Driving automatic - few questions

[Uncle_Gravy]

all you need to know is, leave in D and use the brake pedal.

Hillstart? Brake, put in D and let go of the brake and off you go, it's that simple.

 

[Roland Butter]

Despite the advice on here not to use the stick brake when parking an auto unless on a hill (also common practice is the USA)
I would advise against it. Someone on a forum I was on had his car lightly shunted in a parking space. Insurance repaired the bodywork and when he got it back, P no longer worked as the gearbox had been damaged. The insurers refused to replace the gearbox saying it was a mechanical fault that could have failed any time and also would not have hapened in the accident if parked with parking brake on as per the highway code.

Outrageous, the Insurers advise NOT to engage the transmission lock when parked ?

When the S class park brake fails and rolls away on a hill and kills someone I suppose the Insurers will say you should have
engaged the transmission lock.

Car insurers really are utter ********.

 

[Alibaba99]

I think the insurers are stating that the handbrake should have been on, not that it should have been left in neutral.

 

[Clarkey]

Never heard of a broken parking pawl before, it's not really something which happens. Hell, I've even thrown an old banger into park while driving before and despite it sounding like the world was ending, even that didn't break it.

 

[ttaskmaster]

NVM

 

[Rroff]

I expect the Hilux would... just not our crappy work vans, clearly!!

Actually our work vans are kind of like that - I suspect as much as anything due to the abuse they take from people who just drive them, don't own them and have no investment in treating them well :s something like a Hilux tends to stand upto abuse a bit better as well on that note.

 

[ttaskmaster]

NVM

 

[acemastr]

Can confirm Hilux will handle a parking garage uphill stop and start quite happily

Most automatics have hill start anyway, including mine.

 

[OllyM]

Does anywhere in the US have MOTs? We don't have them in TN either and if we did it'd take about 90% of the vehicles off the road. People here drive around with red tape over where their brake lights should be, bin bags for windows and complete body panels missing.

It's terrible. NJ had safety inspections until a few years ago when they scrapped them but now they just do an OBD2 emissions test starting when a car is 5 model years old. Some states do have safety inspections though, NY and PA do for sure.

 

[Rroff]

One of my first experiences of the US was watching a car drive by where you could see the person's feet operating the pedals through the parts of the door panel where it had rusted away entirely leaving massive holes.

 

[acemastr]

One of my first experiences of the US was watching a car drive by where you could see the person's feet operating the pedals through the parts of the door panel where it had rusted away entirely leaving massive holes.

I've seen Tboned cars that look like a boomerang where they clearly had to enter from the passenger side driving along... or cars with doors duct taped closed because the frame was too twisted.

 

[timmeh]

I've seen Tboned cars that look like a boomerang where they clearly had to enter from the passenger side driving along... or cars with doors duct taped closed because the frame was too twisted.

Yeah, if it moves they'll allow it on the road in FL