How do cars brake efficiently, even on slopes?

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I’m no expert in cars and how they work, which is definitely why I don’t know the answer to this question. What I don’t get is how cars, even when going down a slope at high speed, can gradually slow down and freeze, even when on a steep slope. Why does it not roll down? I don’t get how the tires freeze the car like glue, like shouldn’t it move slightly at least?

EDIT: I definitely worded this badly lmao. I was more interested in how cars on steep slopes don’t move on slopes, because wouldn’t an object without wheels still slide downwards when on a slope?

EDIT 2: Thanks for answering the question. It makes sense now that the friction of the rubber tires and the material on the road is what keeps it so still when brakes are applied on slopes.

In: Physics

6 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

A car braking on a straight road or a slope can stop thanks to friction and braking mechanism

The braking mechanism prevents the wheels from spinning, and the friction from tires prevent the car from sliding down the hill

Ideally, your tires “stick” to the road thanks to the material they are made of and material the road is made of

Additionally, tires being filled with air, are squishy to a certain degree, this squishines allows them to kind of “spread out” on a road a bit, which further increases the friction area needed for both accelerating and braking

If you lose the ability to mechanically lock the tires (brake malfuncion), or if you lose friction (snow or ice on road), you will not be able to brake, no matter if on straight road or a slope

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