CH wrote:
> On Wed, 06 Jul 2005 17:20:01 -0400, Nate Nagel wrote:
>
> > CH wrote:
>
> >> Actually, I own a vehicle without power brakes. Fortunately it only
> >> weights only about 1000lbs including the driver, so stopping it with
> >> non-power brakes is not a problem. That doesn't change the fact that
> >> stopping a 3800lb-sedan with non-power brakes requires quite a bit of
> >> physical force, force that a lot of drivers simply are not able to
> >> administer. And that you wouldn't want to administer on a regular basis.
> >>
> > Hmm, my 3200 lb. '55 Stude coupe and '62 Stude hardtop seem to stop quite
> > well without power intervention. In fact I've driven power-boosted
> > versions of both vehicles, and I prefer the non-power.
>
> That may be. Now take a 5'2 80lb woman and make her drive your Stude.
> Chances are she is going to run into something.
>
> Chris

Probably never happen. Smallest person likely (relatively, that is -
still a long shot) is my mom, who's still a bit bigger than that.
Since I've seen her occasionally wheeling around an old Farmall Cub, I
think she could handle it.

Oddly enough, the one place that I could see the case being made for
power brakes is exactly where you wouldn't think it desirable - in
competition; simply because there you're likely to be doing more
repeated max-effort stops within a short period of time and driver
fatigue may become a problem, enough to offset the advantages of the
better pedal feel of the unboosted system.

nate