Smoking Brakes

If for some reason I’m driving, and using my brakes too much and they are smoking, is that something I can see in my mirrors?

Just asking because I’ve seen a video of a trucker deliberately staying in the left lane, trying to warn another truck driver about his breaks over the radio. He was staying in the left lane to keep folks from passing in case it turns into a runaway truck situation.

Just trying to learn from what I saw. :)

No, that is not always something easily seen unless the driver is going slow. At highway speeds you probably won't even notice unless they're smoking super bad.

I agree with Turtle's remarks. It's hard to see your brakes are smoking unless they are smoking really bad.

I just wanted to add a few other comments since you are barely getting started on this journey. You most likely aren't going to get your brakes smoking unless you ride them going down a mountain. With modern trucks, there's no reason for that. Another reason might be a bad brake chamber not releasing.

If you overheat your brakes descending a steep grade, the quickest way to cool them down is to keep moving. If you've got a brake that's locked up, keeping moving only makes it worse. Therefore it's good to stop somewhere safe and assess your situation. Never reach in and touch anything. You could seriously get burned. Other parts around those brakes can be getting heated up also.

You will not overheat your brakes during normal driving by "using them too much." These big rigs are made to pull heavy loads. They're also designed to stop heavy loads.

Just make sure you understand how the various speed control components in your particular truck work. The cruise control and Jake brakes usually assist each other when going downhill. I seldom have to even gently touch my brakes when going down a mountain in good weather.