So I almost hit an electric pole.. What can I do to improve initial bite ?

[waxxonMTL]

Long story short, i almost totaled my S4 this PM... Light was green for both side, but going straight, i THOUGHT i had priority... lol !! this freakin shitbox tercel was that close to smash me driver side, turned the steering like a F1 driver ( lol..) and almost hit that pole.. I,M left with curb rash on both wheels on passenger side... So I'm thinking that maybe with better brake I would've been able to avoid more damage.. I'm currently on stock setup. Is there something I can do to reduce my initial braking distance ??

Q5 or tyrol insert ( to make it solid instead of floating)
Stainless steel line ?
Pad wise, i think the OEM are the one who offer the absolute best initial bite right ?
plain disc like the sportech or girodisc 2piece ?


Thanks for the help and feedback regarding your own experience after doing these mods !

[MagillaGorilla]

Stickier tires. All the upgrades you mentioned will help with repeated stops but for the situation you are describing the limiting factor is the tires, as the brakes are strong enough to lock up the tires.

[waxxonMTL]

Stickier tires. All the upgrades you mentioned will help with repeated stops but for the situation you are describing the limiting factor is the tires, as the brakes are strong enough to lock up the tires.

i have michelin PSS, i think they are pretty good.

[yjypm]

i have michelin PSS, i think they are pretty good.

Then you should get wider tires.

[whiped]

Wider tires or a lighter foot

Glad you are OK and the car made it out with only minor damages.

[bberg22]

I personally think the stock brakes on PSS brake pretty darn hard especially when compared to regular cars.

[Johnnycash]

drive better, and try to avoid the crazies.

[jprice]

Attend a Driver Education event at a track.

[paul]

Attend a Driver Education event at a track.

Now there you go with your reason.

[Sudz]

I have had the same issue. Thankfully I have been able to slow down when pinched by a shit head driver on the phone. Brake pads might help but I just decided to try and avoid the clueless.

[MattACK]

All the best bits on the car wont save you from another driver. Always check that cross traffic has stopped or is stopping before leaving a light, especially if you're planning on leaving a light briskly.

I was leaving a light in the center lane wth a truck on my left, halfway through the intersection he slammed his brakes and a lady hit my driver side fender, not in my S4, but point being, even taking all the best precautions may not even save you.

Glad nothing terrible happened. Hope you also didn't bend your wheels as a result.

[waxxonMTL]

wheels appears to be fine which I'm glad to realise I avoid the worse. There was a few pedestrian and they all came over to see my car. 2 person offered me their contact info so they could testimony I wasn't at fault. I can admit when I do wrong ( i had 2 stupid accident with 2 different skyline GTR.. i admited my fault lol) but this time, I wasn't driving fast.. limit was 40kmh, i was probably 50kmh at very best ! Most likely was 40kmh.

so please spare me the lesson :) I tried my best to avoid an accident where a car could've hit me me directly into me ( the car was aiming straight to my driver door)

[MattACK]

Not trying to lecture you, sorry if it came across that way. The point I was making is that I hope you don't sink a ton of money into the car to attempt to prevent something that you ultimately cannot.

[waxxonMTL]

Not trying to lecture you, sorry if it came across that way. The point I was making is that I hope you don't sink a ton of money into the car to attempt to prevent something that you ultimately cannot.

OH NO!! I get what you guys are saying. just agree more or less on the '' get some driving class.. lol''. I'm still thinking about upgrading my brake because the pad is at about 25% so within a year, I should be du to service them.

[Thurston]

i think the stock brakes are very good - i'd look at other options like tires.

[BlownOne]

Driver mod lol.

Even with the best equipment, accidents still happen. I drive defensively since I'm used to riding motorcycles and I think that helps.

Will

[mr shickadance]

this is driver error not car related.

green lights means it's legal to go, but does not mean it's safe to go. Not trying to harp on you or bring you down, but the only thing that could have changed the outcome of your issue is if you waited or was cautious.

again, not saying you are a bad driver, only saying that in the situation, the outcome would not have changed if you had all the best braking and tire choices.

[hotleadsingergu]

I'm a bit confused...did you even use your brakes in this situation? Sounds like someone was about to hit you and your response was just to turn your wheel into the curb to avoid them.

Were they come straight at you, from the front of your car? Were they coming from the side? The only way turning the wheel could have avoided it, if I'm understanding correctly, is if they were coming directly toward you from the front and you turned out of their way. In that case, how would the brakes have affected the situation? He still would have hit you if you had stopped.

[eurotic]

The only thing I'll add is that if you hit your brakes and the ABS fired then brakes are fine and only tires would have influenced (not necessarily changed) the outcome. If you hammered the brakes and no ABS or you slowed a bit before the brakes started to bite then I would think pads are something to look at. In my experience with this car is that the OEM brakes even when dead cold can lock up the wheels instantly when you slam your foot on the brake. I am about to swap out my stock brakes for StopTech slotted rotors and StopTech Sport (aka Street Performance) pads...will see how much difference there is in stopping power.

[mr shickadance]

The only thing I'll add is that if you hit your brakes and the ABS fired then brakes are fine and only tires would have influenced (not necessarily changed) the outcome. If you hammered the brakes and no ABS or you slowed a bit before the brakes started to bite then I would think pads are something to look at. In my experience with this car is that the OEM brakes even when dead cold can lock up the wheels instantly when you slam your foot on the brake. I am about to swap out my stock brakes for StopTech slotted rotors and StopTech Sport (aka Street Performance) pads...will see how much difference there is in stopping power.

unless your rotors are increasing in size as well as your pads you will not notice any increase in stopping power.

[eurotic]

unless your rotors are increasing in size as well as your pads you will not notice any increase in stopping power.

Yeah I misspoke, I meant initial bite.

[MrFunk]

The stock brake set up is more than sufficient for road use and emergency stopping. The stopping distance in tests are comparable to many lighter sports cars. Im not sure you can really do to improve initial bite that would result in noticeably reduced stoping distance in an emergency other than increasing your contact patch. Wider and stickier tires will accomplish this.

Sent from my SM-G925P using Tapatalk

[RudyH]

Ya kinda confused...

So you were entering an intersection, car was turning left looking to be T-boned, or give you a nice dent in the left side of your car?
going 50 km/h through an intersection, hitting the brakes and almost hitting a telephone pole because the car veered off.

IMO, I can be doing 120-140 km/h and the car stays straight in an emergency stop, with MAYBE a bit of twitch depending on road conditions.

So likely you hit the brakes, while turning a tad. Now why ABS didn't help you out a bit more is another question, but locking up the brakes make and expecting to be able to turn is answered under :

Attend a Driver Education event at a track.

It's an emergency situation that you never encounter in the day to day, glad your alright is the most important thing, but mechanically you sound ok