【Car Owner’s Home Car and Home Knowledge】Recently, a piece of news about a driver in Yunnan who parked his car on a downhill section and forgot to pull the handbrake and was eventually crushed and killed by the car has attracted attention. Although the car in the news was said to be carrying a heavy truck, it really shocked the majority of car owners. The editor is not a member of the legal profession, and Car Owners Home is not a legal website, so I cannot provide professional legal commentary on the disputes between Yunnan drivers and insurance companies that appear in the news.
But when it comes to handbrakeeven people who don’t own a car probably know this thing! There are many types of handbrakes. In terms of braking, there are two types: electronic handbrakes and mechanical handbrakes.
The electronic handbrake only needs to be turned on, but most of us use mechanical handbrakes, and the mechanical handbrake will produce different braking effects depending on the strength of the handbrake. Therefore, some people are afraid that the car will stop unstable and pull the handbrake hard.
But... is it okay to pull the handbrake har
【Car Owner’s Home Car and Home Knowledge】Recently, a piece of news about a driver in Yunnan who parked his car on a downhill section and forgot to pull the handbrake and was eventually crushed and killed by the car has attracted attention. Although the car in the news was said to be carrying a heavy truck, it really shocked the majority of car owners. The editor is not a member of the legal profession, and Car Owners Home is not a legal website, so I cannot provide professional legal commentary on the disputes between Yunnan drivers and insurance companies that appear in the news.
But when it comes to handbrakeeven people who don’t own a car probably know this thing! There are many types of handbrakes. In terms of braking, there are two types: electronic handbrakes and mechanical handbrakes.
The electronic handbrake only needs to be turned on, but most of us use mechanical handbrakes, and the mechanical handbrake will produce different braking effects depending on the strength of the handbrake. Therefore, some people are afraid that the car will stop unstable and pull the handbrake hard.
But... is it okay to pull the handbrake hard? What is the best way to pull the handbrake?
Like the foot brake pedal, the handbrake handle also has a pulling stroke. According to professional tests, when the handle is pulled to 70% of the entire stroke, the braking effect of the handbrake system will be fully exerted, which is a normal braking position.
How to find this "70%" position?
Park the car in a quiet place, slowly pull up the handbrake, and count the "clicks" of the ratchet until the handle is pulled all the way. Then calculate the 70% position of the total number of sounds. This position is the effective working point of the handbrake handle.
How to check handbrake sensitivity
Drive the car to a slope with a large slope and good road conditions (preferably asphalt road), step on the brakes, put it in neutral (if it is automatic transmission, put it in N gear), and pull the handbrake handle to the working point just determined. Then slowly release the brake pedal. If the car does not slide, it means the handbrake is working well. Due to the gap in the brake, sometimes after releasing the pedal, the car will slide slightly and then stop. As long as the sliding distance is small, the handbrake's performance is normal.
In addition to braking effectiveness, you should also check the sensitivity of the handbrake, which is especially important when starting on a slope. Driving slowly on a road with no slope, slowly lift the handbrake handle and feel the sensitivity and joint point of the handle. This inspection method will cause wear and tear on the handbrake mechanism, so the number of inspections should not be too many.
During the above inspection, if the braking performance or sensitivity of the handbrake is found to be unsatisfactory, it can usually be solved by adjusting the operating cable of the handbrake. There is an adjustable compensation mechanism at the connection between the bottom of the handbrake handle and the copper cable (usually covered by interior trim parts). Use a wrench to loosen the locking nut to stretch the length of the brake copper cable. Of course these should be left to professional maintenance personnel.
Never use the handbrake to slow down.
Many people think that if the braking system fails, they can pull the handbrake to slow down. In fact, this approach is wrong because the handbrake mechanism is not precise and the braking force on the left and right sides is unevenly distributed. Pulling the handbrake when driving at high speed can easily cause one of the rear wheels to lock, causing sideslip, which is very dangerous. The correct way is to slow down by downshifting, and only pull the handbrake to stop the car when the speed is very low.
Pulling the handbrake too tight may cause premature aging
It is necessary for us to release the handbrake before getting in the car, right? But when the handbrake is released, the handbrake indicator light on the dashboard is still on. What's going on? Something went wrong... Let me tell you: "This situation is mostly caused by pulling the handbrake too tightly. In order to prevent the car from rolling down, many drivers like to pull the handbrake all the way and pull it firmly (I have seen some girls driving a man's car and can't even release the handbrake)! Such long-term excessive force on the handbrake will cause the handbrake to age prematurely, which will end the life of the handbrake early and affect the braking effect."
Also: "Since the mechanical handbrake is returned by a spring, the spring is in a high tension state every time, which will cause the spring to lose elasticity faster, resulting in incomplete return. At this time, if you do not pay attention to the handbrake indicator light on the instrument panel that is still lit, it will cause driving with the handbrake, thus causing damage to the car's braking system."
Handbrake precautions in winter
Be careful to pull the handbrake after washing the car in winter. The principle of the handbrake is to use the force of pulling the handbrake lever to transmit its force to the rear wheel brake system through the brake line. However, after washing the car in winter, water may enter the brake line. If the handbrake is applied while the water is in, the water will freeze after a long parking period. If the brake lever is pulled back at this time, the brake line will not move. Therefore, after washing the car in winter, you should let the car drive for a certain distance before parking and applying the handbrake.
