🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Dec3.013225.17152@mercury.cair.du.edu> jvilhube@diana.cair.du.edu (Jan Vilhuber) writes:
>I've always sort of wondered why bother with ABS, since I presume that it
>would LENGTHEN your break-distance, since it makes the breaks 'stutter'.

I think you misunderstand the "theory" behind ABS.  The idea is that
ABS will *decrease* your stopping distance because the wheels can't
lock.  When you press on your breaks, the friction steadily increases
and then when the wheels lock, BLAM, there goes all the friction.  ABS
keeps the wheels (IN THEORY) just in the state before locking, thus
decreasing your stopping distance.

>You can just as easily do that yourself, if you are a good driver, 

Not true.  In THEORY, no human can pump the breaks as fast as a
computer which can sense the BLAM point (before the wheels lock).  So,
IN THEORY, ABS breaks are much better than in driver in shortening the
stopping distance.

I have never driven a car with ABS, but have talked to people who own
91 or 92 ABS equiped cars.  Their comments are all positive.  They say
that ABS is very helpful (especially in the worst of all conditions).
I imagine that a cheap ABS implementation is counter productive.

just my .02,
Rich