electronic brake motor wind back

[Scalarocco]

Problem is, at the economies of scale in car manufacturing, and the need to make each car quicker and easier, and the design of car interiors, fitting a lever/pedal to a sufficiently strong structure somewhere in the car, routing a cable/cables, provide a means to adjust it, mechanism in the caliper to operate it (time consuming to assemble etc) and its cheaper to make it bolt on, plug in.

I get that and understand about standardised design to keep costs to the manufacturer down. Both of my cars have a notification when they are due an oil change. On each car there is a process to follow where you can reset these warnings from the drivers seat just using the ignition key and a combination of button presses. No additional laptop, autocom or anything else. Simple. If there was a sub-menu that allowed you to reset the brake caliper built into the car and the car did it, then that would be perfectly acceptable to me. It is possible to put it in a place where a muppet can't accidentally reset it while trying to tune the radio, so user safety isn't an excuse not to do it.

 

[reb78]

Hill start assist, Auto hold, Auto application of hand brake if you forget, are 3 I can think of.

I'm surprised you think these are advantages worth mentioning. You should fail your test if you need any of those 'assistances' none are exactly hard to master with a standard hand powered hand brake if you actually know how to drive.

 

[JohnH]

I'm surprised you think these are advantages worth mentioning. You should fail your test if you need any of those 'assistances' none are exactly hard to master with a standard hand powered hand brake if you actually know how to drive.

I agree. The great advantage to using a manual handbrake, is that it keeps all the twits of the road as they cant pass a test.

 

[James1979]

I'm surprised you think these are advantages worth mentioning. You should fail your test if you need any of those 'assistances' none are exactly hard to master with a standard hand powered hand brake if you actually know how to drive.

Are they allowed on test?

I assume the answer is ‘yes’ but I am 100% of the mind that they shouldn’t be.

 

[Scalarocco]

Are they allowed on test?

I assume the answer is ‘yes’ but I am 100% of the mind that they shouldn’t be.

If they weren't you'd have to list all the car types not eligible for taking a test in. Hill hold activates automatically and can't be disabled on my cars. Potentially a minefield.

 

[James1979]

If they weren't you'd have to list all the car types not eligible for taking a test in. Hill hold activates automatically and can't be disabled on my cars. Potentially a minefield.

Ahh ok. I didn’t know that. Never driven one.

I know in a couple of lorries I’ve driven that you push a button for hill start hold but it does it on the transmission / final drive (I think) not electric brakes.

Never used it all the same.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Seems to be the way of the world.

Yup...my 2003 volvo needs a computer too...thats the newest car I will work on these days! The daily driver goes straight to the main dealer...and once the warranty period ends it gets sold and replaced with an even more complicated new car .

I have 1 year and 4 months left on my Hyundai warranty...started the search for a replacement!

 

[Fraserb]

Yup...my 2003 volvo needs a computer too...thats the newest car I will work on these days! The daily driver goes straight to the main dealer...and once the warranty period ends it gets sold and replaced with an even more complicated new car .

I have 1 year and 4 months left on my Hyundai warranty...started the search for a replacement!

Seems to be the way at the moment, either something a few years old or something under warranty. I ordered a new kuga 2 weeks ago and its due in june, warranty runs out on current one in july.

 

[Parm]

I’ve had company cars all my adult life, order a new one every three years. If it goes wrong “they” sort it or replace it

Few weeks ago the ad blue module died in my lovey Audi, 3 months for a replacement. It got left at the main dealer and a nice merc supplied

So far a nearly new car roughly every three months

 

[stuvy]

Swapped the pads and discs on an almost three year old kia

Left hand wind back(second time Iv ever used that tool from my kit)

The light on the dash can only be switched on my main dealer

Ended up being the same price for me to do it then the dealer as the main dealer

 

[Justme]

In my opinion, handbrakes are for hill starts and passing MOT's. I never use it for parking, I much prefer to leave my manual car in gear.
I have neither the problem of freezing on nor replacing stretched cables!

In all my years driving I have never had a car hand brake seize when in use or needed to change cable due to stretch.

Your engine can let the car move as the cylinder pressure leaks away.

 

[Justme]

Hill start and auto hold don't use an electronic handbrake to work. Both of my cars have this and both have manual handbrakes. This works using the abs unit to apply the main brakes.

Don't get me wrong, passive safety systems are a good thing to have and are a benefit that comes with the fact that other systems are fitted to modern cars (esc, abs, tcs, etc...!) but forcing the need for a specialist piece of hardware and software to reset a car for something that previously a diy-er could do on his/her driveway is going too far.

Both mine use the handbrake to do it.

One needs a dongle & the other does not.

 

[Justme]

What is interesting is in Construction and Use . . .

View attachment 378488

16 (b)(i) seems to make electric parking brakes illegal . . . but then apparently only on vehicles without brakes on all wheels . . . ?

Your mis quoting the regs.
Line 15 is not about parking brakes.
Electric brake use will be in an amendment.
Annoyingly they never change the main regs when this get updated.
You might have to read 20+ pages of update to get to the current status.

 

[Justme]

I'm surprised you think these are advantages worth mentioning. You should fail your test if you need any of those 'assistances' none are exactly hard to master with a standard hand powered hand brake if you actually know how to drive.

Need & improvement are different things.

Think of them as assistance for when you get it wrong.

Or we might as well get rid of:-
airbags
seat belts
crumple zones
active safety devices
laminated glass
ABS
stability program
traction control
ect ect

As you "should" not need them IF you drive correctly.

But nice to have just in case.

 

[Justme]

I agree. The great advantage to using a manual handbrake, is that it keeps all the twits of the road as they cant pass a test.

Cant remember the last (or even any) fail I have had for handbrake use issues.

 

[Justme]

If they weren't you'd have to list all the car types not eligible for taking a test in. Hill hold activates automatically and can't be disabled on my cars. Potentially a minefield.

The only thing currently you cant use is auto park assist.
I guess once self drive comes in the UK that will be added too.

They do list cars that are not suitable for test but mostly due to view from passengers seat or lack of rear seats.

 

[MetalMonkey]

In all my years driving I have never had a car hand brake seize when in use or needed to change cable due to stretch.

You've never owned a 90s/00s Honda then
Rear callipers are notorious for the handbrake seizing, I've repaired or replaced loads in my time, and I'm not a mechanic by trade.

Or the old corsa handbrake cables, common for binding/corroding and sticking the shoes on and cooking the drums - all exposed cables going through 90 degree bends on plastic wear plates directly subject to road spray. Genius design.

I think they only time I ever use a handbrake is at the MOT, sick of fixing them.
I've often considered converting to a hydraulic and just leaving the cables in for show to pass the MOT – that might actually make it a useful feature.

 

[8ob]

Sad state of affairs when the normal home/diy mechanic cant fit his/her own brake pads I will keep running the old tat I have for as long as I can.

Bob

 

[eLuSiVeMiTe]

Sad state of affairs when the normal home/diy mechanic cant fit his/her own brake pads I will keep running the old tat I have for as long as I can.

Bob

Or change a headlight bulb easily without stripping half the front bodywork.

Probably why a good proportion of the cars I see have bulbs out.

 

[8ob]

Or change a headlight bulb easily without stripping half the front bodywork.

Probably why a good proportion of the cars I see have bulbs out.

I had to change the alternator on the fiesta van the other day, never seen anything so ill thought out in my life. This building in of buggerance is pushing everybody towards main dealer maintainence , I suppose that’s what it’s all about

Bob