Why Do People Brake Check: a Bad Manner or a Technical Fault

Many drivers encounter brake checks on the road and wonder why do people brake check? It is done due to either someone is tailgating or their brake is actually in problem.

Brake checking can be done when the car behind is getting too close to the car in front, in other words, tailgating. And the front driver decides to brake suddenly to stop the rear driver from following too close.

Is Brake Checking Illegal

If someone does a brake check just because the car behind them is too close to them, then brake checking or break test is a mistake. Since the 90s, law enforcement has declared that this is illegal. However, many hot-tempered drivers still cannot get rid of this habit.

Why do People Brake Check: Technical Problems

There are various reasons for which cars may fail the speedometer test. The most common include improper stopping, brakes being used beyond their limits, engine problems, and faulty transmission. Let’s take a look at the 3 main reasons why your brakes will fail a speedometer.

Beyond Their Limits

When the speedometer shows less than 50 mph, the brakes should be applied immediately to bring the car to a stop. If the speedometer is moving at an above normal speed, then the brakes should be applied more slowly to bring the vehicle to a stop. You should avoid driving at high speeds over this mark as it can cause damage to the brakes.

Engine Problems

When your car brakes are not properly fitted to the wheels, the rotors will wear faster and the brake fluid will deplete faster. The reason for this is that the rotors and brake pads will be contacting different parts of the drive train. The faster they contact the drive train the slower the brake system will be able to slow the vehicle.

Faulty Transmission

A car with faulty brakes will also have a high level of friction on the brake shoe. This will cause the car to slow down more quickly. The brake shoes are made from metal that wears slowly. The car slows down because the rubber on the shoe slips off. If you notice that the speedometer is increasing, then you are doing one of two things – the speedometer is too low or the car is performing the brake by-product method.

Tips on How to Check Brakes

The Drum

How do you know which is which? Well, if you find that the speedometer only goes up, you have either broken the drum on the brake side of the speedometer is upside down. Break side drums are made out of brass. An upside down speedometer will have an arrow that shows you that the break side has a “D”. This means that the side of the drum has bent. If you have a brand new drum and it still has a D, then you have found a bent drum.

Worn-out Brake Pads

The other reason why a car slows down is that the brake pads are worn out. When brakes are worn out, the rotors do not have enough friction to slow the car down. A lot of cars just slow down on their own because of this problem. However, many cars have speedometers that are mounted sideways – so even though the speedometer is moving, the rotors have yet to make contact with the road.

This makes it impossible for the brakes to have enough time to break and do the brake work. If you notice that your car slowing down when you put it in gear, then you have bent pads. Just replacing the pads will not fix the problem – you need to get the rotors cleaned and then the car should stop.

How to Do Brake Checks Properly

When you are looking at doing brake checks, you need to remember that you should always start on the brake first. This way, you can see how far the pads have come back. The best way to do this is by pulling the car up to a stop and then applying brake force to the brakes. You should then take your hand off the wheel whilst simultaneously pressing the brake pedal steadily.

If you have to pull the car back to a stop repeatedly, then you should start moving the brake pedals away from the brake line. Doing this will prevent you from overheating the brakes and causing them to break. If this fails, then you should replace the pads. As a general rule, you should give the brakes between four and five rotations before you apply brake pressure to them again. If you apply brake pressure after this, then you are damaging your rotors and can cause serious problems.

If you haven’t done this before, then it is important that you go over the brake pads with a fine tooth comb and make sure you remove all of the dirt and dust. You should then look at your rotors to ensure they are not damaged. If you have burnt something on your rotors, then it is possible that you have a faulty brake assembly. Having this repaired is one of the most important reasons to do a brake check.

Conclusions

You see there are many reasons for the brake check. It could be driver consciousness or possibly the technical fault of the vehicle. To prevent this from happening, you can install a dashcam in your vehicle. If someone wants to disturb you, you will have evidence to show to the police. One more thing is to check the brake of the vehicle periodically to avoid technical problems on the road.

source https://automotivegearz.com/why-do-people-brake-check/