Friction

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Friction

Driving a car could be a scary thing if you don’t know how to handle different situations. You will have a very high risk of getting into an accident. Before getting into a car your should know how to handle it well, be aware of your surroundings and the conditions of your environment.

Friction is the resistance to motion between two objects in contact with each other. When the resistance related to the tires on the car against the road, it is called traction. The traction points on your car are where the rubber on your tire touches the road’s surface. There are three main traction purposes: putting your vehicle in motion, stopping your vehicle, and changing the direction of your vehicle.

The amount of friction that is made is limited even when all the important factors are good. When you are driving, you should avoid decreasing the available traction. When you are braking in a straight line, you may use all the available traction for braking. If you are braking and steer or, accelerate and steer, you reduce the available traction. As soon as the traction requirement becomes greater than the amount available, your vehicle will start to skid.

There are several factors, which affect the traction of your vehicle, such as: tires, the road surface, speed, and mechanical condition.

Tires are made with grooved surfaces, which are called treads. They are designed to channel water and such through the grooves to keep the rubber in contact with the road. Different patterns of treads are made for different uses and conditions, such as snow tires, or rain tires. There are two basic types of tires: the bias ply and the radial ply design. The bias ply has the plies (layers of cord impregnated with rubber) criss-crossed. This makes the casing strong in all directions; but the plies have a tendency to rub against each other. This conducts heat and tire “squirm” and the tires wear more rapidly and provide less traction. The radial ply has plies parallel to each other and perpendicular to the tread. Belts usually made of steel are then attached in the same position as the tread, which then gets applied along with the sidewall. The benefit of this is more flexibility. The tread stays in contact with the road producing more traction. Radial tires also wear more slowly. You should never mix bias and radial tires on your car.

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