It creates the most G’s on a race track
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00:00 It generates the most G's on a racetrack.
00:03 What am I talking about?
00:04 Braking, of course.
00:12 And that's what we're talking about today
00:15 on The Racing Line.
00:29 But where do you brake?
00:31 Well, right here in the brake zone.
00:34 These braking markers give you a reference
00:37 so you'll know just when to slam them on.
00:40 But when is that exactly?
00:42 When you start to see the bright white of the pearly gates.
00:46 Brake markers leading into the corner
00:49 give you a reliable reference to hit the same exact brake
00:51 point every time, every lap.
00:54 Without markers, it can be difficult to find
00:57 an exact braking point.
00:58 So you need to find your own.
01:00 A skid mark, a crack in the pavement, a crime scene.
01:06 Rough neighborhood.
01:08 So how late is too late when it hurts your exit speed?
01:12 Exit speed is king.
01:14 Or to state the obvious, if you end up in the wall.
01:17 The wall is not your friend.
01:24 Now we need to talk about anti-lock brakes.
01:27 ABS has been around for the last couple of decades
01:30 and in every new road car for years.
01:33 But there's somewhere where it isn't always allowed.
01:36 That's racing.
01:38 Some series emphasize human driver control
01:41 over the computers.
01:43 So if you're going to be a racer,
01:45 you need to learn the ins and outs of racing
01:47 with ABS and without.
01:49 First, I'm going to do a foot to the floor panic stop with ABS.
01:53 Then I'm going to do the same without ABS,
01:56 and we'll see what happens.
01:58 With ABS, ABS is easy.
02:05 You just jam those brakes on.
02:06 The computers do all the work.
02:11 You can hear them working as they quickly
02:14 turn the brakes on and off.
02:15 Without ABS.
02:25 As you can see from the results, ABS
02:27 stopped the car much faster than the car without ABS.
02:31 But using ABS still isn't the best way to stop,
02:34 and we'll get into that later.
02:37 Let's do that again.
02:39 But this time, I'll try to steer with my brake to the floor,
02:43 avoiding this wall of cones.
02:46 Cone navigation with ABS.
02:49 The great thing about ABS is that you maintain
02:51 steering control like this.
02:55 The car will still turn even under heavy braking.
02:58 Cone navigation without ABS.
03:01 Without ABS, no matter what we do with the wheel,
03:04 it'll still go straight.
03:06 As you can see, the non-ABS car locks the tires,
03:09 and it continues straight on no matter how much steering input
03:12 you give.
03:13 On the other hand, with ABS engaged,
03:16 the car's computer adjusts braking
03:18 so the wheels keep rotating, and steering
03:21 can still happen.
03:23 And this leads us to the tire rack minute.
03:26 Tires grab best with just a little bit of slide.
03:29 Too much, and they'll lock, instantly losing bite,
03:33 losing steering response, and possibly
03:35 ruining the tire with a flat spot, like we've done here.
03:39 I mean, just look at this flat spot.
03:42 Throughout a race, this is only going to get worse, too.
03:45 The tire will tend to lock up right there in that same place.
03:49 Flat spots will hurt your lap times.
03:51 They'll ruin a tire.
03:53 And if you haven't figured this out, tires win races.
03:58 So what have we learned so far?
04:00 The first rule of brake club is to not lock up your tires.
04:06 So what is the best way to brake?
04:09 Well, there is no one best way.
04:11 It depends on the situation, and there are different types.
04:15 Let's start at the max.
04:18 Threshold braking.
04:20 A threshold brake is right on the edge of the ABS.
04:23 It's the strongest way to stop a car on track.
04:26 It's when tires develop their ultimate bite
04:29 with just a bit of slip.
04:31 This type of braking is the most common and reserved for braking
04:34 when straight and balanced.
04:36 As you can see, threshold braking
04:38 stops just a bit faster than full ABS,
04:42 and way faster than locking up the wheels without ABS.
04:46 So if threshold braking can stop in a shorter distance,
04:49 what's the point of ABS on track?
04:51 Well, if you go just over the point of threshold,
04:54 the ABS is there to make sure you don't flat spot the tires
04:57 and lose steering.
04:59 Even for professionals, it can be
05:01 difficult to brake perfectly at the threshold every time.
05:05 Brushing the brake.
05:07 What's the problem with threshold braking?
05:10 A hard brake transfers a ton of weight forward,
05:12 unbalancing the car.
05:14 Sometimes a brush brake is all that's needed
05:17 to balance the car for the turn.
05:19 A brush brake can be good mid-corner.
05:21 A very light brake to point the nose in,
05:24 it transfers weight to the steering tires
05:27 and improves their grip.
05:28 Trail braking.
05:30 In a trail brake, you brake hard and straight.
05:34 And then as you turn the wheel, you trail off the pedal.
05:38 This is a racer's best friend, because it
05:40 loads the front tires, helping the car steer.
05:44 The tighter the turn, the longer the trail brake,
05:47 because as soon as you go to the gas, the fronts get light
05:51 and the car straightens out.
05:53 Left foot braking.
05:55 In an automatic like this, say, GSV,
05:58 you can brake with your left foot,
06:00 and it quickens the time to get to the brake pedal.
06:02 It may only be milliseconds, but that's what wins races.
06:07 Emergency braking.
06:08 And finally, say you've lost control, spun out.
06:12 You've got no idea where the car is going next.
06:15 What's the best thing to do?
06:17 Take your hands off the wheels and sing Jesus Take the Wheel?
06:21 Jesus take the wheel.
06:22 No.
06:28 This is the time to lock them and lock them hard.
06:32 And get that clutch in too.
06:34 Make sure you remain predictable and don't roll back
06:36 onto the track with the rest of the field barreling down
06:39 upon you.
06:42 On that note, brake late, brake hard,
06:46 and don't break yourselves, driving enthusiasts.
06:49 And we'll see you next time on The Racing Line.
06:52 [MUSIC PLAYING]
06:57 I'm in Road Atlanta racing a sports car at 152 miles an hour
07:01 down the back straightaway.
07:02 I go to the brakes and I get a hard pedal, but no brakes.
07:06 Or not very much.
07:08 And I thought, what?
07:09 And I throw the car sideways, catch the dirt
07:12 underneath the bridge, come out from under the bridge,
07:15 upside down in the air.
07:17 And I'm thinking to myself, I could end up
07:19 in the hospital on this one.