Quote:
Originally Posted by Dick Steinkamp
The upside of having the rear brakes lock first in gravel is that you will be able to steer. The downsides are that it will take a lot longer to stop and the rear of the car will likely pass you during the attempted stop. 
How often will we experience a panic stop in gravel vs on pavement?
All cars since the mid 1930's have the braking proportioned so that the fronts do 75% of the braking and will lock first in a panic stop. Was Henry right with the Model A and everyone since wrong? Was Henry right with the 2 wheel brakes on the Model T? |
Just for the sake of discussion, most cars today have anti-lock brakes, full lockup of brakes is not possible, allowing for safety/steering under max stopping. I still remember driving a rear wheel drive truck on wet and/or snowy conditions. Had to shift down on the automatic trans to stop/slow down quickly, especially if turning - otherwise front locked up and rear right would still be driving. Ex-wife refused to drive the truck in the winter.