Emergency Brake - To use or not to use that is the question
#1
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Emergency Brake - To use or not to use that is the question
Now that I have found the emergency brake, wondering why I wouldn't always have it set to auto. Since there is no way to drive with the brake on, as it disengages automatically, I'm not seeing a downside to leaving it on auto all the time. Am I missing something?
Only thing I could come up with is to not use the emergency brake if the car was parked for a long time on a flat surface.
Only thing I could come up with is to not use the emergency brake if the car was parked for a long time on a flat surface.
#3
Lexus Fanatic
No downside in normal use.
One thing most American drivers don't realize is it isn't an "emergency brake", it's a "parking brake". The parking brake should be used every time the vehicle is parked, whether it's automotive or not. Believe it or not, automatic transmissions are not designed to hold the car in place using just the parking prawl.
One thing most American drivers don't realize is it isn't an "emergency brake", it's a "parking brake". The parking brake should be used every time the vehicle is parked, whether it's automotive or not. Believe it or not, automatic transmissions are not designed to hold the car in place using just the parking prawl.
#5
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No downside in normal use.
One thing most American drivers don't realize is it isn't an "emergency brake", it's a "parking brake". The parking brake should be used every time the vehicle is parked, whether it's automotive or not. Believe it or not, automatic transmissions are not designed to hold the car in place using just the parking prawl.
One thing most American drivers don't realize is it isn't an "emergency brake", it's a "parking brake". The parking brake should be used every time the vehicle is parked, whether it's automotive or not. Believe it or not, automatic transmissions are not designed to hold the car in place using just the parking prawl.
#6
Lexus Test Driver
Frozen parking brake?
One reason you may not want to have it set is if the car's been driven through water, slush, wet snow, etc., that possibly gets water into the parking brake mechanism. The car then gets a deep cold soak overnight possibly freezing the parking brake so that it won't release properly.
As this has happened to me in the past, I am always careful to not set the emergency brake if there is the potential for a hard freeze and the car's been driven through slush and snow.
The design of the GS parking brake system may eliminate this possibility but I am not sure.
As this has happened to me in the past, I am always careful to not set the emergency brake if there is the potential for a hard freeze and the car's been driven through slush and snow.
The design of the GS parking brake system may eliminate this possibility but I am not sure.
#7
Pole Position
One reason you may not want to have it set is if the car's been driven through water, slush, wet snow, etc., that possibly gets water into the parking brake mechanism. The car then gets a deep cold soak overnight possibly freezing the parking brake so that it won't release properly.
As this has happened to me in the past, I am always careful to not set the emergency brake if there is the potential for a hard freeze and the car's been driven through slush and snow.
The design of the GS parking brake system may eliminate this possibility but I am not sure.
As this has happened to me in the past, I am always careful to not set the emergency brake if there is the potential for a hard freeze and the car's been driven through slush and snow.
The design of the GS parking brake system may eliminate this possibility but I am not sure.
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#8
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If people knew what little was keeping their car in place just by putting it in "park", they'd be mortified. That little pawl is just a small portion of metal that can be easily sheared. EASILY... and they do shear.
Parking brake all the way. that's the only way to do it safely and not just rely on "park". I haven't used it myself, but the automatic parking brake function sounds like a no-brainer.
Parking brake all the way. that's the only way to do it safely and not just rely on "park". I haven't used it myself, but the automatic parking brake function sounds like a no-brainer.
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#11
I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
#12
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Another use: If you want to listen to your stereo with your car parked, you have to turn it off in neutral to keep the power on then manually set the brake.
I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
#13
Lexus Fanatic
Another use: If you want to listen to your stereo with your car parked, you have to turn it off in neutral to keep the power on then manually set the brake.
I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
#14
Lexus Champion
Another use: If you want to listen to your stereo with your car parked, you have to turn it off in neutral to keep the power on then manually set the brake. I have never tried killing the car in neutral and then shifting to park to see if it would set the parking brake automatically. Something to investigate.
#15
Lexus Test Driver
What this guy said. Keep in mind the radio eats huge gobs of power. I left it on while waxing the hood (only the hood) one day and it went into OMGEMERGENCY SHUTDOWN mode after about 20 minutes.