2008 Ford Focus SES: Drum Brakes. Seriously.

"Am I crazy?"

Yes. Doubt anyone buying this particular really cars. It gets them from A to B safely and efficiently and has Sync. What else matters?

Is it worse than 11" discs behind 20" wheels.

Yeah drum brakes are so bad. They are cheap, last a long time, and stop the car. Disc brakes are not needed on the rear of a front wheel drive car. My guess is you could put discs on the back of this focus and it would stop exactly the same.

The focus is small and light enough that there is not a benefit for discs.

Even edmunds agrees:

In today's automotive pantheon, it's not uncommon to find four-wheel disc brakes as standard equipment on medium-priced, non performance-oriented models. The majority of new vehicles, however, continue to utilize a front-disc/rear-drum brake setup. What does this say about the current state of braking systems? Are these manufacturers sacrificing vehicle safety in order to save a few bucks by installing disc brakes on only the front wheels?

While a "yes" answer would certainly be great for increasing Town Hall traffic, the truth is that today's disc/drum setups are completely adequate for the majority of new cars. Remember that both disc and drum brake design has been vastly improved in the last 20 years. In fact, the current rear drum brake systems on today's cars would provide better stopping performance then the front disc setups of the '70s. And today's front disc brakes are truly exceptional in terms of stopping power. Combined with the fact that between 60 and 90 percent of a vehicle's stopping power comes from the front wheels, it's clear that a well-designed, modern drum brake is all that's required for most rear wheel brake duty.

High performance cars like the Viper, 911 and Corvette can justify a four-wheel disc brake system, especially if their owners participate in some form of sanctioned racing activity on the weekends. The rest of us get more of a benefit from the lower cost of drum brakes. Expecting every vehicle built today to come with four-wheel disc brakes would require an across-the-board increase in purchase price, and that could stop new car buyers much quicker than any brake system.

Yeah honestly, every car I've owned with drum brakes has been cheap to maintain in the brakes department- not so with disc brakes- just look at all the current VW Jetta and Honda Accord owners who have to keep getting them replaced!

You're crazy.

Putting discs on the rear of a focus is just an unnecessary cost increase.

Yet another example of a "this engineering solution is 'right', this one is 'wrong' mindset". Everything in engineering is a trade-off. The advantage of drum brakes is more stopping power for less effort and size, easy implementation of a parking brake, less friction (better efficiency) when the brakes aren't applied, and cheaper maintenance (usually). The advantages to disc brakes are more linear pedal response and better heat management. It isn't a one is right, one is wrong matter, its a which is right for the vehicle. And harping on drum brakes is getting real old, they have their advantages even if they aren't in fashion.

i agree that drum brakes are fine for most cars. our old versa had drum brakes, which surprised me, but didn't really seem to matter. it was a commuter car...

i will also say, though, that besides the initially higher cost of disk brakes, if you can change the pads/rotors yourself, they aren't that expensive. brake jobs at a shop are expensive, but not if you DIY.

i saw a mechanic put all new rotors and pads AND do a oil change on my company car in 45 minutes.

at a shop they'd probably find a way to take 2 hours or more...

In theory I like rear disc brakes, but have to admit that in many cases there's little practical benefit--hell, I learned to drive in an early-70s car, a large mid-size by today's standards, that had drum brakes at all four corners, and no girly power assist either. You may have observed that people seem to be demanding a lot more interior comfort, convenience, and safety features on even low-end cars, yet are not willing to pay commensurately higher prices for them, so something has got to give. Even Honda installs drum brakes on some models costing in the low $20Ks.

Not sure why the appearance should be bothersome, either; if one is not an engineer, the drum housings are arguably simpler and cleaner-looking.

I have never had a car with drums so I can't give a yay or nay, but they do look clunky when compared to seeing discs behind a set of alloys. But as noted above, I don't really think most Focus drivers care either way. On a more entertaining note, I just received a quote to get my FRONT pads and rotors replaced and it was over $500.00!!! HAHAHAHA pretty sweet huh?! The only thing that keeps me sane is that I love the brakes on my A4. They feel great and stop the car quickly and confidently. Horrible brake dust and all.

Honda still puts drums on the DX and LX Civics and Toyota has them on all Corolla's but the XRS. Middle of the range models still with drum brakes? Seriously? Bottom of the line can be (partially) understood, but anything above that is unacceptable.

Drums do not stop as efficiently as disc brakes; it shows in vehicles such as the Ford Escape. the Escape cannot stop as quickly as other vehicles in the class such as the Rav4, CR-V, or Forester, and that is because of the rear drum brakes.

personally, i will not buy a new, 2009 vehicle if it does not have four-wheel discs.

Yea, you are a little crazy. Rear drums, espeecially on a small car like the Focus, are perfectly adequate. And most people don't even notice that kind of thing, IMHO.

3 of my 4 cars have rear drums, and honestly I don't think the braking performance is degraded.

With the cost of cars these days, I expect disc brakes all around, especially on anything but a subcompact.

jm1212: The Escape actually went from rear drums to discs back to rear drums again.

I don't personally like drum brakes, but when my mother went from a '97 all disc brakes Taurus to a '02 disc/drum Taurus there was no noticeable difference in the brakes' performance or feel. In fact the pads on the drums lasted longer than the pads on the rear discs.

If engineered well, there is no reason a disc/drum set-up cannot be effective and cost conscious. I'd rather see manufacturers use higher quality rotors, than worry about spending more money on rear disc brakes on cars that don't really need them.

"With the cost of cars these days, I expect disc brakes all around, especially on anything but a subcompact."

I agree. My 1975 '02 and 1999 Wrangler have rear drums, but I give them a pass due to their age and top speed capability. That said, even my 1973 Bavaria 3.0, 1979 Arrow GT 2.6 and 1993 Pathfinder SE had discs at all four corners.

I was waiting for IL to paint those drums bright red. Would the wing from the Mitsubishi fit on the back of the Focus?

How much cheaper can drums really be to manufacture these days? $200?

txmatt1: Nice! Don't forget to tack on some fake brake cooling ducts and she's good to go!

As my father-in-law likes to say, on a FWD econobox like that, the rear wheels are simply there to keep the fuel tank from dragging on the ground.

I see absolutely no problem besides cosmetic concerns with using drum brakes (and this being the U.S. spec Focus, drum brakes are your most minor cosmetic concern, by a long shot). If I'm buying an inexpensive car to simply commute in, low maintenance costs is near the top of my priority list.

You should've photochopped the drum brake red in the photo, Josh. :o) j/k

Stingray, those little costs add up. 195,800 Foci were sold in 2008. Just as an estimate, saving even $100 per car by using drums vs. disks would be a cost savings to Ford of almost 20 million dollars.

Is anyone really surprised? Ford is notorious for blatant cost-cutting where it really counts.

Take the Mustang for example. They could have had independent rear suspension but they instead opted for an outdated live axle design just so they could save a couple of bucks.

http://blogs.motortrend.com/6523204/auto-review/2010-ford-mustang-near-enough-is-not-good-enough/index.html

For a cheapo economy car, I suppose rear drums are not completely out of line, but it's still disappointing to see.

The bigger picture is that Ford has really been cheaping out on their braking systems lately, and that is just unacceptable. The Edge, Focus (132 ft 60-0) and some others have put up downright poor braking numbers, and active safety is an area that should not be compromised.

Drums suck, plain and simple. They overheat easily and are more effective as a musical instrument than a stopping device. With the advent of EBD and stability control systems it's more important than ever to use rear discs. EBD makes the rear brakes work harder and 4-channel ABS/ESC require better response and precision from the braking hardware.

"The bigger picture is that Ford has really been cheaping out on their braking systems lately, and that is just unacceptable."

Lately? My 1984 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe had disc/drums and the so-called braking system was good for exactly 0ne-count 'em, ONE-stop from 80 mph.

my car has rear drums, and i think it stops just fine. pedal feel is decent, too. as long as it has enough braking power to lock up the tires whenever i want, isn't that enough?

granted, if i were to really flog the car, i'm sure there'd be some massive brake fade and such, but for the occasional emergency stop or brief moment of 8/10ths driving, i think my brakes are just fine.

if you ask me, drum brakes on a focus are acceptable. but an suv, on the other hand, well...

Even though they're not needed, consumers do notice and still like disk brakes over drums.

I've never had a problem with rear drum brakes on a compact car.

@ isellcars00: Unless you have full insight into the total manufacturing costs associated with IRS vs. SRA, stop posting nonsense. The 100 dollars would be associated with material cost alone.

And while Ford could stand to do a little more with their braking systems, tires play a critical role also. The Escape's braking has improved, as has the Edge's (some of that has been attributed to better tires/tire pressure etc).