Driving: Brakes

• Don't use your brakes unless you have to. If you only need to slow down a little bit, just take your foot off the gas. (This will also save wear on your brakes.) When the people behind you see your brake lights, they think they need to slow down fast, and step on their brakes too. If they are stuck behind you for a long way, for whatever reason, they may tire of your "false alarms"... and ignore your brake lights when you finally Really Mean It.

• For a smoother stop, don't stop at the last second. If you see you're going to have to stop, or slow down a lot, slow down gently ahead of time. You may be able to this by just taking your foot off the gas. Not only will this be more comfortable for you and your passengers, but also this will save wear on your brakes, save you gas in reaccelerating if traffic gets moving before you have to stop fully, and annoy the people behind you less.

• You can avoid having to brake if you look ahead, don't tailgate, and don't drive faster than you can see. See also the sections on Distance and Speed.

• Make sure your brake lights work! If both don't, you're asking to get rear-ended by some moron who didn't notice that the gap between you was rapidly closing. If one of them doesn't work but the other does, then every time you step on the brakes, it looks like you're signaling a turn or a lane change, much to the annoyance of the driver behind you.

• Don't slam on your brakes just after crossing a slick patch! If there is anyone behind you, they will not be able to slow down to avoid rear-ending you, and might even spin out. (Credit to Judson L. White for this one.)