Electronic Parking Brakes

[Drago]

They're brilliant, when they're new, working, and under warranty. Not so much fun at 5 or 6 years old when only the dealer can reset them after adjustment or new parts, and want a kidney an hour plus VAT. Its a cunning means of either tying you into the dealer network for longer, or forcing you into a new car sooner.

All this pleasant, yet unnecessary tech is going to write off a lot of older cars that might otherwise be in excellent condition with many years service within them. The only person that is good for is the manufacturer.

 

[Mr Celine]

They are particularly annoying on hire cars when you arrive at an airport late at night and you have to read the f-in manual just to drive away.

And said airport is at Stockholm and the manual is in Swedish.

We have a car that does have a proper handbrake but also has a very annoying 'hill hold' feature. This changes parking on a hill from being a doddle to a challenge. It's very hard to not park on a hill round these parts.

 

[KneesUp]

I've worked out how to get the brake to go off on the grim-Insignia now - you have to press the foot brake and press the teeny tiny recessed brake switch at the same time, and when you do, a motor whirrs and within slightly longer than feels comfortable, the brake is released. If you are on a hill facing up you then have to release the footbrake and find the bite *immediately* or you will roll backwards. The brake does release itself if you just drive, but it's a vicious thing so the car is very hard to move that first bit with it on - this is obviously more of a problem if you are on a hill, as you tend to stall the bleeder.

As I said (I think) the system on the Golf worked ok - it seemed to engage and release more quickly, and I'm pretty sure you could release it without pressing the foot brake at the same time. It also engaged automatically to stop you rolling down hill - one of the few benefits of the system I can see, and one the Vauxhall doesn't bother with. Did I mention they are cheap?

The only features from this brand new car I'd like to have on my 10 year old car that I am now looking to replace (it's beyond economical repair) are the start/stop (although again it worked better on the Golf - the Vauxhall sometimes doesn't stop when I think it should, and tries to stop when it shouldn't) and the DAB stereo. The rest of it - from the massive screen that is always on, the pointless ability to broadcast videos from your phone to the car, the electric hand brake, to the parking sensors that get startled by the road surface and passing traffic - you can keep.

 

[Piemaster]

At some stage someone will realise there is a market for a stripped back supermini with a big (preferably electri) engine weighing under a ton.

Until then I'm sticking with my Mk1 Clio, 875kg and brilliant fun to drive.

Think my wifes Renault Zoe is a supermini, though at best part of twice the weight of your Clio stripping it back to reduce weight might be challenging. Unless you throw the battery away...

 

[mustang1]

Well if the window won't wind down, .

What problem is an electronic handbrake actually solving?

They are particularly annoying on hire cars when you arrive at an airport late at night and you have to read the f-in manual just to drive away.

I think it makes driving easier: one less thing to do when starting off or coming to end of a journey. Put the car in D and the brake comes off too. Put the car in P and the brake comes on by itself. Seems a good idea to me?

 

[Tanis8472]

Must be such a hardship putting the hand brake on and off when driving

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Using sticks and wires to park a car is so last century.

 

[tyred]

Whatever happened to carrying a block of wood as a parking brake.....

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Mrs N really likes it because it can be quite hard for some to apply the manual handbrake sufficiently on a steep hill. It also encourages her to apply the handbrake more than previously as it's now a flick of a switch that disengages automatically

That's a good point, Mrs 3BM often used to find the handbrake difficult to use so I'm sure there's many others who get the same benefit from electronic parking brakes. I think they're great, mine has also got a 'hold' button so it applies the brake automatically when you stop and it's released by pressing the accelerator. I'm all for this kind of stuff, same as automatic gearboxes, anyway I'm far too important and busy to be bothered with changing gear and applying handbrakes.

 

[Drago]

You don't want stop/start on your ten year old car. Depending on the set up, you don't want the battery/capacitor bank/auxiliary starter/combined starter-alternator to fail on a ten year old, cos that's a an expensive fix

My Ford Fusion of Elderlness is 11 years old, mint in and out, low mileage, and has a decade or more of reliable and economical motoring in it. Not having to keep making new cars is good for the environment, and keeping a fit older car running is lovely for my pocket. If it had stop-start and that broke then next stop would be the scrappies, which is financially ridiculous and environmentally barking mad.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

I change my car when it needs a clean.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

I change my car when it needs a clean.

I have a company car and quite often the service is when it gets cleaned. It's also when the windscreen wash gets filled.

 

[Drago]

Mrs D's car is a motability job. When she owned them I'd keep them immaculate, bit now she leases it I can't be bothered. It goes to the kosovans every 3 months, and I have a bacon sarnie and coffee in the cafe while they do the deed.

The Ford Fusion of elderliness gets cleaned every fortnight regardless, perhaps weekly if its really manky. A wash and leather takes only 35 minutes, and its not like I've got to race to work or owt.

 

[Julia9054]

Whatever happened to carrying a block of wood as a parking brake.....

We used to have an old Austin A40 where the passenger side window was held up by a block of wood. To open the window, you had to stop the car, peel the door trim back and remove the wood.
We had many an adventure around Zimbabwe in that car. A particularly memorable occasion being driving it through a game park, coming found the corner and encountering a lion. We certainly weren't going to open the car door to shut the window at that moment so my friend ended up contorted, holding the window up with his foot whilst videoing the lion!
Now in more modern (and boring) times, my husband has an electronic parking brake on his golf. It is clearly witchcraft and I don't trust it. Ditto the parking button which means he can parallel park and do jazz hands at the same time!

 

[Levo-Lon]

They're brilliant, when they're new, working, and under warranty. Not so much fun at 5 or 6 years old when only the dealer can reset them after adjustment or new parts, and want a kidney an hour plus VAT. Its a cunning means of either tying you into the dealer network for longer, or forcing you into a new car sooner.

All this pleasant, yet unnecessary tech is going to write off a lot of older cars that might otherwise be in excellent condition with many years service within them. The only person that is good for is the manufacturer.

Valid point...but it's already like that for most things these days
I trained a a car mechanic in the early 80's for nearly 3 years and tinkered for another 20 ...there just getting beyond the capable home mechanic nowadays.
Yes I get the We won't be able to fix a electric parking brake.. Volvo need dealer reset for just about everything.. Thank feck most cars are reliable..
I also think a 10 year old car is past it's best environmentally..so maybe we need to look at this.I
Pollution from older cars will always be a problem..New ones tend to be better ...or we just ban cars??