Quote:
Originally Posted by cdrptrks
Definitely tires for a single dry panic stop.
Fuel economy focused all season tires with high treadwear ratings take around 100' to stop from 50mph vs. under 80' for sticky tires with lower treadwear ratings around 200.
https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tests/t...b=ResultCharts
https://m.tirerack.com/tires/tests/t...b=ResultCharts
Remaining tread depth makes a huge difference for wet panic stops:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=zA6MUlVNkLM
Any brake pad designed for a specific car is going to be able to engage ABS on the first panic stop (or lock up the tires if the car doesn't have ABS). Unless there is a condition along the lines of zero brake pad material remaining or low brake fluid or some part of the braking system being broken, then brakes will not be your limiting factor for a single panic stop.
You could even stop an average car with the accelerator stuck at 100% throttle without the brakes failing:
"even with the engine racing at full throttle, Popular Mechanics editors have demonstrated a 2010 Toyota Camry with none of the recent fixes braking uneventfully to a stop from highway speed, so the brakes should easily stop the car."
https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna35783011 |
The ABS system, the brakes, the suspension, the tires... they're all part of a complete design intended to work together. So you mostly only have the opportunity to weaken the complete system by swapping in components that are of lesser capability than what was baked into the original design.
Your point about the tires having the biggest impact makes sense as it's the one thing that the consumer may replace with something that doesn't carry the same abilities as the original ones. And, even if they're replaced with something "better", the rest of the system may not be able to take full advantage (although the ABS may kick in later due to reduce wheel slip, and that could shorten up the stopping distance). Even with a significant upgrade, though, the improvements are only likely to go "so far."