Two stupid questions.... very stupid...

[Blowtorch]

My dad, probably old fashioned who believes that something that was vital 100 years ago, is still just as vital today. He urges me to use the emergency break every time I park the car. Ok, so I got into that habit with my old car, and now with the Yaris. While my dad is a pretty bright guy with a lot of things, I'm not sure if cars are his thing. Is there any truth that using the emergency break when parking the car, does any good... nothing at all... or perhaps, maybe even hurt the car?

Second question... I'm not trying to bash my fiance, cause she's also bright on a lot of stuff, but definitely not with cars (Ok, I'm not much either). She went to move my car, which I had in park, so I had the emergency break on. Because she never uses her, she didn't realize I had the break up, and began driving with it up... i didn't have the break up a lot, but she was able to drive, about 20 feet. i got into the car, and I hear the beeping and I'm like "what are you doing, the break is up!" She assumed the beeping was because she didn't have her seat belt on. Drove the car since, and all is fine, but my question, can there be any possible damage from what she did? I'm pretty ticked at her quite, "dumbass move," if you will, and even more pissed off at myself for leaving her with my keys so she could move it if necessary.

[texkid]

Not a dumb question at all.

Believe me, I drive stick and there have been times where I nudge it gear with E-brake engaged.

1) It is good to have the E-brake engaged, ESPECIALLY if driving an automatic due to the fact that without it over time there will be damage to the transmission when putting the car in "P" and then just let it wobble in place.

2) I don't think that moving the car 20 feet would've done permanent damage to the car. I knew a guy that drove his Mazda ALL DAY with it up and didn't realize it. But it wouldn't hurt to get it checked.

[YAR1S]

The yaris doesn't beep if the brake if left on... I don't think....
I got into a habit of using the hand brake everyytime I park. My yaris moves a bit in park. I think I read in an earlier thread that the park is only held in place by a pin? Anyways I feel safer with the p brakeeon. Plus it's there might as well use it.
I have driven a good 200 feet with my p break on before I notice it's been left on cause my yaris feels very sluggy... Not sure of the consequences of this mistake though... Havnt noticed anything wrong.

I say just use it if you feel like you have to....

Ps : I drive auto.

[Giobatera]

If your car is auto transmission, you don't really need the E-brake, all though I don't see a reason why not to use it. As far as the other question goes. The girlfriend driving 20 feet with the E-brake on. I don't believe that will cause anything, however, if it was for a relative period of time or extended distance. Then it could've cause damage. For that, you would've smelled the burn rubber though. :iono:

[MadMax]

Errrr...many call what you term an "emergency brake" a "parking brake," and yes, it does help. I park on a sloping driveway, and always set the parking brake before putting the car into 'P' (obviously I have an auto) to take the strain off the transmission.

And the amount of wear caused by your fiance's forgetting to take the brake off is minimal. It's not a good thing to do all the time, but forgetting on the rare occasion won't hurt anything. I actually do that in the wife's Honda Odyssey, as you can back up with it on without any warning.

She made a simple mistake, forget about it. If you are planning to marry this girl, you had better learn to let little things like this go; otherwise you are going to have a rocky road ahead of you once you get married!

Cheers! M2

[ka0sx]

1. it helps especially when you park on a hill to keep the park pin from hitting hard when you let off the brake

2. that will definitely not hurt, shouldn't be done but wont hurt. at least she didn't get groceries with the P-Brake on. She should pay attention to any red logo on the dash as the red indicators are usually bad =P

[Blowtorch]

It was an honest mistake on her part... I was a bit nervous considering the car is a week old, and I don't intend on treating this car like crap. People make mistakes, but I was aggravated at the fact that her driving my new car for the first time, she wasn't more careful, especially when there was a red flash on the dash.

My Yaris sedan is automatic, just for that clarification. If anyone else has input about the emergency break, I'd like to know... my thanks to everyone responding thus far. This board seriously is awesome.

[Giobatera]

Any time and welcome to YARISWORLD :thumbup:

[cali yaris]

I use my e-brake every time. Consider it a FREE insurance policy from Toyota.

[06vitzRS]

Driving with the E-brake on just wears down the shoes faster. 20 feet is nothing to worry about.

If you don't use the E-brake, it will eventually seize. I see this a lot with automatics. You don't have to use it everytime but often is good.

[JustAnotherAsian]

consider it a parking brake like the manual states, not an "emergency" brake. pull on the handle one or two more clicks than you're used to so that it's pretty obvious that the parking brake is on in case you forget and start to move.

not using it can lead to premature automatic transmission parking pawl failure. it's a rare failure on newer toyotas, but an extremely expensive fix, since it involves lowering the transmission from the car.

parking brake shoes can be replaced and a parking brake cable can be readjusted for relatively cheap, but a transmission parking pawl will cost you an arm and a leg.

[CtrlAltDefeat]

I agree with everyone saying that you should use the parking brake and that the 20 feet with it on won't hurt any thing. I'd go into further detail but I don't think it's needed. That being said, welcome to YarisWorld and congrats on the Yaris! It's a great board and a great car!

[nemelek]

I seldom use the parking brake. However I rarely park on hills. Last week while changing the oil and rotating the tires I set the brake. I drove out of the garage and onto the street with the car beeping. I am not worried about any damage.

Go easy on your finace. When you get married there will be a lot bigger things to fight about than the brake. We never park in the driveway. One day step daughter did on a visit and my wife backed her RAV in to her daughters car. There was nothing that I could say that would make my wife feel worse.

[jambo101]

Parking the car with just the tranny in park puts the entire weight of the cars mobility on one small pawl in the transmission ,something like this one=https://www.studebakerparts.com/studebakerparts/store/s/html/images/1541036.jpg if some one bumps into the car the only thing stopping the car from moving is that small pawl locking the transmission and if it breaks your car is free to roll,Use the parking brake.

[thebarber]

i got used to using the parking/emergency brake as well when i started driving a mercury topaz back in the day....it was a auto (and v6, w00t)

i use my ebrake most of the time in my manual yaris as i leave it in neutral. im worried if i leave it in gear and someone in a parking lot bumps me, it could mess up my transmission....so ebrake it is. (that and my wife will stall the car if i leave it in gear, lol). sometimes ill just leave it in gear w/o the ebrake when i park....i like to mix it up

we have an auto aveo which i dont always use the ebrake...usually only if im parking on a hill....but i guess i should use it more often than that

and i ALWAYS use the ebrake in winter......how else can i skid the @$$ end around?!

[SailDesign]

My daughter parked her Fit (sorry, I TRIED to bring her up right) by putting it in reverse (it's a manual) but didn't set the hand-brake / Emergency brake / Parking brake / whatever-you-want-to-call-it . Her car stayed where it was until she was in the house, then rolled down the driveway, across the street, and took out the door of the car on the other side of the road.
Just goes to show, NEVER a) trust a Honda, and b) forget the E-brake!
:smile:

[Loren]

It is a good habit to use the handbrake when parking, even with an automatic. I personally don't do it in an auto except in rare instances. When parking on an incline, you'll find it a lot easier to get the car out of Park later if you engage the handbrake when you stop BEFORE putting the transmission into Park. This puts the weight of the car on the parking brake, and not on the internal parts of the transmission. When you get back to the car, put it in gear (smoothly and easily, instead of having to force the internal park mechanism that has the weight of the car against it) BEFORE releasing the hand brake.

In a manual transmission car, I always use the handbrake. I typically use it to actually MAKE my final stop, that way I KNOW that it's engaged and the car's not going anywhere. Old school guys will more often leave the handbrake off and put a manual transmission into gear. My theory is that it's too easy to accidentally knock a car out of gear, you can't accidentally take the brake off. Of course, the truly paranoid do both.

Moving the car a few feet with the brake on doesn't hurt anything. Think about how many feet of braking you do to make a typical stop. (it takes over 120 feet to make a HARD stop from 60, at least twice that for a more typical stop) Same thing. The brakes don't care... unless you leave the brake on for long enough for them to get hot.

[Carrot Top]

When I bought my Yaris, I was told always use the hand brake whether its stick shift or auto. This prevents it from rusting out. The parking pin is only the size of your pinky...so if you think of the weight of your car being held by that pin, thats were the parking brake comes in to help. On my parent's Ford LTD (I told this story on here before)they never used the parking brake...eventually it broke and one time at my Grandfather's gravesite we are standing there putting flowers on the grave, my Mom forgot to use the e-brake and the car started rolling down the lane...we had to run and jump into the car, finally stopping it. Could you imagine if we hit a few tombstones? We might of been attacked by some angry ghosts!

[IllusionX]

Gee, how come so many people don't learn this in school?
the first thing i learn in driving school was to use the e-brake.
plus, pulling e-brake turns off the DRL when you start car, and will not turn them on until you release it.
You also don't want your car (for whatever reasons) to start rolling and killing a kid.... Safety 1st (tm)

oh and i almost forgot, you need the pull e-brake for the remote starter! :)


i got used to using the parking/emergency brake as well when i started driving a mercury topaz back in the day....it was a auto (and v6, w00t)

i use my ebrake most of the time in my manual yaris as i leave it in neutral. im worried if i leave it in gear and someone in a parking lot bumps me, it could mess up my transmission....so ebrake it is. (that and my wife will stall the car if i leave it in gear, lol). sometimes ill just leave it in gear w/o the ebrake when i park....i like to mix it up

we have an auto aveo which i dont always use the ebrake...usually only if im parking on a hill....but i guess i should use it more often than that

and i ALWAYS use the ebrake in winter......how else can i skid the @$$ end around?!

I always pull the e-brake. none of my friends do.. so guess what happens after i've driven their car... :P

[wiirenet]

I've never used this and never considered it :x

So some noob questions follow- lets say I start using it, or at least pay more attention if I'm in a hill or not heh.

I drive the car into the parking spot with my foot on the brake pedal, lift the lever up (the e-brake right?) then switch the gear into P?

Or do you switch to P first, release the pedal and then use the e-brake? Just don't know the correct order heh. Don't even remember learning this. :x

[JustAnotherAsian]

I've never used this and never considered it :x

So some noob questions follow- lets say I start using it, or at least pay more attention if I'm in a hill or not heh.

I drive the car into the parking spot with my foot on the brake pedal, lift the lever up (the e-brake right?) then switch the gear into P?

Or do you switch to P first, release the pedal and then use the e-brake? Just don't know the correct order heh. Don't even remember learning this. :x
the bolded/first one is correct. don't feel stupid- it's better to be safe than sorry. a car parked on a hill has a lot of potential for an accident.

[GeneW]

Not a dumb question at all.

Believe me, I drive stick and there have been times where I nudge it gear with E-brake engaged.

1) It is good to have the E-brake engaged, ESPECIALLY if driving an automatic due to the fact that without it over time there will be damage to the transmission when putting the car in "P" and then just let it wobble in place.

2) I don't think that moving the car 20 feet would've done permanent damage to the car. I knew a guy that drove his Mazda ALL DAY with it up and didn't realize it. But it wouldn't hurt to get it checked.

I don't know about Honda but older US ATs had a very very tough parking pawl that usually outlived the car. Usually they don't mind being on a hill, though it's probably prudent to curb the wheel or use the emergency brake.

I don't like to use the ebrake during the winter since sometimes they freeze solid. In the summer it's probably harmless.

Gene

[Forrest]

When I bought my Yaris, I was told always use the hand brake whether its stick shift or auto. This prevents it from rusting out. The parking pin is only the size of your pinky...so if you think of the weight of your car being held by that pin, thats were the parking brake comes in to help. On my parent's Ford LTD (I told this story on here before)they never used the parking brake...eventually it broke and one time at my Grandfather's gravesite we are standing there putting flowers on the grave, my Mom forgot to use the e-brake and the car started rolling down the lane...we had to run and jump into the car, finally stopping it. Could you imagine if we hit a few tombstones? We might of been attacked by some angry ghosts!

Maybe Grandpa was sending a reminder...put on ebrake !

[MadMax]

I've never used this and never considered it :x

So some noob questions follow- lets say I start using it, or at least pay more attention if I'm in a hill or not heh.

I drive the car into the parking spot with my foot on the brake pedal, lift the lever up (the e-brake right?) then switch the gear into P?

Or do you switch to P first, release the pedal and then use the e-brake? Just don't know the correct order heh. Don't even remember learning this. :x

As JAA stated, it is the middle one. But since my driveway is on a considerably slant, I stop the car, put it in 'N,' set the brake, take my foot off the brake pedal, let the car settle then put it in 'P.' It only takes a second, and I believe it keeps the stress off the automatic transmission.

I don't believe there is a mere pin that keeps the transmission in 'P,' seems like a liability issue if it were prone to breakage. But I still prefer to go as easy as possible on my Yaris, so I can get the most out of it. :headbang:

Cheers! M2

[toyo]

I only use it in hills, I guess I'll start using it more ;P

[Zaphod]

A friend of mine once gave me some cool advice with the cable brake.

He suggested practicing stops with it as you're parking. That way if the master cylinder on your hydraulic brake ever does fail (this happened to me once), you'll be less likely to lock up your rear tires.

[JustAnotherAsian]

^it's something that you need to be familiar with indeed. i had to use the parking brake as an emergency brake in an emergency one time too in my old lex. a rear brake line ruptured and my brake fluid got low enough to a point of about 50% effectiveness. i had to add additional braking force via the parking brake twice and finally pulled over (good thing i wasn't on the freeway). i had it towed to a local mechanic i happened to know, and he said that i probably had two or three more pushes on the pedal before the entire brake system was rendered useless.