FRANKFURT, Germany – Continental reported it has received a major award in the third quarter for the series production of its semi-dry brake system (also known as Future Brake System, FBS), valued about $1.6 billion.

This success increases the liftetime sales to more than $2 billion for this new system. The start of series production with a North American car manufacturer is planned for 2025.

Continental will be introducing a technology change at its customer from wet to a semi-dry-brake system, which will include several new components. Continental’s Future Brake System uses electromechanical brakes on the rear axle which are operated “dry”, without brake fluid. On the front axle, the wheel brakes continue to be operated hydraulically.

The new technology also includes the second-generation brake-by-wire system MK C2. In addition to the semi-dry brake system, the car manufacturer also ordered Continental Air Supply, a highly integrated air supply system used in combination with air springs on the front and rear axles for air suspension.

While vehicle architectures are undergoing fundamental changes towards a zone-based architecture, brake systems are becoming increasingly intelligent to meet the future needs and requirements of automated driving, electrification and digitalization. In line with its goal of Vision Zero, Continental is committed to improving traffic safety for everyone. That is why the company is driving the development of Future Brake Systems that are primarily used in vehicles with modified architectures.

The FBS gives the car manufacturer the freedom to go to a smart actuator hardware where the software can be distributed on any electronic control unit to ensure safety redundancy and offering flexibility to the customers – a further step towards the software-defined vehicle. Continental’s FBS roadmap not only demonstrates market readiness with this new customer award, but it also highlights that the company is well prepared and positioned to lead this change.

Ranging from FBS 0 to FBS 3, Continental’s roadmap shows the evolution of brake controls to motion systems and draws the path towards completely “dry” brakes at the rear and front axles. At the beginning of this roadmap (FBS 0) is the award-winning, second generation of Continental’s brake-by-wire system MK C2 brake system as the gateway into all Future Brake Systems.

The generations that build on this are intended to further strengthen Continental’s position as one of the market leaders in one-box brake-by-wire systems. In the next development step (FBS 1), it is no longer necessary to mount the system directly at a specific location on the firewall in front of the driver to enable mechanical fallback. Instead, an electronic pedal supports new vehicle concepts involving different vehicle interiors and dimensions, such as the skateboard chassis of electrified vehicles, on which various bodies can be mounted.