I HATE electronic handbrakes

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Can I ask,

What is the benefit of an electronic handbrake,?

Immediate thoughts are...

1/ Easier to apply break if you have less arm strength, e.g. if my wife is driving....

1a) Just use button/lever or whatever it is, to apply manually during temp stop whilst driving.

1b) Just turn engine off if finished driving it automatically applies itself.

1c) Far easier to ensure strong application if car heavy laden or towing or on hill. (just hold button for a few seconds longer)

2/ Hill starts...   Just drive off, NO roll back, automatically releases when sufficient torque to move off.

(especially good if got caravan on the back!)

3) Pulling out from side road into fast moving traffic...  (especially if side road on an incline).

Just drive off when you see a gap, break looks after itself..

4) If you don't want the hassle of releasing manual break, no need to hold the car on the clutch wearing clutch plates down...  (assuming you have a manual gearbox!)

5) extra bit of flat floor space between the two font seats to store wife's handbag...  or a Tesco's carrier bag of beer..

Stop it rolling around the car!!!!   :innocent

The only disadvantage I can think of is......

Don't think you can do hand-break turns!!!!!   :Blushing ROTFWL

We've had one on our Espace (03 reg) bought brand new June 03..

over 12 years old.. 144,000+ miles done..

Still going strong   (usual routine wear and tear maintenance expected of a car for its age & mileage)

With ours its just increase accelerator, release clutch, drive off as normal, the break looks after itself...

Far far easier than a manual  IMHO!

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Go back and read post ID 17

Probably just as many instances of people not applying a manual break correctly and a car rolling off................

my parents did it years ago when I was a young un still at home car rolled off drive..   :shakehead

And also watched a car roll down a road and crash into  a house opposite as a teenager when hanging around with my mates at the local shops...

Just because its manual doesn't mean that it cant roll away empty!

:C   

 

[Essex1]

Go back and read post ID 17

Ok. Bad example. 

You can forget to apply a manual handbrake. The electronic applies itself automatically. 

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

I am not convinced that the stop and restart engine every time the vehicle is not moving is a sensible or good move....

especially on short journeys on cold winter mornings with a battery 4+ years old....

(but our car hasn't got that feature anyway!!)

But the electronic hand-break is a genuine good idea IMHO!

Guinness

 

[NozSpark]

My parents car has stop/start,,,, I think that they've disabled it........

 

[Sharpend]

As with anything electronic, it's great till it goes wrong. 

As with anything remotely modern, less scope for the man on the street to repair -without forking out a shed load on tools etc. 

It's all about what our industry has none of .......Control? 

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

My parents car has stop/start,,,, I think that they've disabled it........

So they have to keep driving forever............................ ???? :C

:coat

ROTFWL

 

[Sharpend]

Talking of modern cars, anybody hear about the driverless Google car, it crashed into a bus!!

thats technology folks!

 

[Essex1]

Talking of modern cars, anybody hear about the driverless Google car, it crashed into a bus!!

thats technology folks!

Anyone here about the caveman that got burnt by the fire?

 

[Sharpend]

Anyone here about the caveman that got burnt by the fire?

And that relates to electronic technical advances how? Or are you going to tell me he started it with the first electronic lighter? 

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Talking of modern cars, anybody hear about the driverless Google car, it crashed into a bus!!

thats technology folks!

not until you mentioned it....

but...

http://fortune.com/2016/02/29/google-self-driving-car-bus/

ROTFWL

 

[Sharpend]

I particularly liked this quote

"From now on, our cars will more deeply understand that buses (and other large vehicles) are less likely to yield to us than other types of vehicles, and we hope to handle situations like this more gracefully in the future."

 

[Essex1]

And that relates to electronic technical advances how? Or are you going to tell me he started it with the first electronic lighter? 

You know my point.  Sometimes you need to push things in order to make any advances.  Mistakes are bound to happen.  Look around you.  How much of your daily life is based on electronics.  They all started somewhere.

 

[binky]

vehicles are so much more reliable than they were, it was normal when I was a kid to change your car every 3 years to avoid the MOT and a shed load of bills, mostly for rust related issues. However, i prefer manual handbrakes, simple and reliable, but I never fully trust them - you should see some of the hills around Plymouth, I always park in gear and with the handbrake on.

The new van I bought last year does have the anti-roll back feature. Takes a bit of getting used to, but very helpful either way with a heavy load on board. However I've never really had a problem with hill starts (you should see the hills around Plymouth) so whilst I quite like it, I do regard it as surplus to requirements. The biggest problem with electonics is reliability when the components used have been cheapskated, and programming skimped. Whilst the car industy needs to avoid litigation, it doesn't pevent accountants forcing corner cutting, especially on cheaper vehicles

 

[revjames]

No. Mr E sussex, you can forget to apply an EPB - even worse, many people have had theirs release on their own and the car has rolled away. I have never forgotten to handbrake, or had a cable break. Useless invention. Its MY thread and I can say so. If you think they are a good idea start your own!

 

[Lusk]

vehicles are so much more reliable than they were, it was normal when I was a kid to change your car every 3 years to avoid the MOT and a shed load of bills,

Thing with old cars I found (70s/80s onwards), they'd fail on bodywork, expense to get repaired, unless you were handy with welding gear.  Everything else, you could fix yourself.

It seems to be the other way around nowadays.

 

[Essex1]

No. Mr E sussex, you can forget to apply an EPB - even worse, many people have had theirs release on their own and the car has rolled away. I have never forgotten to handbrake, or had a cable break. Useless invention. Its MY thread and I can say so. If you think they are a good idea start your own!

Well my electronic hand brake turns itself on if I forget. So ner!

 

[revjames]

Final update, for all that are interested in such things. Took handbrake actuator off and took the control box off revealing the motor connections. Applied 12V battery to motor and ran it in both directions and oiled the mechanism. Made a loud clunk when it reached the limit of travel. Re assembled and put back on the car. Worked, and warning light went off - BUT sounded really rough. Found a replacement on ebay for £45 plys £6 postage and fitted today and all seems well. MOT tomorrow. Fingers crossed!