How can you reduce brake wear?

[eljefino]

I've been so easy on brakes the backing plate rust jacked itself away from the lining. This led to a few tense pedal pumpings until I got metal on metal and a firm pedal with 3.5 wheels braking.

Pads are less than a tank of gas. Mine are $12. Don't overthink it.

 

[thr_wedge]

Brakes are cheap. Use the brakes as necessarry.

 

[jimbrewer]

Originally Posted By: Artem
Pads are cheap to replace vs transmission clutches and engine due to excissive wear from constant downshifting.

I drive a manual and just leave it in the gear I was cruising in and just coast up to lights and all the car to drop a good amount of speed naturally. If no one is behind me and there's a red light ahead, I coast even longer and usually the light turns green by the time I coast up to it.

I also apply the brakes gently but rather firmly. Dragging too low is bad for long life. Braking too hard is also bad. Find a middle ground.


Yeah, but, I wonder if that's so true anymore with these multi-gear autos. It seems to me being in 3rd on a six speed would be less taxing than being in second on a three speed. Besides, the car has to be in one gear or the other while going down a mountain road. why is third any more taxing than sixth? Besides, you might actually need to use your brakes in anger. You don't want them smoking when that happens.

 

[Artem]

Originally Posted By: jimbrewer
Originally Posted By: Artem
Pads are cheap to replace vs transmission clutches and engine due to excissive wear from constant downshifting.

I drive a manual and just leave it in the gear I was cruising in and just coast up to lights and all the car to drop a good amount of speed naturally. If no one is behind me and there's a red light ahead, I coast even longer and usually the light turns green by the time I coast up to it.

I also apply the brakes gently but rather firmly. Dragging too low is bad for long life. Braking too hard is also bad. Find a middle ground.


Yeah, but, I wonder if that's so true anymore with these multi-gear autos. It seems to me being in 3rd on a six speed would be less taxing than being in second on a three speed. Besides, the car has to be in one gear or the other while going down a mountain road. why is third any more taxing than sixth? Besides, you might actually need to use your brakes in anger. You don't want them smoking when that happens.



Are you serious? If you're going down a mountain @ 55mph in 6th gear @ 2,000rpm and throw it into 3rd @ say, 5,000rpm, don't you think that's putting more stress on the engine / transmission vs spinning @ 2,000rpm?

Having said that, I downshift my manual cars on a daily basis, rowing downward from 5th, into 4th, 3rd, 2nd and even 1st gear, as the car slows down. I do think because I don't care about engine / transmission wear. The car will last a long time due to high quality lubes and proper driving technique (rev-matching each downshift) but I still have to prove my point from a previous post that doing so does put added stress on the drive-train.

 

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: jimbrewer
Originally Posted By: Artem
Pads are cheap to replace vs transmission clutches and engine due to excissive wear from constant downshifting.

I drive a manual and just leave it in the gear I was cruising in and just coast up to lights and all the car to drop a good amount of speed naturally. If no one is behind me and there's a red light ahead, I coast even longer and usually the light turns green by the time I coast up to it.

I also apply the brakes gently but rather firmly. Dragging too low is bad for long life. Braking too hard is also bad. Find a middle ground.


Yeah, but, I wonder if that's so true anymore with these multi-gear autos. It seems to me being in 3rd on a six speed would be less taxing than being in second on a three speed. Besides, the car has to be in one gear or the other while going down a mountain road. why is third any more taxing than sixth? Besides, you might actually need to use your brakes in anger. You don't want them smoking when that happens.



When you use a transmission in manual lower-gear mode it "backfeeds" for engine braking instead of just freewheeling. It'd be interesting to see if the "backsides" of the gears wear out anything like the "front sides" used in normal operation, or if there are other bits like clutches that see wear in "engine braking" mode.

For a demonstration, go for a drive in drive without leaving first gear, then haul it into manual first while coasting. Should feel something.

 

[Cujet]

Use your brakes as necessary. They truly are cheap. I've found that I can go through 2 or 3 sets of pads per rotor. I generally don't turn rotors between pad changes. Learned that from the race car days, and it works out just fine.

I have a love/hate relationship with Ceramic pads. Some of them simply don't wear out quickly. That's worth something too.

On my Jaguar, I installed Ebay Posiquiet pads and drilled/slotted rotors to replace the short lived OEM pads/rotors. It has outlasted the OEM brakes by an order of magnitude! Requires higher pedal pressure, but stopping power is just fine in aggressive driving.

 

[Mr_Incredible]

Drive as if you had no brakes. Use them only when overtaken by unforseen events.

Coast, glide, always retain some motion up until the light changes, and remain to the back of the pack.

If you have no speed to scrub, then all your parts will not be stressed. Duh.

 

[KrisZ]

I prefer not to overthink things that are meant to be wear and tear. I use the brakes as needed, same thing with every other aspect of the car.
That is why I am strict on maintenance. This way I know I can push the car hard is I choose to, I can drive it across Canada if I choose to, I can lock the brakes if I have to, etc. I know the car will perform without complaints.

Regarding brakes, making sure everything is clean, rust pitting filed down and contact point lubricated properly will ensure proper lifecycle far more effectively than worrying about how hard you should be on the brake pedal.

 

[supton]

I'm with eljefino. Having a pad rust off is no fun. Unfortunately that is how I like to drive... No need to slam on the brakes here, I tend to think of braking as just a waste of energy. [So is speeding, but at least that has the tangible benefit of getting there faster, thus saving time.] If you brake lightly enough the pads might sieze to the calipers in which case the pads will then actually accelerate in wear (had that happen).

Drive hard, and replace in x months: or drive lightly and still have to take apart every x months. One is cheaper in dollars, but no savings on time spent.

 

[SHOZ]

92k on my OEM brakes and they are hardly worn.

 

[TFB1]

Drive sanely and anticipate your stops...

Back when I worked for a living the fleet manager mentioned the brakes on my Aerostar outlasted all of the other "sister" vans(10 in total)... I said well Roy you know why that is?? Nooo... I don't stop much... Well he had a dry sense of humor but let out a good laugh... Anyway I told him I watched ahead and if a light was turning or traffic bottle necking I just let off the throttle and coasted... Also kept my distance and didn't have my nose up the butt of the car in front of me, so I wasn't constantly using the brakes(we've all seen those guys)...

Anyone that thinks quick hard braking gives less wear than longer easy stops, doesn't know much about brakes...

 

[nleksan]

Meh, they're wear items. I also consider brakes and tires THE most critical parts of a car and there is absolutely no excuse for skimping on quality.

I prefer slotted 2pc rotors w aggressive pad compounds, such as I use on my four wheel PFC BBK w j-hook DD rotors and, for street use, ST Street Performance pads.
What's important is bedding your pads, and using high quality fluid and keeping the system bled. You don't need race spec brakes unless you race, but I think the most terrifying thing on the road is the fact that most people are using horrendous bargain basement brakes worn down to the backing.

 

[SteveSRT8]

Totally agree about tires and brakes. Only the best we can afford are used here, even on fleet vehicles.

Even my least interested drivers comment on the performance of our trucks, especially in the bad weather. Being able to stop and/or turn is a HUGE benefit in bad weather.

There are few things I believe are truly cost saving, as cheap generally means lower quality.

I sure hope the folks with cheap tires and brakes are not behind me...

 

[Michael_P]

As said from above; "Don't tailgate".

I can always tell a car where the driver tailgated in the winter. The radiator core support is usually rusted away after 5 years as a result of the car in front of them constantly spraying saltwater into their front end. It goes into the nooks and crannies of the sheet metal.
Just giving another reason not to tailgate.

 

[badtlc]

longer/slower brake times, don't mash the brake pedal and coasting more.

The more heat/unit of time the brake pad has to dissipate, the greater the wear. Using longer braking times might still have to produce the same stopping power but spreading that heat dissipation over a longer period of time will reduce the amount of wear for each use.