My 2000 Corolla CE does not have ABS, I’ve heard the correct way to brake is to pump the brakes. Should I press the brake slowly and then depress fully and then press again OR should I press the brake, depress half way, and press again? How fast should I pulsate it? My commute involves a lot of braking and I don’t want the rotors to become warped.
You should pump the brakes very rapidly, but ONLY if you are on a slippery surface.
Pumping the brake pedal very rapidly will reduce the possibility of the brakes locking-up, but this will also reduce the effectiveness of the brakes, thus leading to longer stopping distances.
So…under “normal” driving conditions (a dry, non-icy surface) you absolutely do not want to pump the brake pedal.
That being said, when you want to use what is called “cadence braking”, you need to press the brake pedal very forcefully, at the highest rhythm that you can achieve. Unfortunately, you will never be able to replicate the very high rate of pulsing that a modern ABS system can achieve, but you can reduce the possibility of brake lock-up on a slippery surface by using cadence braking.
99.9% of the time, brake normally. Like @VDCdriver said, the pulsing is ONLY if you are in a skidding situation. And practice it on a wet parking lot first, if done incorrectly it could increase your stopping distance.
What exactly is brake lockup? Does it mean the caliper gets stuck? Or the wheel hydroplanes and loses traction?
Neither. It’s when the braking force exceeds traction, preventing one or more wheels from turning. Hydroplaning is when (even with no braking) the tire loses contact with the road because there’s too much water, too much speed (that’s why slowing down in a heavy rain is important), or too little tire tread (that’s why good tires are important).
Press The Brake Pedal To Stop.
Pumping the pedal is really only desired when traction is lost due to wet, snowy, or icy roads or when skidding. Skidding front tires that are locked up and no longer rotating will not allow steering the car when you move the steering wheel and directional control will be lost. Pumping will alternately allow steering and braking.
ABS brakes are designed to sense a skid and will pump the brakes faster than humanly possible.
Try and drive with enough space between your car and the one in front so that hard stops are few and far between.
CSA
On a non-ABS car:
I brake gently on slippery surfaces. If I need to stop quickly, I brake harder. If I feel the car begin to slip or go sideways, I begin to pump the brakes.
A non ABS car brakes exactly the same as one with it, until you’re braking so hard that you lock one or more wheels. So, just brake “normally” in routine operations.
In slippery conditions, once you notice lockup (typically through yaw excursion: the nose of the car doesn’t point where you’re headed), release the brakes until traction is regained, then increase braking gently until lockup noticed again.
This sort of “feathering” of the brakes is better than a binary “stomp/release/stomp” procedure, imo. Theoretically, you should also do this when exceeding braking capacity on dry pavement (read: panic stop), but I for one lack the discipline to do anything other than attempt to press the brake through the floor of the car in that situation…
It is impossible to brake with a pumping action that duplicates abs. So don’t try. Experience is the best teacher and PRACTICING in a slippery parking lot is much better then just telling someone what to do. People, react to what they have done more often then what they were told. Even if you have abs, it is good to practice with them occasionally.
@meanjoe75fan is absolutely right and you can only feel when steering control is lost with practice. Abs does it fast and automatically. You have to react constantly and realized tha longer stopping distances are mandatory if you want to retain steerage in slippery conditions. You can only do it well with practice, practice, practice.
We never had ABS for years and got along just fine. Just brake like normal to stop the car. UNLESS you are braking on ice or snow-then you don’t want to just lock the wheels up to lose traction and steering but rather apply and let up a little and repeat to try and reduce the sliding.
To get what we mean by letting up when the wheels lock…You’re going to have to practice on a slick surface untill you can truly FEEL what the wheels and brakes are doing…in your big toe !
A fresh rain on an asphault parking lot might be slippery enough.
Wait for snow too , and go to an empty parking lot.
It really is something you have to have a feel for and practice is the only real way.
My wife has asked in the past, " why the heck do ‘‘you GUYS’’ have it easier in the winter weather and us girls don’t have a clue ?"
I told her ''it’s usually a guy thing to go out in bed weather and act like buttheads in the parking lots, spinning donuts and skidding for the fun of it. And THAT serves another deeper purpose in the long run…PRACTICE. "
In many driving scenarios in my ABS vehicles, I often wish it didn’t have abs because I want the tru feel of the road and braking conditions for me to have control.