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Ha spiegato che i freni non funzionavano bene quel giorno.

Ha spiegato che i freni non funzionavano bene quel giorno.
He explained that the brakes were not working well that day.
From Lesson 221:Changing time and place in past indirect speech·Italian

Questions & Answers about Ha spiegato che i freni non funzionavano bene quel giorno.

Why does the sentence use quel giorno instead of oggi?
This is the main rule of reporting speech in the past. In his original sentence, he likely said 'today' (oggi). But since the reporting verb (Ha spiegato) is in the past, that 'today' is no longer our today. It shifts to 'that day' (quel giorno).
Why is funzionavano in the imperfetto tense here?
When reporting someone's words in the past, a statement originally spoken in the present tense shifts to the imperfetto. He originally said, 'The brakes do not work' (non funzionano, present tense). In past indirect speech, this ongoing state becomes non funzionavano.
If we used the exact words he originally said, what would the quote be?
The original direct quote would be: 'I freni non funzionano bene oggi.' Notice how both the verb tense (funzionano to funzionavano) and the time word (oggi to quel giorno) have to shift backwards when we report it later.
Could we use the trapassato prossimo (past perfect) instead of the imperfetto here?
Yes, but it changes the timeline. The imperfetto (non funzionavano) means they weren't working at the exact time he was explaining it. If we used the trapassato prossimo (non avevano funzionato), it would mean they 'had not worked' at some point before he explained it.

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