The invention relates to a brake system for a vehicle, with a main brake cylinder, a fluid control unit, and at least one wheel brake. The fluid control unit has, for brake pressure modulation in at least one brake circuit a switchover valve, an intake valve and a recirculating pump for each brake circuit. According to the invention, the fluid control unit has, for each brake circuit, a sliding valve which is connected into a suction line between the recirculating pump and the main brake cylinder. The sliding valve restricts the effective pressure on a suction side of the recirculating pump to a predeterminable maximum pressure value. In this case, the sliding valve can be arranged in series with or parallel to the intake valve.