Smoked the brakes

[PeasBugs]

I went on a quick trip this last weekend and a good portion of the trip was off road. In one section there was a deceptively long down hill which I traveled about half way down before I down shifted to first for engine braking. I made it to the bottom without any problems but I know I heated up the brakes and could smell the results. I have the Storm option upgraded brakes and wanted to know if I may have caused "damage"? What are the opinions.

[Ford_6L_E350]

Its clear you 'heated' your brakes. Since they were still working well (no mention of fade), you probably did not damage anything.

Go down any good mountain road and you will smell brakes from trucks and cars that don't downshift. Think of the smell as a warning, no impending doom.

Mike

[Ed in Montana]

I haven't smoked the brakes, but I have noticed red brake pad pweder over my front wheels after descending a 2,000 foot pass with relatively little braking. I always gear down on Montana mountain passes and don't ride the brakes.

Is red brake pad powder over your wheels common?

[jage]

Common especially on new vehicles or with new pads. Look around and you can usually find a vehicle with 'dirty' front rims- that's from brake pad powder.

[lowracer]

Save that red powder, it makes a spicy alternative to paprika on potato salads and devilled eggs. Mmmm... Asbestos...

[Greggd]

PeasBugs ,
You can reassure yourself by contacting a very friendly and knowledgeable person by the name of Warren at the Brakeman he has provided great information on a couple of brake related matters for me . They are here in Southern California in Camarillo .
Greggde

[PeasBugs]

Thanks for the replies. I did notice the brakes faded during the downhill but did not completly lose them. The downhill caught me by suprise, it started off easy and quickly steepened and was quite a bit longer than I thought it would be.