Water Cooled Disk Brakes for Big Rigs 3

[140Airpower]

It's an obvious idea. Coming down off the Ridge Route (AKA The Grapevine) portion of I-5, on the north end's over 3000 foot descent I've seen trucks with brakes smoking or actually on fire. I've asked myself why don't they use disk brakes? Also, if you've seen European truck tractor races, you've seen the steam from the water cooling of the brakes. As an emergency expedient, water would save a truck in trouble. Why not?

 

[truckandbus]

Advances in brake pad materials and sensing systems to balance wear coupled with the easier maintenance of disk brakes is making them more prevalent in truck and bus applications. Application specific vehicles like in mining, logging or oil fields already have custom modifications to brakes and other systems to ensure safe and constant operation (gotta make a living...)

For 'generic' rigs that find themselves in the occasional unusual situation a more cost effective solution than making special equipment standard could be to provide appropriately spec'd shunt tractors at the top of the pass to take the load to the bottom

 

[Tmoose]

- Much of the online bandwidth re: Pinto gas tanks speaks of fire resulting from rear end collision.

- However the few sites that I looked at allegedly referencing the infamous internal Ford $$/life memo refer to roll over accidents

http://www.calbaptist.edu/dskubik/pinto.htm

This tends to be supported as some sites maintain stuff like this -
" 1. ...... The memo apparently wasn't used or consulted in Ford's internal decision making. It was attached to a letter written to the National Highway Transportation Safety Bureau (NHTSA) concerning a proposed regulation. Plaintiffs tried to use the memo in support of punitive damages, but the trial judge ruled it inadmissible for that purpose (p. 1021).

2. The horrifically low figure of $200,000 per life was not Ford's value; it was a value used, with qualifications, within NHTSA at the time."

http://newmarksdoor.typepad.com/mainblog/2005/07/the_pinto_myth.html

- The recall repairs/upgrades were gas tank mount protection related.

http://www.fordpinto.com/index.php?page=149

The basic gas tank location (under the floor, behind the rear axle) was and is indeed pretty common.
Volvo 240, with some plumbing added by an enthusiast.

 

[140Airpower]

Tmoose, I think the "Pinto gas tank" is a symbol that illustrates a point. Distortions of history, deliberate to make a legal case, or inadvertent because the inaccurate versions makes a better story, color our perceptions and memories. But, Ford did indeed consider the vulnerability of the gas tank and did in fact decide not to take measures it knew about that could have improved safety. This happens all the time. It's happening with trucks. The basic economic trade-offs require that at some point a compromise has to be made.

I think we are used to the world we live in. But, we continue to seek improvement. An old movie "They Drive by Night" gives a depiction of the Ridge Route in the old days. We are light years ahead now. But for me the continued need for runaway truck ramps says we are "not there yet".