Why do American cars rock back when you put handbrake on & why don't they have a normal handbrake?

Craig321 · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:01

As title really. I've always wondered this and never looked in to it.

Why do a lot of American cars have the handbrake or parking lever or whatever they call it behind the steering wheel?

Also, why when you put the handbrake on does the car then rock back?

Do they effectively not have a handbrake and the lever just puts it in gear or something?

Guess it's only certain makes or types as the car I drove when I was over there was just a normal rear brake handbrake.

Zefan · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:11

The rocking back and forth isn't caused by the parking brake, it's the motion you get when you put a car with an automatic gearbox in to in to "park" on a not completely flat surface. Unless I'm missing something

Dis86 · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:13

Pretty sure the rocking is generally due to crap suspension and substandard damping. Nowt to do with the archaic handbrake.

Craig321 · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:13

Zefan said:
The rocking back and forth isn't caused by the parking brake, it's the motion you get when you put a car with an automatic gearbox in to in to "park" on a not completely flat surface. Unless I'm missing something

So what about the handbrake? I often see them rock back and forth when they get out the car which wouldn't happen if there was a 'proper' handbrake?

sovietspybob · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:15

The leaver by the wheel is just a column mounted gear shifter (instead of being in the normal UK place of in the center console), generally people over there only ever put their car into park on the gear shifter and don't actually engage what we'd call a handbrake, so it's just held on the transmission hence the slight roll as it takes up the slack in the system.

Zefan · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:16

Craig321 said:
So what about the handbrake? I often see them rock back and forth when they get out the car which wouldn't happen if there was a 'proper' handbrake?

I'm pretty sure it's just people sticking it in park and get out without engaging the handbrake.

I can't say I've ever experienced the weird American handbrake thing though, I'm not sure I want to!

Craig321 · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:19

Yeah that'd make sense. I see it in movies often, maybe it's a movie thing to add effect. I have seen it a lot in 'real' videos etc. as well though. Just made me wonder if they have some sort of weird American thing on some cars

[TW]Fox · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:21

Craig321 said:
So what about the handbrake? I often see them rock back and forth when they get out the car which wouldn't happen if there was a 'proper' handbrake?

They do have a handbrake it's just that most people don't apply them in automatic cars. Exactly the same thing happens here when you stick an auto in park and don't use the handbrake.

peterwalkley · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:42

Its the car sighing in relief that its not going to have to carry 500lbs of lard per seat for much longer.

p1RATE · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:55

Craig321 said:
Yeah that'd make sense. I see it in movies often, maybe it's a movie thing to add effect. I have seen it a lot in 'real' videos etc. as well though. Just made me wonder if they have some sort of weird American thing on some cars

Have you not driven an automatic car before or something?

As pointed out this is just what happens when you put a car into park. There is nothing different other than they sometimes have a column shifter rather than the center column. Something that was more common years ago (also in europe on some cars like old mercs).

They still have hand brakes just like us. however i imagine in the cases you are referring to they are foot pump breaks which i guess you're also unfamiliar with?

acemastr · 23 Jan 2017 at 20:57

We don't use handbrakes, the parking brake causes the roll back, you can push and pull the car forward and back a few inches with it on as it hits the parking brake pin.

The English are the only people who put a handbrake on on a flat surface in an automatic car

Kaeo · 23 Jan 2017 at 22:01

Try the same in your own car, stop with handbrake on and switch it off, put car in gear then release the handbrake. Same thing.

NVP · 23 Jan 2017 at 22:05

When I put the 7 into park and use the electronic handbrake it still does that little roll back.

When I had a heavy load it felt like it did an even bigger roll back onto a tighter lock or something.

Danm54 · 23 Jan 2017 at 23:12

My Merc Vito does it and Landys do it too but far worse.

I believe its because the handbrake is actually on/in the gearbox not the rear wheels so its the play in the drivetrain you feel being taken up.
Most cars are braked on the rear wheels so you don't feel this effect.

Amp34 · 24 Jan 2017 at 01:15

acemastr said:
We don't use handbrakes, the parking brake causes the roll back, you can push and pull the car forward and back a few inches with it on as it hits the parking brake pin.

The English are the only people who put a handbrake on on a flat surface in an automatic car

This.

Column shift auto in park followed by not using the foot based parking brake. It saves space in the centre of the vehicle so you can fit another seat or a large storage compartment depending on configuration.

The footbrake is annoying so rarely used IME.

Makes it fun when switching between a VW and a Ford, you have to reconfigure your brain each time, or you turn the windscreen wipers on when trying to put it in drive...

adolf hamster · 24 Jan 2017 at 07:15

NVP said:
When I put the 7 into park and use the electronic handbrake it still does that little roll back.

When I had a heavy load it felt like it did an even bigger roll back onto a tighter lock or something.

Mines the same, although i suspect its due to the handbrake being useless and the parking brake effectively being the only thing holding it.

I still use it from force of habit but tis the parking brake does all the work.

paradigm · 24 Jan 2017 at 07:23

acemastr said:
We don't use handbrakes, the parking brake causes the roll back, you can push and pull the car forward and back a few inches with it on as it hits the parking brake pin.

The English are the only people who put a handbrake on on a flat surface in an automatic car

That's not a parking brake, just a parking pawl, and the reason the English do it is because we have a little thing called "mechanical sympathy"

edscdk · 24 Jan 2017 at 07:31

American cars suspension is calibrated for a drive in excess of 1 ton, if you weigh much less than this the counter balances don't do what they are supposed to.

Joe T · 24 Jan 2017 at 08:46

Danm54 said:
My Merc Vito does it and Landys do it too but far worse.

I believe its because the handbrake is actually on/in the gearbox not the rear wheels so its the play in the drivetrain you feel being taken up.
Most cars are braked on the rear wheels so you don't feel this effect.

This. The Land Rover Defender is a good example. You get quite a rocking when applying the parking brake.

Nasher · 24 Jan 2017 at 09:48

Some of the older American cars have very jelly suspension. Look at the mount of roll when you do a tight corner lol