I Don’t Miss the Brake Dust

[Tony Burgh]

I stick with 1-pedal mode so hardly touch the brakes. After 1 week and 200 miles, I washed the truck. Front wheels had less dust than rear wheels of my ICE F150. Nice.

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[GDN]

Historically Ford had the dustiest brake pads and horrible wheels. I don't know what manufacture they use for OEM but traditionally it has been horrible.

 

[metroshot]

All I can say is thank ___ for regen!

Driving EV makes less of brakes as my 45,000 mile brake pads are still at 80%.

Try that with an ICE brakes....

 

[ShirBlackspots]

Historically Ford had the dustiest brake pads and horrible wheels. I don't know what manufacture they use for OEM but traditionally it has been horrible.

I solved my brake dust issue by using ceramic pads for the front brakes. Semi-metallic for the rears. (2006 F-150)

 

[Lightning_Bob]

On our EVs we rarely use the brakes thanks to one pedal driving - however it kinda sucks when you notice your rotors have surface rust after driving in the rain and you have to consciously remember to stop a little more suddenly so you can use the actual brakes to clean that rust off

On our last inspection at 70K miles - the stealership said even though we still have 80% of the brake life left, we may need new pads due to their age.....ha.....

 

[Ken]

I think whatever I save on brake pads will be eaten up with my tire cost. If the truck chirps the tires every time you kick the go pedal I will have to replace more often than expected. I plan on driving it somewhere between "I stole it' and "it's a rental"

 

[Beans]

Keeping off the brake pads without 1 pedal driving is also pretty easy. Ford set up the braking regen nice. I feel like it’s hard to get the pads to kick in without doing an “emergency stop”

 

[beatle]

I replaced the front brakes on my Model S at around 50k. The pads were seized in the calipers and the rotors were grooved. Braking performance was terrible. If you stick to regen as much as you can (and you should!) then the brakes don't move much. However, this movement helps keep them free from grime that can cause them to corrode and rust. Here are my brackets during service.

Not sure if this is indicative of all EVs or if it's just a Tesla problem, but it's worth keeping an eye on, especially if you're in the rust belt (my car was originally from Chicago).

+1 on ceramic pads. I use Bosch QuietCast ceramic on both my Model S and Ridgeline and they've been great.

 

[RickLightning]

On a regular basis, and after washing the vehicle, simply shift to N while driving and gently apply the brakes a few times to clean the rotors and ensure everything is moving freely.

 

[Beans]

On a regular basis, and after washing the vehicle, simply shift to N while driving and gently apply the brakes a few times to clean the rotors and ensure everything is moving freely.

Nice tip. I’ll have to try that.

 

[RickLightning]

I dry the pads after washing by driving up and down the driveway and shifting to N.

If you wash the vehicle and then park it, and you use Autohold or 1-pedal, the pads may stick when you first start moving the next day. That's why I dry them.

 

[Tony Burgh]

You guys bring up an interesting problem - pads rusted to pistons. I never had this problem because the pads were never on more than 2-3 years, even less on my wife’s car. Will have to watch for this now.

 

[SmoothJ]

While I love one pedal driving, I still use my brakes. In my past EVs I had issues in which my calipers would stick and be rusty, and my pads and rotors will just be there doing nothing. However if Ford did their due diligence, stepping on the brake should technically be regenerating braking anyway. More pressure, would then be the actual brakes.

 

[Theo1000]

Have not had any issues on my Volt. 100,000 + miles, 12 years. Still on original pads. less than 10% consumed. Or my I3, still on original pads 8 years. Or my Etron 3 years ~ 100,000 miles. No grooves, no gunk. nothing.

Don't anticipate any issues on Ford either.

Ford blends its brakes so it gets used at the stop lights for sure. No matter how gentle you are. on the pedal. Only a pure coast will not use brakes, even there is you have auto hold, it gets used every time.

 

[Sklith]

Since my pads don't get much use day-to-day, I do a couple emergency brakes once every 2 months or so. Folks in the north should do that more, and have their brakes serviced every year.

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