Blrfl
Natural Rider Enhancement
Well, nothing is foolproof because they always manage to invent a better fool. It's reasonably foolproof in that you'll know the system isn't functioning if the ABS light doesn't turn on when you start the bike or if it stays on after you start rolling. If one of those happens, there's a fault and you have no ABS. Part of the check done at startup includes moving the pistons in the modulators through a full cycle and making sure the position sensors are working, so if the computer is happy, you should be confident that it will do its job.My question re the ABS models is 'How do you know it's working without trying to lock up the tires?'. How fool proof is the ABS system and how much maintenance does it need to ensure that it is working as intended? How often does it break or seize up and how would you know? I have seen lots of input on dragging brakes, SMC's and the like. How many ABS bikes are rolling without functioning ABS? Is the system foolproof?
The system itself doesn't need any maintenance other than what you'd do to maintain the brakes. It's also really not very complex, either. The modulators just have pistons that increase or decrease the volume of a chamber that's inserted along the brake lines, and that's what allows it to modulate the pressure. Other than the wheel speed and piston position sensors, that's pretty much all there is to it. The newer, electronically-controlled systems are even simpler and give you the benefits of linked brakes without the additional plumbing.
The SMC-related problems are an artifact of the brakes being linked, so both ABS and non-ABS bikes can have them.
--Mark