Handbrake failure!

[Mrs M]

Anyone else had a wee handbrake "incident"?
Our car reg number was "tannoyed" tonight as we were doing our grocery shopping
Mr M was oblivious but I said "that's our car"!
Rushed out to find the car had made a bid for freedom and had, luckily (not for the wee queue behind it though) come to a standstill in the middle of the car park. The driver at the front of the wee queue was very gracious and just waved
Could have been much worse if we'd chosen a different space and if it'd hit a person or another car.
Had a "Google" and seems to be quite a common problem with electronic parking brakes, which we were previously unaware of. Watch out folks

 

[steve50]

A good reason to always leave your car in gear. I have always drummed it into my daughter to leave her car in gear because she would insist in leaving it in neutral until one morning when she went out to her car only to have it roll backwards when she put her key in the door. I have known electronic handbrake fail on a brand new Nissan Juke.

 

[Moodyman]

+1 for leaving in 1st or reverse gear.

 

[Drago]

It's quite common on cars with rear discs, especially those driven briskly. The disc contracts, the pressure the pads exert reduces as a consequence, the car rolls away. A hand operated brake gets around this with a good hard yank, but the electric ones don't.

Leaving it in gear is fine until someone hits it and transmission components get junked as well.

 

[Zimbob]

I must admit admit myself and Ms B. always leave the cars in gear - on my side, a hangover from learning to drive in a Mini, and living on a hill....

....
Leaving it in gear is fine until someone hits it and transmission components get junked as well.

Another downside is when the M.in L. doesn't have this habit and uses one of our cars.... it was a trifle embarassing explaing what had happened when we had to get the AA out to retrieve the old Volvo from atop the rockery last summer

 

[toffee]

A colleague who used to work in the same office as myself had to tell me one day that her car had rolled back across the works car park and hit my car .

Luckily for her it only broke the rear light cluster. Total damage came to £17.

Derek

 

[Donger]

Happened to me in my own drive, with the handbrake lever in the fully on position. Rolled across the driveway and straight into the back of my neighbour's classic Alfa Romeo GTV parked opposite. As if that wasn't bad enough, it shunted his pride and joy into his own house, also damaging the front wing of the car and the wooden pillar of his own porch. ...... Awkward!

 

[Mrs M]

Happened to me in my own drive, with the handbrake lever in the fully on position. Rolled across the driveway and straight into the back of my neighbour's classic Alfa Romeo GTV parked opposite. As if that wasn't bad enough, it shunted his pride and joy into his own house, also damaging the front wing of the car and the wooden pillar of his own porch. ...... Awkward!

Ouch!

 

[Con]

I've got an automatic handbrake on my car so I can't forget to put it on but my wife's car has one of them old fashion pull up lever things and I'm forever leaving it off. Bloody stupid car you have to turn the lights on manually as well and the windscreen wipers don't automatically come on when it rains. It's like living in the dark ages driving her car I tell ya

 

[Con]

[QUOTE 4480884, member: 9609"]I wonder how you would get on in my van if you wanted to open the window - LOL

Electric handbrakes have to be the most stupid addition yet on cars and even more stupid on lorries - a neighbour has one of those hideous Prevoque things, it had broke down and the parking brake had engaged itself, couldn't even push it off to the side of the road, had to leave it in the way of everyone else for a few hours until a specialist truck with axle lift come to tow it away.

Another thing - parking brake is supposed to be your emergency back up braking system, so how is that going to work, press a button and the rear wheels will lock up, and if its wet and you're on a bend then that's you upside down in a ditch.

I really do loathe everything about modern vehicles and all the associated electronic crap that they're all stuffed with.[/QUOTE]
I know how to open windows you just press the button don't you? Or if you're outside the car it's a long press on the key fob. I'm still in two minds about the handbrake thing I spent the first few weeks not trusting it in the slightest even now I only half trust it. I've not been brave enough to apply It while the car is in motion yet I might try it on a quiet road.. Should be fun. One thing I do think though is modern cars make you forget how to drive and take all the fun out of it... If you call driving fun

 

[Oldfentiger]

I really don't think that electronic handbrakes are progress. Technology for the sake of another gizmo.
I don't think they can be applied on the move, as the higher intelligence will prevent it. Handbrake turns a thing of the past eh?

 

[Levo-Lon]

Lol @Mrs M .. yes i have..
I filled my van up and went to pay..
when i came back to an empty space by the pump i thought my van had been nicked!!

Ahh there it is ,it had rolled 30 yds and missed everything..i felt very i always leave it in gear..now

 

[screenman]

I have had cars with electronic handbrakes since about 2008 never a problem, and yes you can press the button whilst in motion and it slowed me down quite quickly without locking up.

Now cables, I have two of those snap.

 

[MarkF]

Picked up a brand new Vectra, 1st August 1996. On the way home I stopped at mini-market a quarter of a mile from my home, I was in there 5 mins and when I came out it was gone. Bastard! I thought, somebody has nicked it. I set off walking home thinking this beats the brand new 1986 Astra GTi somebody crashed into 5 mins after picking it up, brand new, from the same garage.

Approaching my house I saw group of people around a car that had crashed, driverless, into a lamp post..........

 

[DRHysted]

My sisters car with an electronic handbrake released whilst I was stood in front jumpstarting it on her sloping driveway. Thankfully she had good reactions!