Why heavy cars take more time than lighter cars to stop?

[sophiecentaur]

This kind of question makes my head hurt. The accurate statement (which does not fit the teacher's "example") is that to stop a car you need to reduce its momentum to zero. It take more braking effort to stop a heavier car than a lighter car. Full stop.

There is no doubt that my Honda Odyssey can stop more quickly than the 1964 VW beetle I used to have, in spite of the significant weight difference.

You have proper brakes on the new one - probably the Beetle would have had no servo assist and drums all round. I had an old (at the time) Morris 1000 in 1967 with minute drums all round which would over heart and fade at the drop of a hat. In Physics terms - not a fair test.

 

[OldYat47]

My '64 beetle was brand new at the time (revealing my age). And at that time the beetle was among the better-stopping cars around (compared to American cars, for example). Which brings us around to the main point, that heavier does not equal longer stopping distances. Many other factors contribute. Probably no servo assist? That made me smile. The windshield washer had to be pressurized with a bicycle pump. We're talking basic and primitive.

 

[sophiecentaur]

I used to get a lift in a woman's lh drive beetle that let water into the heating duct. Condensation On the windscreen made it impossible to see out and she used to drive (in U.K.) with her body where it would have been in a rh drive car. In my (rh ) passenger seat, I was in the path of oncoming traffic. Scary.

 

[OldYat47]

Talk about scary! The only place you would be getting water from is the exhaust leaking into the air shrouds.

 

[sophiecentaur]

I don't think CO was a problem (no headaches). It was after rain, which came in through rust holes! and trickled into the hot air ducts. I nearly offered to drill some drain holes but I didn't want to get involved.
I have had most of the classic cars that you find on British roads (including a 2CV - my lovely new 2CV) but I never found a Beetle when I needed a car. I did have a VW camper with the same basic engine, though. The brakes on that were fine. - but they had to be, on a commercial transporter chassis.