The invention relates to an electro-
hydraulic brake system (1) for a motor vehicle, comprising a main
brake cylinder (2) which can be actuated by a
brake pedal (1a) for actuating wheel brakes (8, 9, 10, 11), a pressure generating device (5) which can be activated electronically, an additional
brake actuator (50) which can be activated electronically, an open and closed-
loop control unit (12), wherein in a
normal mode of operation the open and closed-
loop control unit (12) detects a requirement for braking on the basis of the actuation of the brake pedal (1a) by the driver and activates the pressure generating device (5) to build up braking torque on the wheel brakes (8, 9, 10, 11), wherein, if the pressure generating device (5) is not activated or cannot be activated, the driver gains direct access to the wheel brakes (8, 9, 10, 11) and the open and closed-
loop control unit (12) controls the additional brake
actuator (50) to build up braking torque, wherein as a
backup the open and closed-loop
control unit (12) monitors the brake pedal travel and, when a predetermined pedal travel threshold value (120) is reached, activates the additional brake
actuator to build up braking torque,and wherein, in the event of a succession of brake pedal actuations by the driver, the pedal travel threshold value (120) is increased at least once. The invention further relates to a method for operating an electro-
hydraulic brake system.