How do You Apply the Handbrake?

Mum/Dads Cars/Westfield: Pull the lever up.

Driving Lessons: Push the button in, then pull lever up. (Driving instructor told me It'll break the ratchet, I said it won't, she said she'd break my wrist!)
 
Lead_Head said:
I push the button in and have a go at anyone that doesn't. That noise the ratchet makes does not sound healthy, so why do people do it??
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Its a Ratchet does two things in life :

1. stops device disengaging.

2. makes a clicking noise.

Its not going to wear anything out quicker thats the usual BS story driving instructors tell you, the reason it clicks is so you know how far on the handbrake is, if you just yank it up you could stretch the cable.
 
Haha, yeah, my driving insturctor used to tell me to push the button in when applying the handbrake, i enver do though, did with his car cos it wasnt my car so not really my decision.

I never pull the button in on my own car though, i find it jerks my arm more with the button pressed in as theres no resistance when pulling it :)
 
Wikipedia said:
Ratchets have the form of a gearwheel or rack with teeth, and a pivoting springloaded finger called a pawl [1] (or in horology a click) [2] that engages the teeth. Either the teeth, or the pawl, are slanted at an angle, so that when the teeth are moving in one direction, the pawl slides up and over each tooth in turn, with the spring forcing it back with a 'click' into the depression before the next tooth.
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It won't break anything if you don't press the button, infact it's not a good idea incase it doesn't lock properly when you release it and doesn't engage the handbrake.

My car has a decent handbrake anyway, one click holds it on all but the most severe incline
 
The idea of pushing in the button is to reduce wear on the ratchet teeth. But hey, you should leave your car in gear when you park anyway!
 
I cant help but push the button in. I pull it up to where I know is "about right" and then click the last stop.

:shrug:
 
Lol at all the 'reduced wear on the teeth' answers. I'll give a mystery prize if anyone can find any documented failures of handbrakes due to excessive ratchet wear.
Bikes, tools etc that use ratchets never (unless abused) fail, so why would such an important safety device on a car have any chance of failing?
To answer the op's question, I always push the button in as I don't like the sound of the ratchet.
 
I just pull the lever up. One time though I did it a little hard and managed to snap the handbrake cable :o
 
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