THE EFFECT OF AFTERMARKET LININGS ON LIGHT VEHICLE BRAKING PERFORMANCE. FINAL REPORT

A two-phase study was conducted to determine the effect on the braking performance of light vehicles of installing aftermarket brake linings. In Phase I approximately 300 in-use vehicles (passenger cars and pickup trucks) were rented from consumers and tested to determine their braking efficiency (ability to utilize available tire/road friction without wheel lockup). Although these measurements did not indicate any difference in the mean braking efficiencies of the vehicles equipped with aftermarket (AM) and original equipment (OE) linings, the number of vehicles with AM linings in the sample was relatively small. The second phase of the study involved tests on four instrumented vehicles each of which were equipped with various sets of AM linings. Fifteen different front lining formulations and nineteen different rear lining formulations were evaluated, although not every formulation was tested on all four vehicles. OE linings were also tested on each vehicle to provide baseline data. After burnishing each set of linings, measurements were made of braking efficiency as well as fade resistance (loss of effectiveness as brake temperature increases). The results of Phase II indicate that there are AM linings on the market that degrade braking efficiency, cause the rear wheels to lock before the fronts and reduce fade resistance below the OE level.

• Corporate Authors:

  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

  Vehicle Research and Test Center, P.O. Box 37
  East Liberty, OH  United States  43319
• Authors:
  • RADLINSKI, R W
• Publication Date: 1991-7

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 66 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobiles; Braking performance; Measurement; Pickup trucks
• Old TRIS Terms: Aftermarket brake linings
• Subject Areas: Highways; Vehicles and Equipment; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00625517
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: HS-807 835, VTRC-86-0038
• Files: HSL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Dec 14 1993 12:00AM