I don't use my handbrake - it just stretches the cable, which subsequently needs replacing.

And wheels turned.

Wheels turning is the problem

don't use my handbrake - it just stretches the cable, which subsequently needs replacing.

Is that a Viz top tip or are you driving something from 1959 without a self adjusting hand brake 🙂

Leave your car in gear on hills. Handbrake failures happen!

And the wheels turned into the kerb

I don't use my handbrake - it just stretches the cable, which subsequently needs replacing.

Yeh I get that as I generally don't use the brakes at all when driving, just wears the pads and discs, which would need replaced and it puts brake dust on the wheels which would need cleaned. Not using the brakes is win win for me, I just drive really slowly and use the gears, its saved me a bloody fortune.

Is that a Viz top tip or are you driving something from 1959 without a self adjusting hand brake

Best not to start the engine either, it just uses petrol, which needs replacing.

I have an auto. In case I ever park in molgrip's road.

Handbrakes don't just fail by braking...on lots of cars the handbrake acts on the brake disc instead of a separate drum. So when you parked up with hot brakes, the disc contracts as it cools, and the handbrake starts to release.

If you walk up a steep hill, its amazing how many cars are out of gear with the wheels straight. Even residential streets where the drivers park there every day. (I live on one...drive is even steeper so my van gets double chocked with big rubber wheel chocks)

I tried releasing the handbrake on our car and started turning the engine over until it was merrily chugging down the drive in 1st gear!)

(our insurance company actually quoted a cheaper premium for on street parking, they didn't understand but I know its because the road in our postcode crosses the hill and is only a gentle incline, but all the drives are about 1 in 4. Lots of claims for cars rolling off driveways!)

Had the same on our street years ago when a car rolled down the hill and ended up stuck on the wall at the end of road.
More recent an huge RV that had been causing parking problems on the in-laws street as it was parked outside anybodies house other than the owners ended up in at the bottom of the street parked in someones living room. I suspect a neighbour had done it or even the owner as they'd also had it up for sale for a while before.

I suspect a neighbour had done it or even the owner as they'd also had it up for sale for a while before.

What deliberately let off the handbrake and let it roll down a hill, out of control, and into someones house?

Yeh I get that as I generally don't use the brakes at all when driving, just wears the pads and discs, which would need replaced and it puts brake dust on the wheels which would need cleaned. Not using the brakes is win win for me, I just drive really slowly and use the gears, its saved me a bloody fortune.

😆 😆

What *is* the point of the handbrake, though? If it's more secure to just leave it in gear, then why not just do that?

Or, move to the Cambridge area, I often forget to put my hand brake on and leave the car in neutral and it's always in the same place I left it.

What *is* the point of the handbrake, though?

Getting round tight corners.

It could have hit a baby robin's face!

It could have hit a baby robin's face!

[img] [/img]

Interesting vid on how 'Park' works on an automatic...

spooky_b329 - Member

Handbrakes don't just fail by braking...on lots of cars the handbrake acts on the brake disc instead of a separate drum. So when you parked up with hot brakes, the disc contracts as it cools, and the handbrake starts to release.

I've had this happen before & would hazard a guess that it's a more frequent occurrence than the cable snapping.

There's a really steep road near my parents that I walked over last time I was there - I didn't see one car parked with the wheels turned into the kerb.

What *is* the point of the handbrake

Doughnuts obvs

Well I always use handbrake and gears cos the drive is quite steep but it was a bit awkward when my driveshaft snapped and then I broke the handbrake cable pulling it tight.

That is interesting, thanks.

Or, move to the Cambridge area, I often forget to put my hand brake on and leave the car in neutral and it's always in the same place I left it.

no hills you say...

[url= https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2690/4202362695_e93dbc7a75.jp g" target="_blank">https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2690/4202362695_e93dbc7a75.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/7pmd2e ]River Lane covered in ice[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

see this car sized hole in the railings next to the river....

[url= https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2613/4203122072_1f255db537.jp g" target="_blank">https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2613/4203122072_1f255db537.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/7pq6KW ]Car sized hole in railings at bottom of River Lane[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/ ]Ben Freeman[/url], on Flickr

no hills you say...

I think you're on a slipppery slope.

Doughnuts obvs

You don't use the handbrake.

Lol @ Trailrat!

Please don't encourage this parking with it in gear business, my Missus whole family do this despite not living on a road with any gradient.

Amount of times i've nearly written cars off!

Amount of times i've nearly written cars off!

You don't check the car is not in gear?

nwmlarge - Member

Please don't encourage this parking with it in gear business, my Missus whole family do this despite not living on a road with any gradient.

Amount of times i've nearly written cars off!

Do you not depress the clutch as a matter of course, when starting the car?? Tsk tsk..... 😉

You don't check the car is not in gear?

I occasionally have this conversation with my wife:

Her: "You left my car in gear! It lurched forward when I tried to start it and I nearly hit the wall!"
Me: "Why didn't you check whether it was in gear before you tried to start it"
Her: "I shouldn't need to, I never leave it in gear!"
Me: "But you're not the only one that drives. I may occasionally leave it in gear, either by accident or design"
Her: "But you shouldn't leave it in gear!"
Me: "But occasionally I do. That's why you should always check if a car is in gear before you start it, because the last person to drive it may have left in in gear"
Her: Her: "I shouldn't need to, I never leave it in gear!"

And so it goes on...

Amount of times i've nearly written cars off!

Do you not check to see if the car is in gear before starting? And how do you write a car off by starting it in gear?

You don't use the handbrake.

I would never stop to buy doughnuts without using the handbrake.

Is nwmlarge your wife?

I would never stop to buy doughnuts without using the handbrake.

😆

Amount of times i've nearly written cars off!

The amount of times someone else has used my van and left it out of gear with the handbrake on! 🙂

Do you not depress the clutch

Is nwmlarge your wife?

Nope, but I'm always open to offers. Is he fit?

People who work in car showrooms always leave the damned cars in gear. You may depress the clutch on starting but there will always be a few that catch you out and lurch forwards when you release the pedal. It drives me nuts.

When I lived in Paris you had to leave the handbrake off because other drivers would use their bumpers to nudge cars to create space to park. Luckily it was flat where I lived.

You may depress the clutch on starting but there will always be a few that catch you out and lurch forwards when you release the pedal. It drives me nuts

But you should check the car isn't in gear using the gear stick anyway.

Why would you release the clutch without checking if its in gear or not? I'm confused.

Do people still press the button when applying the hand brake to avoid wearing out the ratchet?
Or is it just me?

I always leave mine in gear, even on level ground. Surprising how many people have tried to start my car over the years and have it lurch forward / back because they've not even pushed in the clutch let alone checked the gearstick.

I wonder how many of them are those stupid electronic handbrakes? The only time I remember having a car roll away is when I've jumped out in an emergency and the e-brake's not applied because I've not quite been at an absolute stop.

I was always taught to leave the car in gear with the handbrake on and the wheels turned to the kerb, and I always check with a manual vehicle that it's in neutral before starting it, force of habit.

Leaving the car in gear and the handbrake off didn't work out too well for Phil Leotardo.

You may depress the clutch on starting but there will always be a few that catch you out and lurch forwards when you release the pedal. It drives me nuts.

Learn to drive.

Start the car with the clutch down, then you're turning less of the transmission with the starter motor. Continue to hold the clutch in, select a gear, release the handbrake if it's a manual one, drive off. Why are you starting a car if you're not going anywhere?

Seriously, this was on like my first driving lesson.

My father in law always leaves in parked in gear, so when he borrowed my an to move some stuff, i left a nasty dent in our garage door, we do live in Norfolk...

Company i work for dealt with a claim from Johnny Vaughan the TV chap, which was reported as "crashed Maserati into a skip, dog in drivers seat, he was in the passenger seat"! Turns out he had got out of his car with engine running, walked round the back of his car and dog had jumped across to the drivers seat knocking automatic in to "drive", he chased it and jumped into passenger seat and crashed into a skip.

So was waggling the gearstick.

Do people still press the button when applying the hand brake to avoid wearing out the ratchet?
Or is it just me?

Button? Next you'll be telling me you use a stalk to turn your wipers on.

i have a sloping drive, and a new lady friend was visiting, just as i was about to do the plank, there was a knock at the door. it was my over the road neighbour. he asked, who owns the red astra, i said my girlfriend, nonchlantly he said" ask her to get it out of my fence please" !
it had rolled down my drive, across a busy road and came to rest in his fence, which there was 15ft drop behind. talk about lucky !
cost me £200 that night to do the plank/have the fence repaired 🙂

Company i work for dealt with a claim from Johnny Vaughan the TV chap

Does the company you work for not have any rules about confidentiality ? 😯

[b]Waggle the gear stick to ensure it's not in gear.[/b] Start the car with the clutch down, then you're turning less of the transmission with the starter motor. Continue to hold the clutch in, select a gear, release the handbrake if it's a manual one, drive off.

So was waggling the gearstick.

Yeh exactly, I can't believe people are crashing into things because they don't follow the basic procedures before starting a car. It's not like there's a massive list, just a couple of things you should do.

One is the gun (Handbrake and Gear Stick)
Two seat to you
Three can I see
Four the door
Five alive

Does the company you work for not have any rules about confidentiality ?

I don't think he'll mind, he has told the story himself a number of times and laughs about it in trying to explain why dog was in driver seat.

Five alive

More of an Um Bongo man meself.

Or he crashed his car and made up bullshit story to sound 'hillarious'.

More of an Um Bongo man meself.

I live in Northumberland not the Congo.

Good advice, I always do. I used to live on a hill and the number of times walking down the road to the station I saw cars which had rolled into each other / up the kerb overnight just served as a reminder.

I live in Northumberland not the Congo

Northumbongria?

I used to live on a hill and the number of times walking down the road to the station I saw cars which had rolled into each other / up the kerb overnight just served as a reminder.

I've lived on hills before, and lived around hilly streets, and have honestly never seen this, ever.

Northumbongria?

Congomberland?

But you should check the car isn't in gear using the gear stick anyway.

Why would you release the clutch without checking if its in gear or not? I'm confused.

If you're jumping into an unfamiliar car it's sometimes hard to know where the neutral spot is in the "gate". I know most cars are spring biased towards neutral but that's not always the case.

If you're jumping into an unfamiliar car it's sometimes hard to know where the neutral spot is in the "gate"

Hehe. No it's not 😆

It's a piece of piss!

richmars - Member

Do people still press the button when applying the hand brake to avoid wearing out the ratchet?
Or is it just me?

Nope. My Ibiza was 13 years old with 274k miles on it and the ratchet was still working fine....has anyone ever 'worn out the ratchet' - and no, that's not a euphemism!

The Johnny Vaughan story is bollocks - you have to press a button to get automatic cars into drive - presumably for just this reason.
Don't you also have to have your foot on the footbrake too; unless perhaps it's a car with an auto handbrake? I rarely drive autos, but think that's the case.

If you're jumping into an unfamiliar car it's sometimes hard to know where the neutral spot is in the "gate". I know most cars are spring biased towards neutral but that's not always the case.

I would say it would be incredibly stupid for any car manufacturer to make a car that you struggled to find out if it was in neutral or not. But to check, shift into 1st then back out to find neutral, but I understand you may also struggle to find 1st 🙂

you have to press a button to get automatic cars into drive - presumably for just this reason.
Don't you also have to have your foot on the footbrake too; unless perhaps it's a car with an auto handbrake? I rarely drive autos, but think that's the case.

not from nuetral.

see also; US cops jumping into US cars driving in circles on you've been framed!

[b]Waggle the gear stick to ensure it's not in gear.[/b] Start the car with the clutch down,

What are you wiggling the gear stick for, are you expecting sudden catastrophic failure of the clutch?

You don't always get in the car, start the engine, and move off immediately. Or do you just sit with your foot on the clutch until you're ready to move off?

Feet slip off pedals - the results are similar.

Also your clutch cable or master cylinder could easily fail - so yes.

The Johnny Vaughan story is bollocks - you have to press a button to get automatic cars into drive - presumably for just this reason.

My wife's auntie watched an old lady get killed under the wheels of her own car as she got out without remembering to put it in park and it rolled forwards.

If you walk up a steep hill, its amazing how many cars are out of gear with the wheels straight.

Because the vast majority of drivers are thick as two short planks and are incapable of projecting forward even slightly in time to consider consequences.

The same people will then start the car without pressing the clutch (WHY isn't there an interlock?), or not see the slower car/bike until they're right on top of it, or park in dangerous places, or trundle past a school at 35mph - you get the point.

The same people will then start the car without pressing the clutch (WHY isn't there an interlock?)

You can't start many modern cars now without depressing the clutch.

Yup all the ones I've had for the last 11 years you need to press the clutch to start.

@footflaps - smartarse! 😉

thomthumb - Member

not from nuetral.

Ah, OK. Like I say - I am not a frequent user of automatics. When I do, I generally go from P to D, which requires a button press. Even then, the handbrake is still applied so the car doesn't start moving until that's released.

molgrips - Member

My wife's auntie watched an old lady get killed under the wheels of her own car as she got out without remembering to put it in park and it rolled forwards.

But, presumably this was the car just rolling under gravity, rather than under it's own power?
In Johnny Vaughan's case, the car must have been in neutral for the dog to knock it into drive & the handbrake must have been off...?

I thought automatics were supposed to be easy to drive!? Sounds like a lot of room for mistakes! 😉

Drac - Moderator

Yup all the ones I've had for the last 11 years you need to press the clutch to start.

Have these all had push button start or something? The only car I can think of that I have driven where you had to press the clutch in to start was a Renault Megane with a key card & push button start.

is when I've jumped out in an emergency ... not quite been at an absolute stop.

...and the e-brake's not applied...

Have these all had push button start or something?

Nope. All VAG.

Have these all had push button start or something?

Because the vast majority of drivers are thick as two short planks and are incapable of projecting forward even slightly in time to consider consequences.

Best post I've seen on here for ages and sadly 100% correct 😆

Have these all had push button start or something?

No suzuki swift, non push button start version. Although you do get versions with push button start so maybe it's easier to make them all with the 'depress clutch to start' feature.

[quote=stumpy01 ]Have these all had push button start or something?
2008 Toyota Yaris - key start

Drac - Moderator

Nope. All VAG.

Weird.

My 12 plate Ibiza (VAG) doesn't need any pedals pressing to start....

EDIT - just seen all the other replies. I obviously need to double check this. I normally start the car with foot on the clutch, but there are other times where I have either forgotten, or have leant in the car, waggled the gear stick & started the car (for example if I need to de-ice the car & don't intend to actually get in).....

I can't think of a single car we've owned where this has been necessary
Previous gen Ibiza
59 plate Peugeot 308
Ford Ka
59 plate C3 Picasso

and the Mondeo at work (07 plate) doesn't need it....I don't think...

You don't always get in the car, start the engine, and move off immediately. Or do you just sit with your foot on the clutch until you're ready to move off?

I don't start the car until I'm ready to move off. Why would you?

EDIT - I've thought of a reason, demisting. In which case, yes, I'd pull it out of gear.

Feet slip off pedals - the results are similar.

Also your clutch cable or master cylinder could easily fail - so yes.

In 25+ years of driving, I can count the number of times either of those occurrences has happened on the fingers of one foot.

I've had ibizas as hire cars in spain recently and don't think the clutch needed to be pressed to start.

I don't start the car until I'm ready to move off. Why would you?

I can think of several reasons and if you're saying you have never ever got in a car, started the engine and not moved off immediately then you're not telling the truth.

Have these all had push button start or something?

Other half's 11 year old Yaris is key start and need the clutch in to start.