Glossary: Conduction

You hear it all the time, but what does it mean?

CONDUCTION:
Conduction is the transfer of heat by physical contact. For example, some of the heat generated by the automobile braking system is transferred to the caliper pistons and thence to the brake fluid by conduction. Some of it is also transferred to the hub, upright (knuckle) bearings, and wheels in the same way.

Two-piece or floating discs reduce conduction to the hub, and other parts because of the intervening hat. Conduction is also the strategy used in all designs to move the heat from the disc pad interface to the vanes and in some designs to provide the initial heat sink for the energy generated at the start of a braking cycle.

Conduction is one of only three heat transfer mechanisms. Convection and radiation are the other two.

Centric Parts CEO featured on CarCast with Adam Carolla

Dino Crescentini, CEO of Centric Parts, which includes StopTech, dropped into Adam Carolla's garage to a record an episode of his popular automotive themed CarCast podcast. Click here to visit the page where you can download or stream the podcast.

Got a little extra time? Dino, who races a Porsche for GMG Racing in the SCCA World Challenge GT Series, brought by one of only about 600 Porsche Carrera GTs in the United States.

You can catch the video profile of the vehicle with Adam and Dino by clicking on this link. Highlights including Dino proving a CEO can fit in a ridiculously small supercar trunk, and Adam push starting the vehicle with his co-producer.

Glossary: Brake Modulation

You hear it all the time, but what does it mean?

MODULATION:
The term given by the process by which the skilled driver controls the braking torque to maintain maximum retardation without locking wheels. Because the human being modulates most efficiently by force rather than displacement, effective brake modulation requires minimum pedal travel and maximum pedal firmness.

"There is a reason the brake pedal is this giant piece of metal when the gas pedal is just a relative sliver," notes race car driver and Centric Parts CEO Dino Crescentini. "There is way more subtlety needed in braking when on the track than there is for punching the gas pedal. You can't really lose a race by accelerating too quickly but you sure can by not being able to brake quickly enough."

Video Recap of SEMA and AAPEX

With Christmas around the corner and parts of the country buried under snow, perhaps this video look back at the week in the hot Las Vegas desert that was SEMA and AAPEX 2009...