Disc brakes are the best type of electric scooter brake because they are lightweight, easy to maintain, provide strong braking power, and perform well in wet/dry conditions. Disc brakes are mechanical (cable-controlled), semi-hydraulic, or hydraulic. When hydraulic, the brake lines are pressurized with fluid, which allows you to engage the brakes with minimal physical effort. Drum brakes are also effective and lower maintenance than disc brakes as they are completely enclosed in the wheel hub; however, they are less effective when overheated and their performance is subpar of disc brakes. Lastly, foot brakes tend to perform poorly, especially in wet conditions. They are becoming less and less common on modern electric scooters.
Electric Scooter disc brakes have a disc rotor and a caliper. When you pull on the brake lever, you activate the caliper, which presses against the rotor to slow the wheel’s rotation. Cable-activated (mechanical) disc brakes engage when the pressure from your hand causes the pressure inside the brake cables to increase and activate the caliper to pinch the rotor. Hydraulic disc brakes have fluid-filled brake lines, which maintains the pressure, and a hydraulic piston to pinch the rotor. That means it takes much less effort for you to engage the brakes. Semi-hydraulic brakes have a hydraulic piston but do not have hydraulic lines, so are easier to engage than disc brakes but take more effort than full hydraulic.
Electric scooter drum brakes have brake shoes and a piston. When you activate the brakes, the shoes press against the piston to slow the scooter down. Drum brakes are completely enclosed inside the wheel hub, protecting the hardware from external damage. Although this means they are low to no maintenance, their design means they retain a fair amount of heat produced from friction, and unfortunately are less effective when overheated.
Foot brakes on electric scooters are designed as hinged rear fenders. Foot brakes slow the scooter by creating friction between the brake and the tire, and require you to change stance to activate. Although there’s no maintenance with this design, the performance is generally poor (even worse in wet conditions).
Regen brakes or regenerative brakes are coupled with the motors and slow the scooter by creating resistance against the motor’s rotation. The concept behind regenerative braking is that you can recover energy through braking and extend the scooter’s range. Some scooters are configured to automatically engage the regen brakes whenever you let off the throttle. Some models have regen braking that is activated by a button or lever, but very few use it exclusively as it’s not generally effective enough by itself. Electronic brakes behave the same as regen, but do not recharge the battery when activated.
