About cars... Am I THAT old?

[daveamkrayoguy]

No actual hands-on training for me, just watching it done, from a school bus, to the elementary school principal's Mazda, to my aunt/uncle's VW Rabbit while Dire Straits 1st album played in the tape deck...

And with my cousin's liking, and training from her parents, her cars took a natural taking to nearly everything having a manual transmission, until further in her marriage when both she and probably her hubby all along having automatics...

My mom drove the neighbor's across the street's Ford Escort with a stick, trying to turn me on to it, just for the neighbor's sister to buy an Escort with one, so her husband couldn't drive it, but then he bought a Honda we saw driving that had a 5-Speed Man.

A couple friends' first cars had sticks, in which one hated it, so he never touched another one, from his second car, onwards, whereas the other one was okay with it, and his was a few cars further down, getting "paid" that car (an Escort) for a remodeling project...

Another friend that I worked with, had all-manual transmission cars, but when he could afford to have two cars, in spite being single, his second somehow had an Automatic and it was his first car with air conditioning but rarely drove, just to buy a THIRD, which was a station wagon, a couple years older than the newer, second car, that, he bought used so I joked he started his own "Ford Escort collectors club" as that's what all these cars were, even owning one before I knew him, he had, before that first one that I rode with him in...

-- Dave

 

[kate1]

It never occurred to me to just use the parking brake on a hill. I have always used the clutch and brake pedal. It probably comes from how I learned to drive stick. I just had it explained to me and then I drove around on some notably flat county roads before being sent out on my own. My first time on a hill I had to figure out what to do on the spot and it just made sense to use the clutch and brake pedal.

 

[sudsmaster]

A lot of older American cars do not lend themselves to using the parking brake easily while also operating the accelerator and clutch. Often they are buried under the left side of the dash, and one may have to lean forward awkwardly to activate or release them.

The parking brake lever between the front seats in an easily accessed position, with a push button release, is a relatively recent addition to American cars. I find it easier to just let the clutch drag a little to keep the vehicle from rolling backward, at least on slight inclines. A steep grade will require use of the parking brake, but with some planning (like motoring up to a level spot before stopping) can avoid that as well.

It's probably a reason why most traffic laws mandate giving the right of way to cars going up a grade.

 

[foraloysius]

I guess it is easier to not use the parking brake with an American car, especially bigger ones. They often have more torque than European cars. In the past only Mercedes had a foot pedal parking brake, other cars had them all between the seats.

 

[lowefficiency]

They are different in both function and form.

Here's my take:
All emergency brakes are parking brakes, but not all parking brakes are emergency brakes.

The lever between the seats is often called an "emergency brake", as in the event of a brake failure, you can hold the button pressed and vary the amount of pull on the lever to come to a controlled stop. Thanks to the ratcheting mechanism, it doubles as a parking brake when not holding the button.

The foot pedal variety in SOME cars works the same way, as you can keep the release lever pulled and vary the pressure with your left foot to control your stopping. It's not ideal, as you have to dive under the dash to reach the release, but it's better than crashing.

But SOME cars have a push-on push-off style of pedal here, which really makes it a parking brake "only", and not a good emergency brake. With no practical way to modulate the braking force, and no way to release without fully applying, you could find your vehicle spinning out of control after locking up two of your wheels. Better than crashing from having no brakes, but not a good situation.

Some newer cars have the "electronic" parking brake, where a single button press applies or releases the parking brake. Basically a system designed around the fact that modern dual-circuit hydraulic primary brakes are reliable enough, that using that center space for cup holders is an acceptable tradeoff.

 

[cadman]

Don't forget a lot of those 'between-the-seats' parking brakes also disengage the headlights when applied. VW comes to mind there.

The wife's new toy is a '60 Corvair with 3-on-the-floor and non-synchro first. That takes some planning in situations where you might be pulling into a crowded parking lot, or rolling up to a red light that immediately turns green (with modern cars barreling down from behind). On the other hand, her 6-speed Sonic is a blast to drive. It also has a hill holder function which is handy since our driveway is a steep hill with a blind turn onto a county blacktop. I don't know what we'll replace that with when the time comes...manuals have all but dried up the last few years.

 

[jamiel]

Now that you describe it that's how the cab drivers in Lisbon did it----used the electronic parking brake in the Opel Insignia (Buick Regal last-gen) when coming to a stop to hold at a stopsign, then letting off the clutch and shifting into First to deactivate the pbrake.