Keep Your Disc Brakes in Proper Friction!

Disc brake is a device that is used to stop the rotation of a wheel within the vehicle braking system. It is made of cast iron or ceramic and is connected to the wheel or the axle of the vehicle. In order to stop the rotation of the wheel, friction materials are used and they are forced mechanically, hydraulically or electromagnetically against the both sides of the disc. Disc brakes were developed in England in the 1980s. The very first caliper type disc brake was introduced in 1902 and it was tested in Lanchester cars. The modern style disc brakes were introduced way back in 1949 but the manufacturing stopped due to problems with the design.

Compared to the traditional drum brakes the disc brakes give a very good end result in stopping the vehicle. Disc brakes also recover from immersions much faster than drum brakes. Once disc brakes were introduced it was very popular among sports cars. This is because those vehicles demand highly efficient brake performance due to the high speed at which they operate. The designs of these brakes vary according to the type of the vehicle used. However, when it comes to the core components of a disc brake it is pretty much the same for each model. The components of the disk brakes include

• The brake Pad.
• The Caliper – this component contains a piston.
• The Rotor – this component is mounted to the hub.

Since almost all vehicles are using disk brakes it is important that vehicles users become aware of how this vehicle component can get damaged. The most common reasons include:

• Warping – this is caused by excessive heat. This can be minimized by using floating rotors.
• Scarring – this can occur if the brake pads are not changed on time once they reach end of their service life. To overcome this issue the brake pads must be checked regularly.
• Cracking – this issue is limited to drilled discs only. There are no current methods available to overcome cracking.
• Rusting – the brakes are made of iron so rusting is common to almost all the disc brakes.
   

Reliable performance of the brake system is critical for any vehicle. Therefore, it is the driver’s responsibility to check the disc brakes and related components regularly in order to avoid sever accidents.