What type of braking causes the least wear to rotors/pads? I would assume applying the brakes for a long time but with little pressure would increase the brake's temperature, but a quicker stop would cause more wear and tear....who know?

If it matters at all I have solid rotors and hps pads, wish they were stockers!

 

The brakes will have to handle the same amount of energy in either situation but the easier braking will keep the peak temperatures down as compared to harder braking - in theory, easier braking should result in longer pad / rotor life along with less chance of warpage.

Engine braking is the best way to reduce brake wear - keep your eyes up (you should be looking way farther down the road than most people do), start slowing long before you get to the light / stop sign, minimize the time you actually need to be on the brake.
Don't be an ass about it though, if you are in traffic it just pisses the people behind you off

Side bonus, you will likely save a bit of gas too

 

park car + walk away + ride bicylce.

there's how you cause the least wear to your Cobalt's brakes.

 

As DaBuzzard posted, we also recommend avoiding heavy braking as continuous heavy braking will prevent the brakes from cooling between stops. This would wear the brakes out much faster than choosing to make gentler stops.

Hope this helps!
Sarah
GM Customer Service

 

Applying the brakes for a long time with little pressure is a good way to heat up and warp the rotors.

 

Mash your foot to the ground, best way to stop

 

Like when you are going down a long hill - that is a great way to overheat the brakes. Extra bonus: get them hot enough and you will have pretty much no braking power by the time you really need them
Same reason I hate to see people left foot braking, they think they are not riding the brake but the brake lights flashing on/off randomly tell a different story

If you do need to control your speed on a downhill, dropping the tranny down a gear (4 instead of 5 on a manual, I instead of D on an auto) will allow for more engine braking and again, less brake heat / wear.

 

All joking aside, engine braking with an automatic is a great way to cook a transmission.

 

i'll take your word, was always afraid of warping the rotors from slow braking.

I dont like engine braking simply because it reduces gas mileage, I usually just coast waiting for green if no ones behind me

thanks for all the spam comments too, im not an idiot lol

 

lolwut, that little blip of the throttle to rev match doesn't reduce fuel milage, im pretty sure cobalts have a fuel cutoff above certain rpms (forget what its called). During engine braking the wheels are turning the engine so fuel is not needed to keep the engine running.

 

yup it does. 5th i think goes down to 1500 and i think it is around 1700 in 3 and 4.

 

if you put it in a lower gear and coast you will burn ZERO fuel. so you will actually be saving gas!!!

 

Everyone says that the car has a fuel cut off, but the instant mpg does not show that. The higher rpm's, the lower the mpg is. Even though mpg is still really high, it is never as much as coasting. Instant mpg readings may be incorrect i guess

 

i downshift from 5th to 4th to 3rd to 2nd gear, try to coast, and then most of the time i only need to hit the brakes then. driving easy.

also if ur manual, once ur at the light you can take ur foot off the pedal, that way ur not holding pressure on the rotors. if ur on a hill, just use the ebrake, since the rears don't go through as much torment as the fronts anway

 

my 06 LSJ doesnt have an instant MPG. it just has the one that averages it out over a set time.

 

"I’ll start with downshifting. Many people don’t downshift, claiming it’s too hard, it wears the clutch, you can’t do it smoothly, etc. Wrong on all counts. Downshifting is the way to go on all levels, including safety, wear-and-tear (clutch/brakes), and fuel costs. For those that don't know, Cobalts have a feature called deceleration fuel cutoff (DFCO). When you're coasting at over 1,500rpm in all Cobalts except the SS/TC (2,250rpm in 1rst-4th, or above 1,250rpm in 5th for the SS/TC), the engine uses NO fuel and shuts off the injectors (Credit to Stamina!). When you downshift, you'll keep the engine spinning above these speeds and thus use much less gas. If you ride the clutch or neutral coast you're killing your fuel economy, and in the case of riding the clutch, killing your throwout bearing. The engine braking effect also reduces the need to use your actual brakes. Running down through the gears also ensures you always have the engine ready to respond should you need to get out of trouble."

It's in the driving manual tips sticky on General Discussion.

 

Also I never find that this works in gears 1-4 on the TC. It definitely works in 5th though. My car will read 0 L/100 kms while coasting.