Next to steering, brakes are probably the most crucial part of any vehicle. We've harped on how important it is to keep up on brake maintenance before, so here's more info about how brakes work.

I mentioned last Friday in Parking Lot Mechanic that it's a good idea to check your brakes on a regular basis, as well as how to do it.

When a cute girl came into a reddit user's shop to get her oil changed, she mentioned a "slight" grinding sound coming from the ... what's that part called again?

When you're wildly stomping at the pedals of your car in a panic, there's really only one outcome you're looking for: Stop. That's why, for 99.9% of drivers and driving, the mandatory brake override system proposed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is a good idea.

If you purchased a 2012 Chevy Sonic you might want to check and see if the car's brake pads are all there as GM now admits they may have shipped as many as 4,296 of them without them. Also, they're not notifying anyone until mid-January. Happy New Year!

Racing exhaust maker Akrapovic likes to show off its wares on this modified Porsche 997 GT2, here shown during a track test harnessing the laws of thermodynamics to change forward momentum into heat, then awesomeness. [TeamSpeed]

Yeah, these BMW brake rotors are probably a little too hot to touch right now... or for at least, I dunno, a dozen cool-down laps? Yowza. [FueledByPetrol via jyx]

We love big brake calipers. The bigger they are, the better they're able to apply pressure on the disc to stop the car. And since Brembo offers calipers in a Skittles-like rainbow of colors, they'll even look stylish! Ahh, progress.

Since everyone that comments on Jalopnik is a self proclaimed expert on all things automotive, I thought I'd ask those "In-The-Know" if they think this rotor is going the wrong way.

Much as I hate working on the daily driver— where's the fun in that?— the warped rotors on my much-traveled '92 Honda Civic got to shaking enough to detach my pineal gland. Next stop, Lee Auto Supply!