Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 10:37
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - John F

My 2005 Audi A8 is in need of new brake pads. On U-tube the fronts look as easy to do as any other pad change, but the rears apparently need electronic deactivation of the EPB otherwise you knacker the mechanism when winding back the caliper pistons. This means locating and downloading software onto a receptive laptop to interrogate the car's computer via an appropriately plugged cable which I do not possess. I suppose I could obtain one, but even with the help of U-tube it might exceed my electronic capability, the threshold of which, as I suspect for most septuagenarians, is set quite low.. Ho hum, a job for my indie, methinks. Such is 'progress'.

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 11:38
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - SLO76
“ Ho hum, a job for my indie, methinks. Such is 'progress'.”


Might even be beyond his capabilities. I absolutely hate unnecessary complications like this. It was a solution to a problem which never existed in the first place and causes plenty of added expense as cars so equipped age. With complex cars like this a good specialist is a must. They offer dealer levels of knowledge but much lower costs. Most back street Independents won’t have the first clue what to do with a complex motor like this.

Edited by SLO76 on 27/02/2020 at 11:41

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 12:21
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - catsdad
Mind you, for an EPB to survive 15 years is perversely reassuring.
As for dealers, a friend of mine had an SQ 7 and that was beyond the routine capability of the local main dealer. Even for a service they had to transfer specialised tools from another branch.
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Thu 27 Feb 2020 12:29
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - SLO76
“ Mind you, for an EPB to survive 15 years is perversely reassuring.“

Agree. Mine is fine at 86,000 miles and 10yrs old too. I’d still rather have a simple manual setup though.
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Thu 27 Feb 2020 12:34
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - thunderbird

Never owned an EPB but loved the one on the XC40 we had on loan last week. Worked brilliantly, its something I Iook forward to having in the future.

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 12:41
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - elekie&a/c doctor
Interestingly , just replaced the rear pads on my friends C class Merc , 2016 model . No diagnostic equipment needed . Epb system put into service mode by sequencing buttons on the steering wheel. If MB can do it , why can’t others?
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Thu 27 Feb 2020 18:01
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - John F
“ Mind you, for an EPB to survive 15 years is perversely reassuring.“

Possibly because in the last 6yrs (my ownership) it's only been used a couple of times a month, mainly to confirm it's still working. Unless there is a significant slope, I rely on the 'P' locking pin.

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 19:02
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - nellyjak

Always had the EPB facility down as something I never particularly wanted or needed.

Just summat else to go wrong.

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 19:24
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - gordonbennet

Its the one reason why an Avensis estate isn't on our driveway.

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Thu 27 Feb 2020 20:01
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - brum

John F, you could invest in a diy obd tool such as Carista, Obdeleven, there are others as well

Connect your battery charger/maintainer to ensure power is guaranteed. Plug in the supplied obd dongle and using their app on your smartphone, follow the instructions, which go something like ....

When vehicle is ready, Press the button on the app, EPB will wind back the pistons fully and release the pads. No further manual winding of pistons required. Pull old pads out, new ones back in. Finally, press button again on app and EPB winds back in and resets.

Actually simpler than a manual handbrake service I believe.

You can use the same tool to diagnose and clear faults, essential on modern cars.

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Fri 28 Feb 2020 05:46
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - pd

Winding back the rear caliper by putting the EPB in service mode isn't above an individual or any garage. It is dead simple. In fact it makes the job easier.

They're generally very reliable and I find the idea anyone would reject a car because it had one frankly bonkers. Conventional manual handbrakes are actually less reliable.

I get the argument they are a solution in need of a problem and have always inclined towards the same view but these days they are so common I have to confess a car without one does seem very old fashioned to use.

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Fri 28 Feb 2020 08:30
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - Falkirk Bairn

Neighbour fixes everything seemingly - car, central heating, plumbing electrical, computing - farming background so that explains a lot - fix it yourself or lose time..

His daughter's Qashqai needed new pads on the back - defeated him!.

He handed car & pads to local Indie to fix - he isn't stuck very often

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Fri 28 Feb 2020 14:22
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - Heidfirst

however the EPB on the Avensis still allows for amateurs to work on them although you will need a wind back tool (I haven't seen any mentions on the forums etc. of the car itself winding back).

Edited by Heidfirst on 28/02/2020 at 14:26

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Fri 28 Feb 2020 23:18
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - Terry W

It's with great fondness that I remember the good old days of seized cables, stretched cables, rusted or seized pivots, rusted adjustment nuts, worn handbrake quadrants, etc.

I now have electric handbrake. As it is an auto the parking brake will default to "off" as the drive is taken up, or can be released manually.

No question which I prefer. DiY, is not a realistic proposition as cars are no longer simple electro mechanical devices, but computers on wheels. They are more reliable with better performance and economy than the cars of yesteryear.

Manufacturers like the cost reductions achievable. It would be helpful if road testers and reviewers included in their assessment how straight forward routine maintenance and replacements are - eg: brake pads, clutches, headlamp bulbs and light units, steering and suspension bushes etc. This coulld feedback into better designs,

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Mon 2 Mar 2020 09:21
Cars with electric parking brakes - Another hurdle for DIYers - grumpyscot

Neighbour has one on his Jag, Car had broken down and brought back to the house on a recovery truck. But the car battery had gone flat - so the handbrake was stuck on, also stuck in Park, and couldn't get the boot open to get to the battery to jump start. The truck blocked my driveway for 4 hours while the recovery company sought assistance and the Jag hund half way on and half way off the truck..

Then a local 10 year old lad said - "since the drivers door is open, why don't you just fold the back seat down and get to the battery that way.?"

The recovery guys (all 3) were dumbstruck. And of course, it worked!

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