23
2025
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12
Drive carefully and smoothly to keep brake failures away from you.
Our country has many mountainous areas, and due to the terrain, most of the roads in our country have steep slopes. In daily driving, braking becomes particularly important.
● Major Causes of Brake Failure and How to Handle Them
There are many reasons for brake failure. Here, the editor has briefly classified them as follows:
1. Brake failure caused by insufficient regular maintenance
Neglecting the maintenance of the braking system in daily life can lead to its failure when it is needed most, potentially causing a serious accident.
Solution: Regularly check whether the master cylinder, wheel cylinders, air reservoir, and lines are functioning properly. Any leakage or poor performance should be repaired or replaced immediately. During driving, always pay attention to changes in air pressure on the dashboard.
2. Improper operation leading to mechanical failure
Due to the driver’s lack of experience, incorrect vehicle operation can cause mechanical failure.
Solution: When descending a long slope, shift to a lower gear to reduce speed and use the engine to help control the vehicle speed. Minimize brake use to prevent the brake pads from overheating. When braking, use pumping brake techniques instead of pressing down hard all at once.
3. Severe overloading causing brake failure
Severe overloading increases the total weight of the vehicle, and under the effect of gravitational acceleration, it increases the vehicle's inertia, directly causing brake failure.
Solution: Overloaded vehicles have an increased total weight, which in turn increases the vehicle's inertia. When driving an overloaded vehicle, it is essential to drive slowly and never ignore safety to save time.
● Reasonably choose auxiliary braking to make driving safer
Exhaust brakes have become standard on most cargo vehicles and should be used during driving. In addition, we can also choose other auxiliary brakes (such as engine brakes, retarders, etc.) to make driving safer.
● What to do if the vehicle experiences brake failure while driving
If a vehicle experiences brake failure during driving, how should we deal with it? Here are some summarized tips for reference:
1. Stay calm
When we find that the brakes have failed, our normal physiological reactions like “accelerated heartbeat” and “mind going blank,” or not knowing what to do, will only worsen the accident. At this time, it is crucial to quickly calm yourself down and find ways to minimize the damage, rather than panicking and making things worse.
2. Quickly downshift to reduce speed
Control the direction based on road conditions and speed, and downshift according to the road conditions and your driving skills, using engine resistance to reduce speed. (Be cautious on steep roads and for beginner drivers!)
3. Scraping and collisions to force stop
To reduce accident losses, use rigid parts of the vehicle such as the bumper and cabin to scrape or collide with roadside guardrails and natural obstacles (rocks, large trees, and embankments) to forcibly stop the vehicle and escape danger, minimizing accident damage as much as possible.
4. Handling Brake Failure on Uphill Slopes
If brake failure occurs while going uphill, shift to a lower or medium gear in time and maintain enough power to reach the top of the slope to stop. If you need to stop on a slope, keep the vehicle in a forward low gear, and passengers should promptly use stones, wooden blocks, or other objects to wedge the wheels. If the vehicle still slips backward, the rear should face the hillside or a safe direction, and turn on the headlights and hazard lights to alert vehicles in front and behind.
5. Handling Brake Failure on Downhill Slopes
When brakes fail on a downhill, and you cannot use the vehicle's own mechanisms to control the speed, you should decisively use obstacles, escape lanes, or other measures to create resistance to bring the vehicle to a stop. After stopping, shift into reverse, making sure the front of the vehicle faces a safe direction.
6. Habitually check the brakes
During regular driving, when your vehicle goes down long or steep slopes, you should habitually press the brake. This not only tests the brake’s performance but also buys you time to control the speed if brake failure is detected.
7. Do not take chances; personal safety is paramount
When the vehicle cannot be controlled and a crash is unavoidable, personal safety should be placed first. Try to minimize damage to both other vehicles and yourself, and decisively choose to jump out of the vehicle to ensure your own life.
● Editor's Note:
Brake failure is largely preventable. Avoid careless driving and speeding; be aware of your surroundings and stay alert while driving to keep danger at bay. Everyone is welcome to share their thoughts and discuss.
Focus on the research and development of automotive brake systems and pneumatic brake valves to promote the development of the auto parts industry!
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