Braking with extra axles

[busted85]

I was just wondering if this is just on my end or if anyone else has noticed this. It seems like when you have a trailer with extra axles they seem to brake way too quickly. I understand with the extra axles you have another set of brakes to help out. But, hauling a heavy load it feels like I'm braking quicker than I would with just a two-axle trailer. IMO with that much extra weight, the extra brakes will help control the load but still shouldn't slow as much as it does.

[flight50]

I haven't noticed. But considering trucks have air brakes and not disc, it doesn't make sense to stop faster. Where is your braking slider/intensity? I have mine to the far left as its the most realistic. I even went into the game files to decrease it even more. I think the lowest with the slider is 0.3333 by default. At one point I changed it to like .25. But in one of these updates it did get stronger brakes but I haven't noticed with what particular trailer. But it does sound like I should go test some stuff out too. One moment I can't stop and I ram someone, the next it stops within a decent amount of time. It could be trailer related though.

[busted85]

I have my slider all the way down. I'm the same way, one moment I can't stop the other times it's way too quick. But, I think it changes with the trailers. I can pull a dual axle trailer (flatbed, van, bulk) and the braking seems consistent. I grab a trailer with extra axles and pulling 150,000lbs and it stops faster than the others with way less weight. But, it could just be me or something on my end.

[xXCARL1992Xx]

"But considering trucks have air brakes and not disc, it doesn't make sense to stop faster."

trucks do have disc brakes, just because they use air instead of hydraulic fluid as the force medium doesnt make it anything special

and more axles > less brake distance, or better say more wheel contact to the road surface > less brake distance, especially on US trailers because they have twin wheels and not just single ones like in europe but the average stopping distance is still 170 foot or something i faintly remember if the truck is fully loaded from 75mp/h to 0 ?

[supersobes]

As prices fall for air disc brakes, more and more trucking companies are switching over to them as they have a shorter stopping distance than drum brakes, increasing fuel economy and safety. It's probably going to become the new industry-standard in the next few years as drum brakes fall out of fashion.

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[DGAF_AK87]

@supersobes Disc is the industry standard already and has been for several years on the owner op. The problem is that manufacturers still offer drum at a lower price so most companies opt for drum. Granted some are now realizing the benefits of disc, but it'll take probably another 10 years before most have made the switch.

[busted85]

When I drove I only ever pulled a van and don't have experience in pulling larger trailers. But even with the extra axles, I'm not sure how the braking should actually be.

[flight50]

trucks do have disc brakes, just because they use air instead of hydraulic fluid as the force medium doesnt make it anything special

I said disc brake but I should have said hydraulic vs air. Yet, there are still trucks that opt for drum so not all are air. Air vs Hydraulic apparently does make a difference though. If they didn't why would they use air?

[supersobes]

Air brakes are slower than hydraulic brakes because it takes time for the air to make its way through the system. There's a slight delay between the time the driver presses the pedal and the time the brakes actually apply, and that gets even worse when you factor in the driver's reaction time too. According to a quick Google search I did, the delay adds about 32 feet to the stopping distance at 55 MPH. Despite that, air brakes are still optimal for heavy commercial vehicles because they are more failproof than hydraulic brakes. If for whatever reason something happens to the air supply, the parking brake will slowly engage itself as the air depletes from the system which will bring the truck to a controlled stop. This prevents you from having a truck rolling down the road without the ability to stop. On a hydraulic braking system, if the brake lines are broken or the fluid leaks, you have no brakes and you'd be in the same situation as you would be if you overheated your brakes when descending a steep grade.

[ALT2870]

"the parking brake will slowly engage itself as the air depletes from the system"

There is no slow engage, it pops out and you come to a screeching halt regardless of speed so best not be going fast. You can override it though (at least the bus I drove) by holding it in. (Though if you get even lower you can't hold it.) Here are the thresholds:

60psi: Warning, usually beeper and light on dash.
45psi: Parking brake pops and warnings continue.

Warnings will only disappear once enough air has been built back up, sometimes that is higher then warning trigger.