I should expect condescension here from a bunch of Audi driving IT managers with bikes on credit….but to qualify my skill level further:

I rarely ever do it, but occasionally I need to reverse back really close to a small wall, like within an inch – its much easier to judge looking by popping open the door than moving the mirrors and then reseting them.

The options for reversing camera and distance sensors remained unticked.

I never had a problem operating a handbrake. Why did they need to ‘fix’ it?

I should expect condescension here from a bunch of Audi driving IT managers with bikes on credit….but to qualify my skill level further:

I drive a Golf. 😀

I should expect condescension here from a bunch of Audi driving IT managers with bikes on credit

😆

Use the tape on wheelarch trick I mention here – http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/reversing-parking-sensors

I never had a problem operating a handbrake. Why did they need to ‘fix’ it?

Handbrakes do occasionally fail. Happened outside my house last week – Volvo started rolling downhill. Fortunately it hit the next car down and didn’t crash into the house at the bottom.

Due to the design of the electronic brake that can’t happen. It screws the pads onto the wheel and the mechanism can’t be turned backwards, so it can’t come off. It works very well as long as you haven’t got the older model where the casing cracks and the mechanism seizes up. Auto hold is the solution for hill starts. No rolling.

Also people do occasionally forget to put them on or don’t put them on hard enough. Electronic brake solves that problem too.

It also frees up space in the centre console for cupholders and whatnot.

In my Dad’s new model the auto hold and handbrake appear to be the same thing. It just disengages when you pull away – no drama.

Great, until you find out you can’t remove the handbrake without the engine running. We will have fun towing these cars when they are bangers and break down….

I agree that auto hold is great most of the time!

To some extent its like the auto flush toilet. Its not something you particularly enjoy doing (pushing the flush) but its part of the routine you have embedded for many years. Not going through that routine feels wrong and takes some getting used to, and when you go back to a manual flush theres a risk you will omit to flush!

I never had a problem operating a handbrake. Why did they need to ‘fix’ it?

Indeed

Great, until you find out you can’t remove the handbrake without the engine running. We will have fun towing these cars when they are bangers and break down….

I’m sure the manual on my golf said you have to get underneath with a drill and reverse the pad screw to remove the handbrake if it needs towing or the battery is dead.

Great, until you find out you can’t remove the handbrake without the engine running. We will have fun towing these cars when they are bangers and break down.

You can do it without the engine running, just the ignition needs to be on. The only time that is a problem is when the steering lock fails and the immobiliser won’t switch on the ignition. The breakdown people just whack slidey plastic wedges under the wheels.

when you go back to a manual flush theres a risk you will omit to flush!

Yes, but notice how many people forget to flush public toilets anyway.

I’m sure the manual on my golf said you have to get underneath with a drill and reverse the pad screw to remove the handbrake if it needs towing or the battery is dead.

you must have been REALLY bored that day 😆

you must have been REALLY bored that day

I’ve had bad luck with cars so knowing that could have been useful at some point.

If it was for parking safety, there would be no need to have an electric handbrake, just a backup that comes on regardless.

Of course, if people left the car in gear with the wheels pointing to the kerb and the handbrake on, there would be very little chance of a serious accident due to a failed handbrake…

My wife’s aunt watched an old lady get crushed to death because she forgot to put her automatic car in park and it rolled forward when she tried to get out. She fell under the car and got dragged along somehow. People can forget anything. So even with proper procedure in place someone’s always going to forget or cock it up.

Here’s another one. People up the road had a motorbike stolen from the garage. Their pickup was parked right in front of the door so the thieves crawled under it and snipped the handbrake cable. Very much harder with an electronic handbrake.

just a backup that comes on regardless.

It’d need a live system to detect that, which would require battery power.

The one thing i did notice with the Golf which was a tad annoying…

If you took the handbrake off manually because you were reversing without a seatbelt on it wouldn’t put it back on at automatically at the end of the journey or when the ignition was powered off.

That resulted in my car rolling away a few times as normally as soon as I turned the ignition off it would put the handbrake on. Thankfully no major damage done and it did get me in the habit of checking it or leaving the car in gear.

According to my dad it doesn’t come on unless the car is completely stationary. So if you let the brakes off slightly too soon it won’t engage and you can end up rolling.

Very much harder with an electronic handbrake.

I head somewhere that a couple of moments underneath the car with a cordless drill backs the handbrake off.

Wouldn’t work on mine. You’d have to remove the actuators first which is pretty difficult with the wheel on. Might’ve changed.

According to my dad it doesn’t come on unless the car is completely stationary. So if you let the brakes off slightly too soon it won’t engage and you can end up rolling.

Yes you have to stop for the handbrake to engage. Who would think it?

I think you have to stop with your foot on the brake too – so rolling in gently won’t work either.

Yeap stop with the brake for auto hold.

For stopping the engine on yes you do as it applies the handbrake relevant to the pressure you applied to the foot brake. If you switch off the engine it engages the handbrake.