Nowadays, you must see electric scooters everywhere around your town. These electric scooters run with the help of a battery and motor. But just as important as those two components are the brakes – you cannot ride an electric scooter without them.
A good pair of brakes can stop the wheels of your electric scooter within seconds to avoid injury or accident. Brakes also determine the durability of your scooter and its performance on a wet road.
In this article, I will discuss electric scooter brakes. Once you are equipped with this valuable knowledge, you will be better able to maintain the brakes of your electric scooter.
Brake Systems
You will observe that your brakes are present either on the front wheel, the rear wheel or on both wheels. Electric scooters that have brakes only on either the front or rear wheel are less efficient. These brakes don’t allow you to make sudden stops. Even on rainy days, your scooter usually slips and skids on the road because of these brakes. This is because all of the braking force comes from a single wheel rather than two wheels.
So, you should aim to buy a scooter which has brakes on both wheels.
Types of Brake in Electric Scooters
#1. Disc Brake Electric Scooter
In this disc braking system, the disc or rotor attaches to the wheel of your electric scooter. You will find many vents. As the disc is the contact surface, it generates a lot of heat. So, having vents dissipate the heat and keep the other components safe is important. There is a
caliper that clamps the disc brake. Inside the caliper, you will find a piston. The brake pads are attached to the piston.
Now when you apply brakes, the pressurized brake fluid from the master cylinder puts pressure on the piston from all sides. Consequently, the piston pushes the brake pads. The brakes attach to the disc. So finally, it stops your electric scooter.
Advantages
- A disc brake usually doesn’t skid on wet roads.
- Lightweight
- You need less effort to stop your electric scooter.
- Easily adjustable
- Good braking power.
Disadvantages
- They are costly.
- Disc brake efficiency minimizes rough riding.
#2. Drum Brakes
Drum brakes are usually installed on the hub of the wheel of your scooter. Inside the drum, you will find a slave cylinder, brake shoe, and spring. There is brake lining on the brake shoe. When you apply the brakes, the brake fluid from the master cylinder moves towards the slave cylinder. In the slave cylinder, you will find two pistons. The fluid puts pressure on the piston. As a result, the piston expands and comes into contact with the brake shoe. Now the brake shoe also expands slightly, causing the brake lining to come into contact with the drum. This causes your scooter to stop when you desire it.
Advantages
- Doesn’t require much maintenance
- Performance is moderately efficient
Disadvantages
- The braking system is quite heavy
- Quite tricky to replace
#3. Foot brakes
Foot brakes are pretty simple to use. You just have to push the fender to stop your electric scooter.
Advantages
- No maintenance required
- Lightweight
Disadvantages
- The performance is poor on wet roads.
- Uncomfortable for a rider while riding
#4. Regenerative Brakes
When you apply the brakes, a lot of heat is produced in a regular braking system like drum brakes or disc brakes. Essentially, there is the conversion of kinetic energy into heat energy that is lost to the surrounding atmosphere.
Regenerative brakes are a mechanism that not only slows down your electric scooter but also converts the kinetic energy into a form that you can use immediately or store.
Advantages
- Don’t add weight to your scooter
- Recover energy
Disadvantages
- This braking system does not work when your battery is 100% charged
#5. Electric Brakes
With electric brakes, you only have to push a button to stop your scooter. They are pretty similar to regenerative brakes, but they don’t charge your battery.
Advantages
- Doesn’t add weight to your scooter
Disadvantages
- Poor performance
How To Replace Electric Scooter Disc Brakes?
Replacing scooter disc brakes is relatively easy. You just have to follow steps below.
#1. Remove Wheel
You first need to remove the wheel of your scooter and slide the wheel under your scooter.
#2. Remove Caliper and Brake pads
Now it’s time to remove the old rotor and brake pads. To do that, you need to access the bolt behind the caliper. Remove the bolt with the help of a regular ratchet which will make your caliper pivot like a clamshell. Then remove the caliper and brake pads. Remember your caliper should not dangle with the brake cables.
#3. Remove Caliper Bracket
Now remove the caliper bracket by loosening the bolts.
#4. Remove Rotor
Now remove the disc (rotor). If it is difficult to remove, use a hammer and hit the rotor with enough force by spinning the rotor. If your hub surface has become rusty, then remove the rust with sandpaper. Try to use eye protection and a dust mask while cleaning your hub. You have to make the whole surface of the hub smooth for your new rotor. So use a brake cleaner and spray it on the hub surface. Then clean your caliper bracket. Use a primer and little black spray paint so that the hub and caliper will look new.
#4. Clean Your New Rotor
You now need your new disc or rotor. While packing, manufacturers use oil film to prevent the disc from rust. So take a bit of brake cleaner and spray it on both the surfaces of the new rotor. Then wipe your disc with a paper towel. You will see a lot of oil has been removed from the disc.
#5. Install the New Rotor on Your Scooter
Replace your new rotor on the electric scooter. You can use a lug nut to prevent your rotor from moving once it is in place.
#6. Install Your Caliper Bracket
Now you need to install the caliper bracket by tightening the bolts.
#6. Install The Caliper
First, you need to compress the piston so that new thick brake pads will fit inside the caliper. But before that, you need to remove the dust from the piston with a brake cleaner. Compress the piston by using your old brake pads.
#7. Install the New Brake pads
Install the brake clip and then lubricate the brake caliper. Then you need to install the brake pads.
#8. Install The Wheel
The last step is to install the wheel in your scooter. Now you have replaced your disc brakes.
Why Do Brakes Produce Noise in Electric Scooters?
Sometimes the brakes on your electric scooter produce noise. There can be a lot of reasons for this phenomenon. Let me list a few of them here.
- Brake pads are not installed correctly in the scooter.
- There may be a problem with the design of your brakes.
- There may be a lot of dust and dirt on the surfaces of your brakes.
How to Fix Brakes on Electric Scooters?
- Try to clean your rims with a degreaser. You may scrub it properly.
- If your brake pads have worn out, then replace them with a new one.
- If your scooter has disc brakes, then clean all the dust from your disc.
- If you have drum brakes, then disassemble them and clean the surface of the drum.
- Try to properly fasten all the bolts because if the bolts are not tight, it will produce noise.
- Lubricate the brake cables and other components from time to time. But don’t lubricate the disc or drum.
Conclusion
Brakes are a vital component of your electric scooter. You need to check your brakes before riding. If you intend to buy an electric scooter, please pay attention to the type of brakes it comes with and try to purchase a scooter with two braking systems for your safety.