Simple Driving Habits that Will Prolong Your Brake's Life

Brakes are a good example of the consumable parts of a car. This means that they will wear down each time you use them, and you will have to replace the worn out parts regularly. These replacements can be accelerated by bad driving habits. The sad part is that you may be quickening the brake's wearing without even knowing it. This is why you need to know the following driving habits to prolong your brakes' life and eventually cut your wallet some slack:

Coasting Your Car

Coasting your car is a sure way of reducing the stress on the brakes and making sure that they do not wear down fast. When you are approaching junctions, checkpoints, stationery cars or other situations that require you to reduce speed, you can coast the car so that it requires little braking force to stop. By coasting, you let the car move gradually using its momentum instead of power. Here, you depress the car's clutch to free the wheels and allow the momentum to propel the car for a short while before going for the brakes. It is a good way of making the car lose some momentum, reducing some friction on parts of the brakes.

Watch Your Left

For some drivers, the left foot might want in on some of the pedalling action on the car. For example, cars with automatic transmission have no clutch pedal, and you may find it difficult to drive with the left foot idling. Therefore, you might develop a habit of using the left foot to step on the brake pedal, which is not healthy. Ideally, you run the risk of accelerating before your left foot leaves the brake pedal, making you move at a constant speed while the brakes grind away. In addition, you are highly susceptible to tapping the brake pedal unnecessarily.

Use Your Transmission

If you have a manual car, then your transmission can help you prolong the lives of your brakes.  Whenever you are approaching points where you have to slow down or stop, you can downshift the gears to reduce momentum and eventually, your car goes easy on the brakes. Instead of reaching out for the brake pedal first when the car is moving at a high speed, shift down to the lower gears to reduce the car's momentum before pushing the brake pedal. At low speed, the car requires lesser braking force to stop, reducing the friction on the brakes.

For more information, talk to a professional like Stopmaster Brake Service Pty Ltd.