Pay attention to this during your holiday travels!
Symptoms of overheating brakes
How does the brake system wear out? What are its typical faults? Which of them may appear during long holiday trips? How to recognize common symptoms of brake system wear? How to extend the life of your braking system? These are the questions we will answer in this material.
In this article:
What is brake system overheating?
Can a functioning braking system overheat?
Watch out for rims and hubcaps!
Failures in the “rear” affect the “front”!
Minor malfunctions generate serious problems
How does temperature affect brake discs?
Additional effects of overheating the braking system
Symptoms of overheating car brakes include
How to care for your braking system?
Further routes verify the condition of the car. This is always a serious challenge for the braking system, because some of its weaknesses or faults become visible only under load. In this case, it is about high speeds at which the brakes are used, heavy load on the car, uninterrupted operation of the braking system and, of course, temperatures. Most of these problems are related to overheating of the braking system. For many novice drivers, the symptoms of this phenomenon may be downright surprising.
What is brake system overheating?
The braking system is designed for high temperatures, but firstly, they can only appear around the friction elements (even 500-600oC is not unusual there), but this temperature must spread evenly over the discs or pads and should be effectively dissipated as quickly as possible. We talk about overheating of the braking system when the braking efficiency drops suddenly, when the brake fluid boils or when the friction elements (discs, pads, drums) become discolored, deformed or cracked.
Can a functioning braking system overheat?
Yes, it is possible in two cases. First of all, when there are extreme situations on the road. One of them is, for example, gentle braking with the foot brake during a long descent on mountain serpentines. A driver who forgets about the need to brake with the engine (or his car does not have such technical capabilities) and brakes only with the brake pedal for several minutes without interruption may overheat the brake discs.
The worst possible solution is to stop such a vehicle right after the exit. Then the discs and pads do not have the opportunity to cool down while driving and they cool down unevenly. The parts of the disc located within the brake caliper cool down differently than other parts and this may result in local overheating of the brake disc and its deformation.
Watch out for rims and hubcaps!
Not everyone realizes how important a role rims play for the braking system. All factory models of rims and hubcaps are tested for heat dissipation and ventilation of the cooling system. Replacing them with substitutes may (though of course it does not have to) change these parameters and, in special conditions – e.g. during holiday trips – lead to overheating of brake discs or pads.
Failures in the “rear” affect the “front”!
A huge surprise for drivers is the fact that wear of the rear braking system may result in overheating of the front braking system. When driving in the city, the car brakes basically only with the front brake and the condition of the rear braking system does not play a significant role. On the road, things change dramatically. When the car is fully loaded when braking from high speeds, full functionality of the braking system on both axles is necessary, because the “rear” strongly supports the “front” and therefore the “front” is much less loaded. Any failure of the rear braking system or brake force distribution system leads to overload and overheating of the front braking system.
Minor malfunctions generate serious problems
Inconspicuous rubbing of the brake pad against the disc or seized brake shoes gently rubbing against the drum when driving short distances in the city are not too serious a problem and many drivers ignore it. On the road, such a minor defect can lead to overheating of the braking system, including wheel locking!
How does temperature affect brake discs?
There is a common belief that overheating of the braking system results in bending of the brake discs, which can be demonstrated by measurement using a dial indicator. In practice, overheated brake discs do not have to change their geometric parameters at all. As a result of temperature, e.g. the color of the brake disc changes locally, and with the color – the friction coefficient. As a result, when braking with such discs, the driver may feel the car jerking because the friction coefficient constantly changes between the pads and the disc. Pulsation of the brake pedal may indicate that the discs are bent, although sometimes it is also a symptom of a seized brake caliper.
Additional effects of overheating the braking system
Most drivers and mechanics believe that overheating of the braking system only results in wear of the friction elements (discs, pads, shoes, drums). Unfortunately, the scope of damage caused by overheating is much wider. As a result of increased temperature, the brake caliper seals are often damaged, the grease in the wheel bearings melts, and sometimes even the joint cover is damaged.
Often, when the braking system overheats, the flexible brake lines at the calipers, as well as the brake fluid, should also be replaced as a preventive measure, regardless of when it was last changed (manufacturers recommend replacing the fluid regularly every 2 years).
Symptoms of overheating car brakes include:
The main symptom of overheating of the braking system is high temperature of the rims. In extreme situations, the paint covering them cracks and the hubcaps may also melt. Other common symptoms of overheating brakes include:
- decrease in braking force
- increasing vibrations when braking
- unusual noises when braking (squeaking, grinding)
- discoloration of brake discs (sometimes the discs are visible through the rims).
How to care for your braking system?
The best solution is to have the braking system periodically checked in a workshop. The quality of the brake fluid, the condition of the friction elements and the condition of the calipers are checked. Regardless of the inspection results, the intervals for replacing friction elements and brake fluid specified in the operating instructions must also be observed.
You should also take care of your braking system while driving. Although we cannot always influence the intensity of use of the braking system, it is a very good practice to cool the braking system after dynamic driving or mountain riding. Cooling down involves gently driving a kilometer or two with minimal use of the brake pedal.
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