Brake pads are a key brake part because they are the component that contacts and applies pressure and friction to a vehicle’s brake rotors — those flat, shiny discs that you can sometimes see just behind the wheels of some vehicles. The pressure and friction applied to the brake rotor is what slows and stops the wheel. Once the wheels stop turning, the vehicle stops moving, too. Though the role of brake pads as braking parts is pretty simple, the brake pads themselves are anything but.
Because of how fast a vehicle’s wheels rotate and how much a typical car or truck weighs, brake pads undergo extreme stress every time you slow down or come to a stop. Think about it: Would you want to grab and hold on to a heavy metal disc that was spinning really fast? Imagine slowly squeezing that disc until the vehicle rolls to a halt — it’s a thankless job, but brake pads do it repeatedly for thousands and thousands of miles without complaint.
Simply put, brake pads contact your rotors and cause friction to slow and stop your car. Brake pads are part of a very interconnected system, a system that relies on each of its parts to function safely and successfully. Here’s how your brake pads play their part:
When you press down on the brake pedal, you activate a cylinder that sends brake fluid through hoses, down to the calipers.
The calipers engage your brake pads.
Your brake pads apply pressure to the rotor, which is directly connected to each wheel.
This pressure creates the friction needed to slow or stop your vehicle. When the rotor slows, so do your wheels.
Take your foot off the brake pedal and the whole process reverses: the brake pads release, fluid moves back up the hoses, and your wheels are on the move again!
Post time: Apr-13-2022
