While most consumer vehicles will opt for disc brakes these days, commercial vehicles are still opting for the older drum ...

The brake drum mounts to the wheel hub and encloses two brake shoes, a wheel cylinder, a series of springs, and other small parts. Like disc brakes, drum brakes rely on hydraulic fluid and friction.

Drum brakes not only require additional time but oftentimes more effort. “With disc brakes, you don’t have to pull off a heavy drum in order to change the friction,” Pfost explained.

In choosing brake systems for a commercial fleet, there’s no wrong answer whether air disc brakes are a right fit versus drum brakes. There are plenty of advantages for both.

For this reason, Conti will begin producing drum brakes for a battery-electric truck in 2026. Do you think a wheel hub motor with integrated braking is a smart technology for next-generation EVs?

Disc brakes were hardly a new technology in 1962, as Jaguar and Dunlop had tested the concept in the crucible of motorsport as early as a decade prior at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Up to this point ...