Source: Top Gear Philippines posted an article on how a driver’s actions can diminish the ability and longevity of a vehicle’s braking system. The following is an excerpt of the article, with the entire piece available by clicking on this sentence.
MANILA – Your brakes are the single most important safety feature of your car. This is by no means an exaggeration: they can spell the difference between life and death. But what many forget is that brakes do wear over time as we drive—how fast depends on our driving habits.
You can avoid wearing your brakes out too quickly by driving mindfully. It’s something that saves you from having to replace your brake pads too soon, which in turn saves you a lot of money. With that, here are five driving habits you should try to avoid allowing your brake pads to do a better job:
Aggressive driving
Driving fast and furious is dangerous, and it’s something you shouldn’t really be doing to begin with, especially when you look at our roads and the sheer number of vehicles on them. Accelerating when you don’t need to and stomping on the brakes when you realize you’re a second away from sitting in a pile of scrap metal, causes a lot more wear on your brake pads. Just drive safely and anticipate the movement of what’s in front of you, starting and ending with just enough pedal pressure. It can be done.
Always stepping on the gas or the brakes
Some of us have developed the habit of always jumping between the gas and the brake pedals, with no in-between. This burns two things: Your fuel and your brake pads. The simple way to quit doing this is to benefit from the basic physics of coasting. Practice gauging distance, and just allow your car to coast and naturally slow down—it’s getting from point A to point B with the least energy expended. Just be sure to do it during situations where you don’t need to accelerate or slow down right away.
