Your Mazda brake pads are the most important safety feature on your vehicle. You use them every time you slow down or come to a complete stop. Your braking system is one that you put your complete faith in whenever you drive, knowing that eventually they’ll wear out and you’ll need brake pad replacement. It’s part of regular car maintenance.
But do you know how long you should expect your brake pads to last? It’s a common question that doesn’t necessarily have a clear answer. How long your Mazda brake pads will last depends on how you use your vehicle and the routine car servicing you have performed.
How Driving Affects Your Brake Pads
Brake pads function solely on friction. At each wheel, one brake pad is mounted on each side of the brake rotor inside a caliper. When the brake pedal is pressed, the caliper squeezes the brake pads against the brake rotor and the friction slows your car’s momentum.
Your brake pads are designed to be the softest part in the system; a replaceable wear component. The friction wears a tiny bit of the brake pads away with every application of the brake pedal. The more frequently you brake, and the more aggressively, the more friction material on the brake pad wears away.
Over months and years, your Mazda brake pads get thinner and will need to be replaced. This is an expected part of routine car maintenance, but how soon it happens depends on your driving.
If city driving is mostly what you do, your brakes won’t last for as many kilometres. Barrie’s stop-and-go traffic takes its toll on the friction material, causing more wear than the normal blend of driving would. Someone who drives primarily in city conditions may only get 30,000 to 60,000km before they need new brakes.
On the other hand, someone who drives more on the highway will get longer life out of their brakes. Fewer braking applications means less wear on the brake pads, even when higher speeds are factored in. It’s not uncommon for people who drive primarily on the highway to get up to 100,000km and beyond before brake pad replacement is required.
How You Can Help Your Brakes
Getting the most life from your Mazda brake pads requires routine vehicle maintenance. According to your Mazda maintenance schedule, your vehicle’s brake pads and discs should be serviced every 12 months or 24,000km. This brake maintenance removes contaminants that could shorten your brakes’ life expectancy and keeps your braking system working at its best.
Whether you need new Mazda brake pads on your Mazda3 or you need a brake service as part of your 24,000km car maintenance, Moffatt’s Mazda can help. Moffatt’s Mazda has professional, factory-trained staff that will accurately service and repair your car, as well as Genuine Mazda parts for excellent durability and reliability.
