Who Uses the Parking Brake?

[generaltso]

My wife's RAV4 Prime has a configurable setting that will automatically engage the parking brake when the car is shifted to Park and automatically release the parking brake when it's shifted out of Park, which I like. Chrysler products have a similar setting, but it doesn't automatically disengage until you press the accelerator, which I don't like nearly as much. But Fords have neither setting, so I guess it's moot.

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[Blue highway]

My wife's RAV4 Prime has a configurable setting that will automatically engage the parking brake when the car is shifted to Park and automatically release the parking brake when it's shifted out of Park, which I like. Chrysler products have a similar setting, but it doesn't automatically disengage until you press the accelerator, which I don't like nearly as much. But Fords have neither setting, so I guess it's moot.

When we park on a significant incline, the parking brake will automatically engage when we put the car in park. You see the parking brake light come on in the instrument cluster and can hear the parking brake motor. It automatically disengages after the car is put back in drive and you give it some power.

smaller inclines do not do this.

I see this when we park at our favorite pizza joint which is on a steep hill.

 

[generaltso]

When we park on a significant incline, the parking brake will automatically engage when we put the car in park. You see the parking brake light come on in the instrument cluster and can hear the parking brake motor. It automatically disengages after the car is put back in drive and you give it some power.

Yeah, I've had this happen several times. It's the "give it some power" to disengage the parking brake that I don't particularly like. If it turns itself on automatically, I'd rather have it disengage automatically when I shift out of Park.

 

[Doug&Julie]

Thanks for the feedback everybody, looks like I'm going back to using the parking brake at home (until I can clear the garage).

...and get'er out and drive more!

 

[MachTee]

I do it every time every car. It is just a good habit to get into. Plus my driver's license requires it. I drive so many different types of vehicles that it is just best to always set the E brake.

The Mach-E throws the parking brake automatically when on an incline. It also selects Park when the door is opened. All cool stuff. But guess what? It also is supposed to follow the charge schedule and sometimes that doesn't happen. Better to be safe. It is an easy thing to do and you might avoid a serious injury in the event something doesn't work as expected.

I meant to post about the parking brake getting automatically applied, *sometimes., that I wasn't imagining it. *Sometimes* when I park my car on the slightly sloped driveway, the parking brake is automatically engaged.

I've always used the parking brake ever since I started driving. I cringe whenever I see a car just bounce back and forth when someone just slams a car on park and let it go. I thought it should be common sense that it cannot be good for the car. At the very least, if you don't want to use the parking brake for whatever reason (such as the MME to avoid the pad fusing to the rotor from rust after a wash), put the car on park, and then gradually ease off the brake pedal.

 

[Awmustang]

I wish there was an option that the car would engage the parking brake automatically when put it in park.

 

[kwlinder]

Use it every day, I live on a mountain and have a very steep driveway. I take it one step further than most as I put it into neutral, roll back and snug into the parking brake and then engage park. Same with my ICE vehicle. That way you know there is zero stress on the parking prawl or tranny.

I have had similar rust buildup (it rains here a lot) and I just ran down the mountain in Neutral braking a bit and it went away in a block

Same process that I use... I've always made sure the car is being held by the parking brake and not by the parking pawl... I know more than one person that had damaged their parking pawl by not using the parking brake on an incline.

 

[67 Stang Convertible]

Break?

Damn that public school education will get you everytime!!!

 

[Neil4Real]

Cheeky tip, just don't put your car in Park! If you open your car door while in Drive, it'll automatically engage the parking brake and when you turn it off, it'll go into Park. Boom baby.

 

[npgeorgeuw]

Interesting, I see the opposite (but, I do not know if one is better, or even if it matters, probably not). I do not take my foot off the brake until the e-brake is set. That way I do not get that last roll putting that last hard-stop force against pawl. I think (?) if they are not allowed to move freely to the mechanical hard-stop, there is less mechanical force on those parts. Again, it probably does not matter either way in the big picture of things.

I think you missed that I do this in Neutral. You don't want the weight of the car on the brakes just on the parking brake. Zero force or travel on the prawl this way. In an EV I don't think it matters if you do it in D or N or L or R, I just do it in Neutral from my ICE days.

As a note, In the Mach E you have to put it into neutral, engage the parking brake and finally HIT the gas pedal if you have autostop or autohold enabled (after about a second you'll hear a twang and feel the car snug against the parking brake). If you don't have it enabled, it'll roll and snug to the parking brake.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

My wife's RAV4 Prime has a configurable setting that will automatically engage the parking brake when the car is shifted to Park and automatically release the parking brake when it's shifted out of Park, which I like. Chrysler products have a similar setting, but it doesn't automatically disengage until you press the accelerator, which I don't like nearly as much. But Fords have neither setting, so I guess it's moot.

There is no setting to either enable or disable automatic parking brake release, but that is what the Mach-e will do. Shift into gear and press the accelerator. Both our MME and Raptor do that. I’d personally prefer the RAV4 method though.

 

[TruWrecks]

My sister never used the parking brake with an automatic transmission. One night the parking paw sheered off and her van rolled down the road into a big rock.

New parking paw: $1200 parts and labor.
Vehicle repair: $4500 in body repairs, frame alignment and painting.

Cheap mistake?

I always use the parking brake. Relying on the paw is asking for it to fail.

 

[MABachE131]

My parking brake engages automatically everytime I put it in park. Flat ground or incline.

 

[ARK]

I just leave it to the Mach-E to decide when to engage the parking brake.

That being said, I don’t like it when the parking brake engages before the parking pawl grabs the car (not sure if the Mach-E does this). I find with the parking brake, you can still move a vehicle a tiny bit based on shifting weights of people getting in/opening doors/etc.

Always freaks me out if the tires move at all particularly with my young niece and nephew around, getting in or out, which is why I won’t use it. I haven’t noticed this specifically on my Mach-E, I have noticed it with my 2006 Mustang though.

 

[Mach1E]

I think you missed that I do this in Neutral. You don't want the weight of the car on the brakes just on the parking brake. Zero force or travel on the prawl this way. In an EV I don't think it matters if you do it in D or N or L or R, I just do it in Neutral from my ICE days.

As a note, In the Mach E you have to put it into neutral, engage the parking brake and finally HIT the gas pedal if you have autostop or autohold enabled (after about a second you'll hear a twang and feel the car snug against the parking brake). If you don't have it enabled, it'll roll and snug to the parking brake.

Yeah, I think everyone is treating this car like an ICE.

It doesn’t have a transmission. Is “neutral” even anything?

And a bunch of people have referenced a “parking pawl,” and I don’t think we even have one. We have a “park lock actuator,” but with no real transmission I think it works differently.

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