Brakes are amongst the most critical safety systems in any vehicle. Your car brakes are responsible for slowing down or stopping, and their condition directly impacts vehicle performance and safety. Given the importance of brakes, it’s essential to understand how to check their life, choose the right type and maintain them to ensure optimal performance. This article will help you understand how your car brakes work and how to check for signs that they are worn and in need of replacement and give tips on how to make them last longer.
Before delving deep into brake maintenance, it’s helpful to understand the basics of how brakes work. Brakes convert the kinetic energy of a moving vehicle into heat through friction, effectively slowing or stopping the car. Most modern cars use disc brakes, consisting of a rotor (a metal disc), brake pads and a caliper. You can think of disc brakes as powerful hydraulic clamps (brake caliper and brake pads) that work to squeeze a spinning wheel (brake disc/rotor). When you press the brake pedal, the caliper squeezes the brake pads against the rotor, creating friction and heat, slowing down the car.
Disc brakes are common because they provide better heat dissipation and stopping power. Older vehicles may have a different style of braking system called drum brakes. Drum brakes are based on the same principle involving friction applied through hydraulic force, but instead of squeezing a brake rotor, drum brakes feature a drum-shaped rotor with brake shoes pressing against the drum’s inner walls. They are less common in modern cars and are generally considered outdated old technology.
