National Brake Safety Awareness Month

August is National Brake Safety Awareness Month and Brake Safety Week. Brakes are a critical component in the safe operation of every vehicle. Especially during this time of year, we want to emphasize the importance of maintaining a well-functioning braking system. While accelerating from 0 to 60 mph is exciting, your car’s ability to decelerate from 60 mph to 0 should never be overlooked.

To assist you, we’ve provided operating instructions and FAQs to ensure your braking system is functioning correctly. Whether you’re a seasoned professional, a novice, or somewhere in between, we’re here to help!

To break in new brake pads with drilled and slotted rotors:
● Rapidly reduce speed from 40 mph to 10 mph with 5 moderate to hard stops.
● Rapidly reduce speed from 35 mph to 5 mph with 5 moderate stops.
● Drive as long as possible without overheating the brakes, and without coming to a complete stop at a moderate speed, for 5 minutes.

This is the cooling phase. It allows the heated resin in the brake pads to cool and solidify.

Once the brakes have cooled to their standard operating temperature, you can use them normally. Enjoy your new brakes!

Do you need to break in your brake pads and rotors?

The process of breaking in new brakes is called "breaking in." It involves controlled heating and cooling of the brakes to improve braking performance. During the break-in process, an even layer of brake pad material is transferred to the brake rotors. This also helps prevent future brake fade by releasing gases from the brake pad material.

Breaking in new rotors is an important step in helping your new brakes perform well. This process ensures the following:
● Proper brake operation
● Smoother, quieter braking
● An accurate feel for how your new brakes operate
● Optimal performance

If you skip the break-in process, your vehicle’s ability to slow and stop will not be optimal when the new brake pads are pressed against the new rotors. The vehicle will stop faster and smoother when there is already a layer of brake pad material on the rotors. The break-in process accomplishes this by applying an adequate base layer of brake pad material to the rotors to ensure optimal braking performance.
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What happens if you don't break in your new rotors?

Breaking in rotors ensures your brake system performs at its best. If the rotors are not broken in properly, your vehicle will not brake at its best.

A brake system that has not been broken in will deposit brake pad material randomly and unevenly on the rotor. This uneven layer of material can cause varying degrees of pedal judder, vehicle wobbling, and steering wheel vibration when the brakes are applied.

To understand the effects of a new rotor not being able to fit properly, it is important to understand how friction affects braking ability. Brakes use friction to convert kinetic energy into heat. There are two types of friction involved in this process:

● Abrasive friction: This type of friction occurs when two surfaces rub against each other, i.e. when the brake pad is pressed against the rotor. In abrasive friction, the only force that can stop the rotor from spinning is friction. Abrasive friction generates a lot of heat. Heat can soften the rotor and break down the particles of the brake pad, causing the brake and rotor to fail overall.
● Adhesion friction: This type of friction involves a thin layer of pad material on the surface of the rotor. When the brakes are applied, this thin layer of material bonds to the pad. As the pad moves over this surface, the bond breaks and reforms, creating adhesion friction. Brake pads that rely primarily on adhesion friction can last longer because these pads don't just wear away the surface of the rotor. They also tend to have less brake dust.

While abrasive friction cleans the rotor surface, adhesion friction forms, breaks, and reforms the layer of brake pad material. These two types of friction work together to give you the friction you need to brake. No brake pad today relies solely on abrasive friction or adhesion friction (although some may rely more on one mechanism than the other).

Once the pads and rotors are properly broken in, a thin uniform layer of brake pad material is present on the rotor surface. This thin layer is fundamental to the brake system's ability to stop your vehicle. When your brakes are properly broken in, abrasive friction removes debris from the rotor and creates a smooth surface for adhesion friction to work. Adhesion friction breaks and reforms the bond between the rotor and pad material, leaving a smooth layer of pad material ready for the next rotation.

If the rotors and pads are not properly installed, the abrasive and adhesion friction mechanisms will not work properly. This can cause the brake system, especially at high temperatures, to form random and uneven deposits of brake pad material on the rotor surface. As mentioned above, this can cause brake pedal pulsation, steering wheel vibration, and vehicle vibration.