Driving Test - Use of handbrake

Mercdriver

loskie wrote: »

http://www.diaryofanadi.co.uk/?p=4700

He isn't bad, but his labelling of people ("driving like a chav" etc) gets tiresome after a while...

almillar

I have a semi-auto with stop-start (Peugeot 208). You need the footbrake for the stop-start to engage, regardless of whether the handbrake is on.

So you stop the car, on the footbrake, into neutral, engine cuts out. Put the handbrake on - does the engine restart? I guess no. Then when you want to move off, footbrake on, handbrake off, gear, go. Is this how it works? If so, you should NOT be sitting on the footbrake.

onlyroz

almillar wrote: »

So you stop the car, on the footbrake, into neutral, engine cuts out. Put the handbrake on - does the engine restart? I guess no. Then when you want to move off, footbrake on, handbrake off, gear, go. Is this how it works? If so, you should NOT be sitting on the footbrake.

It's an auto so you don't have to explicitly put it into neutral - most manual stop-starts force you to go into neutral before the stop-start engages.

In my car the steps are:

- Stop the car using the footbrake
- Keep foot on footbrake
- Engine stops
- (Optional) Go into neutral
- (Optional) Put on the handbrake
- Lift foot off footbrake
- Engine starts

I sometimes find that if I've been sitting in traffic for a while the engine restarts. Usually a lift up and down of the footbrake is enough to shut it down again, but the time you can persuade the engine to stay stopped diminishes each time you do this until you can move forward a bit more. But I'm sure that the driver behind wonders if I'm trying to put on a disco with all the flashing of my brake-light.

almillar

- (Optional) Put on the handbrake

Bingo! So if your auto gears, stop start car works like onlyroz's, you should be putting your handbrake on just like everyone else.

but the time you can persuade the engine to stay stopped diminishes each time you do this until you can move forward a bit more

There are loads of factors in these systems that decide whether the engine should be allowed to stop. Amongst these will be engine temp, battery charge, electrical load (what's switched on?) etc. Not a good idea to try to trick it into staying off. My Mini would stay off if I was able to roll at 1 or 2mph.