
The car is equipped with two brake circuits. If
a brake circuit is damaged then the brake
pedal will engage deeper and a higher pres-
sure on the pedal is needed to produce the
normal braking effect.
The driver's brake pedal pressure is assisted
by a brake servo.
WARNING
The brake servo doesn't operate until after
the engine has been started, see Starting
the engine (p. 261).
If the foot brake is used in a de-energised car
with the electricity and diesel engine switched
off - e.g. if the car is being towed - then pedal
travel is slightly longer and a higher pedal
pressure must be used to brake the car.
In very hilly terrain or when driving with a
heavy load the brakes can be relieved by
using engine braking. Engine braking is most
efficiently used if the same gear is used
downhill as up.
08
276
For more general information on heavy loads
on the car, see Engine oil - adverse driving
conditions (p. 402).
Function check when the engine is
started
A V60 Plug-in Hybrid is equipped with a so-
called "brake by wire" brake system. After
each time the engine is started there is an
automatic function check of the brake system
when the driver depresses the brake pedal to
take the gear selector from the P position,
see Automatic gearbox -- Geartronic (p. 272).
In connection with the function check, in
some cases, the information display may
show a message and a symbol, see examples
in the table at the end of this section.
NOTE
During the function check the pedal travel
is slightly longer than during normal brak-
ing.
Light braking - hybrid battery charging
The electric motor's engine brake is used
during light braking. The car's kinetic energy
is then converted to electrical energy instead,
which is used to charge the hybrid battery.
Battery charging with engine braking is indi-
cated in the combined instrument panel
(p. 67) with animation.
This function is active in the speed range
150-5 km/h - for harder braking, as well as
outside the speed range, the braking is com-
plemented by the hydraulic brake system.
Cleaning the brake discs
Coatings of dirt and water on the brake discs
may result in delayed brake function. With
wet road surfaces, prior to long-stay parking
and after the car has been washed, it is there-
fore advisable to carry out cleaning by brak-
ing gently for a short period while driving.
Maintenance
To keep the car as safe and reliable as possi-
ble, follow the Volvo service intervals as
specified in the Service and Warranty Book-
let.
IMPORTANT
The wear on the brake system's compo-
nents must be checked regularly.
Contact a workshop for information about
the procedure or engage a workshop to
carry out the inspection - an authorised
Volvo workshop is recommended.