creeper wrote:
DSDP Don wrote:
Glazing.....One poster was surprised by a statement that an instructor warned against ALWAYS using engine power to slow down. Yes, it's I a bad thing to do. At slower speeds and in traffic, you should use the foot brake to keep the rotors/drums from glazing. Your brakes are going to go at least 80K, some occasional foot brake usage keeps them from squealing and certainly won't wear them out.
.
Brake glazing is caused by EXCESSIVE heat to the pads and rotors. Engine braking is to keep the brakes from heating up, thus preventing glazing and loss of braking power due to excessive heat. That's why you use engine braking in the mountains. If you don't your brakes will heat up, glaze and you will losing stopping power. Engine brakes prevent glazing, not cause it. I'm very familiar with brake glazing living in the mountains. All our cars had glazed brakes for many years and a pain to get off, done it MANY times.
Normal stop and go does not cause glazing. If anything using the engine brake/Transmission brake will help in not causing glazing. You can't stop only on jake brake/transmission braking.
I rolled from the top of the rockies to the bottom on transmission braking with very little brake usage and very little ATF heating. Thus, no glazing. You can't get brake glazing without over heating the braking system.
How exactly are you getting brake glazing not using your brakes? :h
So yes I was surprised.
Creeper, thank you for clearing this up. I had only vaguely heard the term glazing and didn't really understand what it was so I looked it up. I think it's one of those terms you are expected to know but nobody really explains it so everyone makes up their own definition.
From what I was able to learn through Google (surprisingly, there is very little authoritative information found) you are exactly correct. Looks like glazing is caused by excessive heat and in particular brake dust getting overheated and crystalizing. If that's the case, I would think that the use of the engine brake would prevent / minimize this.
I'm going to write back to the instructor to clarify this.
