How to Survive Brake Failure
That’s right, your brakes might suddenly fail one day. Hopefully you’re keeping up on regular maintenance and everything is in working order, but would you know what to do in a brake failure?
If you have a moment to think, one thing you can do is to put on your flashers. Your brake lights may have stopped working, after all, and you want to make sure other cars steer clear.
To get control of the car, shift it into neutral if you can (so that the engine won’t keep trying to accelerate it), and most importantly, pull the emergency brake. Or push the button, if that’s the type you have. This should bring you to a stop, or at least slow you down significantly. You can pump the emergency brake (pull it up repeatedly) much like you would pump your brakes during a skid.
Oh, and by the way: Don’t forget to check whether something is stuck under your brake pedal, like a bunched-up floor mat. That’s a common cause of stuck brakes.
