Sure, brakes are important, but how do you maximize the performance of your braking setup? Find out how in this article from the January/Febuary 1994 issue of Grassroots Motorsports, where we take a deep dive into the fundamentals of braking systems.
Hey, something from the archives. So, should we post more classic stuff?
Also of note: this Jan/Feb 1994 issue predates me by a few months (I was born in October of 1994).
- Why brakes are good:
Brakes stop the car
In reply to Colin Wood :
I'm Dec of 94
Colin Wood said:Also of note: this Jan/Feb 1994 issue predates me by a few months (I was born in October of 1994).
I really feel like this comment is "okay boomer"-ing me.
What the heck? We've got children posting in here? Born in '94? I've got underwear older than that.
1988RedT2 said:What the heck? We've got children posting in here? Born in '94? I've got underwear older than that.
Right? I got OUT of the army a year before that and feel like a youngster compared with some of the fossils....um, experienced folks around here.
We have a guy at FM who was born right about the time the Miata was introduced. I like to date Miata features by "what Mike could do".
When the 1.8 engine was introduced, Mike was toilet trained (we don't know this for sure, but I'm hoping it's true). When the NB was put into production, Mike hadn't discovered girls yet. When the NC was introduced, Mike was almost old enough to get his license. I assume he had discovered girls.
He loves it. I'm sure he does.
red_stapler said:
- Why brakes are good:
Brakes stop the car
Tires stop the car. 
JG Pasterjak said:Colin Wood said:Also of note: this Jan/Feb 1994 issue predates me by a few months (I was born in October of 1994).
I really feel like this comment is "okay boomer"-ing me.
Okay, boomer. (Says the guy who wasn't on the masthead but still had Runoffs coverage in that issue.)
I'd love to see more archival stuff. See what's changed, what's the same, and things we've forgotten.
Tires stop the car.
Yup - and that point is often ignored by people that say things like "the brakes in the 1960s were crap - clearly you need to convert to big brakes to get reasonable safety and stopping distance". Meanwhile the very cars they are talking about are out racing in SCCA with stock but optimized brakes with modern tires and brake fluid and pads, and are out-braking other cars that are 40 year younger.
There are a few cars that were produced without any possibility of optimizing the stock brakes to do much. Take a look at the early Cooper S discs that look like they are about an inch wide rotor surface, and who in heck at Rootes group said ('Hey, let's stick an American V8 in an Alpine and spec 13" wheels so you can' neither get decent sized rotors and calipers nor any air in there" That sure worked out well....
I would not want to take my 1960's Cadillac on the track with four drum brakes regardless of tire choice :)
Single stop distance is proportioning and tires. Multiple stop behavior is heat management.
BA5 said:I'd love to see more archival stuff. See what's changed, what's the same, and things we've forgotten.
Cool. Look for more. And tell your buddies to check it out, too. 
KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:1988RedT2 said:What the heck? We've got children posting in here? Born in '94? I've got underwear older than that.
Right? I got OUT of the army a year before that and feel like a youngster compared with some of the fossils....um, experienced folks around here.
I was just out of high school in 95 and I'm old...
Heck, this pre-dates AC's career that leads him to the the Board Expert on brakes.
I'm old enough to NOT appreciate a guy in school in the 90's calling himself old!
Hey, I was in my 20's when I discovered Satch Carlson in auto week.
In 94 I was 10, and that's actually about the time i started reading car magazines because my grandmother started buying me subscriptions. I had a giant chest full of car magazines by the time i was 14. Unfortunately I didn't discover GRM until my early 20s.
alfadriver said:Heck, this pre-dates AC's career that leads him to the the Board Expert on brakes.
Close. I moved to MI in Nov 1993 to start my braking career at Milford Proving Ground, maybe a few weeks before this issue (Jan/Feb 1994) was hitting mailboxes.
I feel old (based on the comments, not the article.)
You'll need to log in to post.
