Braking Questions

[Guess My Name]

If you have ABS do you brake the same as conventional brakes?

Do you find yourself driving harder and braking harder due to the added security of ABS?

Have you ever tested your ABS brakes on a gravel or dirt road and been amazed?

Tell your story here!

[FLONI]

unforunately i never had a car that didnt have them...i know i must have driven my pops old truck...nd that was like a early 80's bronco....all i know bout that sucker was i could barely tun the steering wheel....but...i saw one of those specials on TLC 1 nite...about cop stories...etc....and the first cruiser in someplace down by you..like texas or sumthin....anyway...the first cruiser to have ABS out in...they didnt really give the cops such a great"training" for them....so a trooper was wailing it after a speeder...came to an intersection and had to slam on the brakes....for some reason he was under the impression that ABS meant you should pump the brakes...so..press...then release...press...etc....well...horribly the guy went straight into a brick wall....i htink the ABS...like air bags are taken for granted...meanwhile no one is tld how these things actually work...

[Jngrbrdman]

I am sad to admit that I have no idea what ABS is. I know it is some sort of braking system and I am sure that both my cars have it but I don't know what it does. That has always been my shame. I know quite a bit about cars but ABS never came up during my 'education'.

[FLONI]

has to be as simple as AntiLockBrakes...i mean....it doesnt allow your brakes to lock up if you have to use them in an emergency so you maintain better control of your car because its a gradual slowing of all the wheels....im sure someone who actaully knows what they're talkin about will be here soon........im gueesing that in the "old days'...if you jam on the brakes....and say your front left one locks...your screwed cause you can only steer in a certain direction....

[TortoiseAWD]

Originally posted by Jngrbrdman
I am sad to admit that I have no idea what ABS is. I know it is some sort of braking system and I am sure that both my cars have it but I don't know what it does. That has always been my shame. I know quite a bit about cars but ABS never came up during my 'education'.

Check out the this article at How Stuff Works for info on ABS . . .

A couple of things . . . if your cars have ABS, and you're not familiar with the system, get thee to a wet, empty parking lot to try them out at the limit. Get the car going 10 or 15 mph, then pound the brakes and don't let up if you feel a pulsing in the pedal or hear a growling noise from the brakes. That's the ABS system doing its thing. Once you get familiar with that "feel" when then kick in, do the same test (get up to speed, then hammer the brakes), and try to steer at the same time. ABS helps the car retain some directional control, as opposed to an all-out skid without ABS, where the front tires won't change direction unless you release the brakes to get some traction back to the front wheels.

Not all ABS is created equal . . . some truly suck, while others feel like the hand of God has reached down to save your *** On snow and gravel ("deformable" surfaces), ABS may increase braking distances, although while maintaining some directional control. I've hit washboards on a gravel road before, and thought I was going to eat a ditch because the ABS wouldn't disengage to slow the car. . . my understanding is that some European models equipped with ABS have "off" switches for such conditions.

ABS is not a cure-all. It won't save you if you go into a corner way to hot, and it won't do squat if there's no traction at all (i.e., everybody's screwed on wet glare ice, so be careful).

Tort

[Guess My Name]

I am hung over from my night on bourbon street. My mind is nt working yet sorry.

Please no capital letters for a while I have a headache.

I did see some girls do strange things for beads last night.

[Dude]

I love my antilock brakes. I have had three panic stops since getting them, and they are wonderful. All of my cars will have them from now on.

[Jngrbrdman]

Originally posted by TortoiseAWD
Check out the this article at How Stuff Works for info on ABS . . .

A couple of things . . . if your cars have ABS, and you're not familiar with the system, get thee to a wet, empty parking lot to try them out at the limit. Get the car going 10 or 15 mph, then pound the brakes and don't let up if you feel a pulsing in the pedal or hear a growling noise from the brakes. That's the ABS system doing its thing. Once you get familiar with that "feel" when then kick in, do the same test (get up to speed, then hammer the brakes), and try to steer at the same time. ABS helps the car retain some directional control, as opposed to an all-out skid without ABS, where the front tires won't change direction unless you release the brakes to get some traction back to the front wheels.

Not all ABS is created equal . . . some truly suck, while others feel like the hand of God has reached down to save your *** On snow and gravel ("deformable" surfaces), ABS may increase braking distances, although while maintaining some directional control. I've hit washboards on a gravel road before, and thought I was going to eat a ditch because the ABS wouldn't disengage to slow the car. . . my understanding is that some European models equipped with ABS have "off" switches for such conditions.

ABS is not a cure-all. It won't save you if you go into a corner way to hot, and it won't do squat if there's no traction at all (i.e., everybody's screwed on wet glare ice, so be careful).

Tort

That was amazingly helpful. Thank you very much.

[YoSteve]

The only difference in my braking style between ABS and not is letting up on the brake. If you don't have ABS the wheels lock you slide and then you start to turn, with ABS the wheels don't like. So in the former situation you should let up on the brake before you slide and turn, in the ABS situation you can just keep the brake fully pressed and steer normal. In any situation always give youself ample room to stop. (I live in the snow belt BTW )