Brakes

Formula 1 race cars are amazing feats of motorsport engineering. Equally as amazing, however, are the LMP1 prototype racers that run in the various endurance events around the globe, including the 24 Hours of LeMans. Each type of cars represents the pinnacle of what's currently possible with a race...

The 86th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans will kick off Saturday with 60 cars competing in four different categories. Although motorsport is often characterized by speed, a race car won't get far without a proper set of brakes to handle corners. And different racers, obviously, require very...

Braking systems have changed considerably over decades, but high-performance brake manufacturer Brembo thinks another big change is coming. Brembo’s executive director for braking systems, Giovanni Canavotto, told Car and Driver in an interview published Monday that brake-by-wire systems will...

You might know that there's a physical difference between race car brakes and street car brakes. The size of the rotors, the materials used in the pads, and the brake lines are all going to be upgraded to handle the rigors of motorsport. But that's only part of the story. Did you know that more is...

While regulations surrounding emission standards often focus on tailpipe emissions, brakes and tires actually contribute 32 percent of driving-related particulate emissions. Half of that comes from brake dust alone. On Wednesday, Bosch revealed its answer to a cleaner brake disc called the iDisc...

Continental has showcased a prototype for a way to boost the braking efficiency of electric cars. Dubbed the "New Wheel Concept," Continental engineered the system to help maximize regenerative braking and create an easier-to-maintain braking system. The concept uses an inner carrier, brake rotor...

Advances in material science aside, not much has changed with vehicle braking systems over the past 200 years. While today’s antilock, six-piston caliper, carbon-ceramic rotor braking systems may not resemble the leather-pad-against-wooden-wheel systems found on early coaches, friction is...

When you're developing cars on roads that aren't unknown to feature the odd moose around the next corner, preventing drivers colliding with wild animals is understandably quite a priority for Volvo. To this end, Volvo has been developing a system based on its Pedestrian Detection and Full Auto...

BMW released an updated version of the 1-Series Hatchback in late 2008 but ever since then suspicious prototypes of a new car with similar proportions and signature BMW styling have been captured running around the south of Germany, and now once again and this time with much of the finer details...

We’ve reported about Mercedes Benz planning to launch a new shooting brake version of its next-generation CLS but latest reports indicate that a smaller version based on the 2010 E-Class Coupe is also in the pipeline and could be on the market by 2011. The shooting brake is essentially a...

Watches and cars have shared a long history together. Something about the kindred spirit of precision, style and function of both endeavors finds an overlapping fanbase. Few watches exhibit that cross-pollination better than the Meccaniche Veloci Quattro Valvole CCM - a carbon-ceramic watch built...

With more power and even more aggressive aerodynamics than the factory-built 430 Scuderia, IDING Power's new F460GT offers a new take on a super-performing F430 variant. Boring out the engine and replacing stock parts with carbon fiber are the primary modes of improvement. As the name suggests, the...

Last year we saw the first test-mules for the next-generation BMW 1-series driving around the streets of Munich in Germany. At first appearance the test vehicles looked like ordinary 1-series hatchbacks but on closer inspection a number of key features revealed several vital clues about the next...

The Mercedes Benz CLS ignited the four-door coupe market when it was introduced back in 2004, and since then we’ve seen several other luxury rivals attempt to emulate the design with cars like the Porsche Panamera, Audi A7 and Aston Martin Rapide all under development. For the...

BMW released an updated version of the 1-series compact late last year and since then a suspicious prototype of the hatch has been captured running around German streets. At first appearance the car looks like an ordinary 1-series hatchback but look closer and you’ll notice several key...