The thought of not being able to use your brakes when you need to while driving can be a terrifying thought. Those brakes are your lifeline when behind the wheel. Unfortunately, sometimes the brakes in a vehicle will simply fail to work when called upon. If you ever happen to find yourself in this situation, it is important that you know how to handle your vehicle to help you avoid a serious injury. Citywide Towing Service is here to talk about what you should do if you have brakes that fail.
Is it OK to Slow Down By Downshifting?
If you are driving a manual transmission vehicle, you may be able to take advantage of downshifting to help slow your vehicle down. You won’t be able to stop immediately, but downshifting will help to slow your vehicle down significantly. If you are driving an automatic transmission vehicle, you may have a paddle on your steering wheel that allows you to downshift from there as well to help slow your pace.
What Does a Dual Line Braking System Prevent?
Some vehicles come equipped with a dual braking system to help you avoid brake failure accidents. If your front or rear brakes fail for any reason, there should be some braking power to help compensate. If your brakes are anti-lock, you should apply steady pressure to the brake pedal. For those of you that have normal brakes, it is better to pump the brake pedal rather than constant pressure.
Slow Down at a Slow Speed
While this may not work in every situation, there are some where you can let the car come to a stop on its own. If you know that your brakes aren’t working as they should, you should always have your hazard lights on to warn other drivers that something isn’t right with your vehicle. If there isn’t much traffic on the road, you can move over to the side of the road and let your car come to a gradual stop on its own without using any brakes. This is probably not going to be an option anywhere other than a freeway or some sleepy road somewhere.
What Happens when You Use the Emergency Brake while Driving?
When you use your normal brakes, you can come to a stop almost immediately. When those brakes fail and you are trying to use your emergency brake, while it should bring you to a stop, it won’t happen nearly as fast as your regular brakes would. When using your emergency brake, make sure you are moving your vehicle as far off the road as possible before coming to a complete stop. You want to be far away from other drivers.
Towing & Roadside Assistance Services in Addison, Balch Springs, Carrollton, Cedar Hill, Cockrell Hill, Combine, Coppell, DeSoto, Farmers Branch, Ferris, Garland, Glenn Heights, Grapevine, Highland Park, Hutchins, Lancaster, Lewisville, Ovilla, Richardson, Rowlett, Sachse, Seagoville, Sunnyvale, University Park, Wilmer, Wylie, Duncanville, Grand Prairie, Arlington, Irving, Mesquite & Greater Dallas, Texas
If you are stranded with brakes that aren’t working or have experienced a car accident as a result of brake failure, you can count on Citywide Towing Service to give you the tow you need to get your vehicle back up and running as soon as possible. Call us today!
