Anti-theft device
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- Member Extraordinaire
- Posts: 569
- Joined: Fri Jun 08, 2018 1:47 am
- Location: Boston, MA
Re: Anti-theft device
Funny how many in the US refer to the parking brake as the emergency brake. In fact, in MA you cannot take a test in a car that doesn't have a central handbrake that the examiner can operate (which rules out every Mercedes).
Maybe not best practice, but I only use the parking brake in the US when I'm on a big hill (with the wheels turned the appropriate way, of course ). I love that little rocking movement you get after putting the car in park and then taking your foot off the brake - reminds me of all the old American films and TV shows I used to watch as a kid.
Many cars how have electric rather than mechanical hand brakes (this is the case on my current Ford Escape / Kuga) that automatically disengage when you drive off. Hill start assist is also pretty common - the car holds the brake for you whilst you do the accelerator / clutch balancing act (pretty useful on a manual car - saves you messing around with the handbrake).
Maybe not best practice, but I only use the parking brake in the US when I'm on a big hill (with the wheels turned the appropriate way, of course ). I love that little rocking movement you get after putting the car in park and then taking your foot off the brake - reminds me of all the old American films and TV shows I used to watch as a kid.
Many cars how have electric rather than mechanical hand brakes (this is the case on my current Ford Escape / Kuga) that automatically disengage when you drive off. Hill start assist is also pretty common - the car holds the brake for you whilst you do the accelerator / clutch balancing act (pretty useful on a manual car - saves you messing around with the handbrake).
Re: Anti-theft device
Story time: I was moving a fuel truck with 1500 gallon of diesel fuel on it. I came to a long low grade and down shifted an as I apply the brakes pedal it went to the floor. As I traveled on down the grade I came around a turn, there was a tractor trailer with a lowboy trailer on it high centered at the bottom of the hill with just enough room to get a car between the bumper of the truck and the guard rail on the opposite side of the road. I picked the first driveway, I saw and with the emergency brake pulled as hard as I could I got the truck stopped. Fuel was splashing out of the top from the sharp turn and the emergency brake was glowing red. What a wild ride, the emergency brake was one that went around the driveshaft.
Re: Anti-theft device
I have driven a 3/4 ton or a 1 ton truck as a work truck most of my working days that had standard shift 4 on the floor and I have never used the emergency brake to start on a hill and have never back into one getting started even when I worked on William mountain in West Virginia.