In a message dated 7/7/2006 6:22:56 PM Pacific Standard Time,
tr3driver@comcast.net writes:
In both cases the 'emergency' brakes were totally ineffective, first time
because the cable was broken and the second time because they had faded away
due to overheating.
Randall,
I'm sorry to hear about your accidents. I hope you weren't injured!
I think we probably delude ourselves when we think we can use a parking
brake as an emergency brake-they are pretty useless! But you do whatever you
can
do in a situation like that.
year ago, I used my 47 Chrysler Windsor Highlander (5200 lbs) to bring a TD
MG home on a car trailer. I had to go over some mountains. On the downhill
side, I had horrible brake fade. At the bottom of a long grade was a T with a
Stop sign and a highway running right and left. Directly across was a Texaco
station. The entire parking area was gravel. At the rear, directly ahead was a
huge drop off down another hill side.
I had the Fluid Drive in Low range, e brake up tight, and hard as I would on
the footbrake. I wasn't accelerating any faster, but was coming down the hill
way too fast. I ran the Stop sign (with the trailer and TDMG) at some
not-too-fast speed. As soon as I hit the grave, I cranked the steering wheel as
hard as I could to the right as that was the long dimension of the parking
area. The whole rig slid sideways, dramatically spraying gravel everywhere. It
finally slid sideways to a stop at the rear of the lot. So much for Chrysler
center Plane brakes!
Best, Mike Moore
=== This list supported in part by The Vintage Triumph Register
=== http://www.vtr.org
|