Anybody else had a Panic Stop? How good was your vehicle braking? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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Anybody else had a Panic Stop? How good was your vehicle braking?

dco43054

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20 XLT
I do my best at watching as far down the road as possible, looking between lanes and through the windshields of vehicles ahead. It tends to keep me out of trouble.

So, I'm headed down a 4 lane this morning about 55 mph. Rush hour traffic. People ahead of me panic stop as traffic ahead of them has stopped and they have not slowed down.

I pressed the brake pedal to the limit of pedal travel. Felt like I bottomed out on the firewall.

I stopped in time.

The brake pedal feel was interesting - I initially thought it was a bit mushy, but I had enough stopping power. Never felt the ABS pulse, but the wheels did not lock up as I stopped. The ABS on my '02 will pulse in a similar situation.

Anyone had an experience? Did your ABS engage?
 



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I haven't made an emergency stop yet, but my observation is that ABS has improved dramatically in the last decade. Ten years ago, the pedal vibration was very pronounced almost to the point that you might be tempted to remove your foot from the pedal because something must be wrong. My last had a much more dampened vibration.
 






I did on my first test drive. Salesperson said to hit the gas and feel how I accelerated, I said "mind if I test everything?" and he was in. Floored it to 70, slammed hard on the brakes. It stopped faster than my 08 (or felt like it) and was a different feel on the foot, but nothing "bad".

I don't think he really expected that, or the jerking of the steering wheel on the (empty) freeway.
 






The brakes on this vehicle are amazingly strong. Those brakes practically saved me when someone just suddenly stopped in the middle of a 45 MPH road. Brakes gave a quick response, no vibrations, and smooth. Went from 45 to 0 very quickly. Surprising for a big SUV like this. I'm just glad no other car was behind me at the time. I'd say there's no need for an aftermarket brake upgrade.
 






yep... very good braking. hit it hard once day and noticed it brung the vehicle to a quick quiet stop... vehicle stayed straight as an arrow... no sound/screech... no bounce or shake... and very 'cushiony' in that weight transfer forward was soft and didnt give the passengers a super hard jolt. very deceptive cause it really stops at very short distance.

yes, i would be very concerned the vehicle behind me wont have as good a stopping power as this one and hit me :) very happy with many things with this vehicle. just some things reading that also concerning.

The brakes on this vehicle are amazingly strong. Those brakes practically saved me when someone just suddenly stopped in the middle of a 45 MPH road. Brakes gave a quick response, no vibrations, and smooth. Went from 45 to 0 very quickly. Surprising for a big SUV like this. I'm just glad no other car was behind me at the time. I'd say there's no need for an aftermarket brake upgrade.
 






I just had to make an emergency stop Sunday night from 55mph when someone pulled out in front of me at an intersection. I had 3 adults and my baby in the car at the time and I was very impressed with the braking. I was able to apply the brakes heavily and initiate a slight course adjustment in the process. Felt very controlled the whole time, and no tire squeal. I probably could have applied even more brake so I'm not sure if you would hit a thresh hold when the ABS kicks in, but no squealing from my experience.

Purists may not be thrilled the new Exp is built on a car frame, but when it comes to braking and emergency maneuvers, I feel this is a plus.
 






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