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Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - MikeTorque

There is a serious safety issue with electric parking brakes, they can release unexpectedly when in neutral which may result in a front/rear collision unless immediate brake intervention is applied.

To reproduce the problem do as follows :

(1) The car is parked on a hill or slope with the electric parking brake on.

(2) Start the engine.

(3) If not already depressed then depress the clutch but do not engage any gear (still in neutral).

(4) Press & hold down the throttle (even by a small amount).

(5) Take your foot off the clutch pedal, the electric parking brake releases the rear brakes and the car will start to roll forwards or backwards depending on the type of hill or slope. including a slightly slopping garage driveway.

The missing safety protocols in the above processes are :

(1) The electric parking brake should not disengage whilst in neutral.

(2) The electric parking brake should not disengage until a gear is engaged and the clutch begins to bite and the throttle is pressed at the same time.

Has anyone else experienced the above issue and if so which cars/models have this problem ?

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - bathtub tom

The Vauxhalls I've driven won't release the parking brake until you press the button with the footbrake depressed - unless I'm missing something.

Makes it difficult on hill starts: Press footbrake with right foot, press clutch with left, press handbrake release with left hand, engage first, remove right foot from brake and before rolling back give enough throttle to prevent stalling while engaging clutch.

It used to be so much easier when you could control the handbrake with your left hand!

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - MikeTorque

Tom, you don't need to do what you're doing. The electric parking brake will release automatically when you declutch, select a gear, press the throttle, then bring up the clutch to the bite point, then the electric parking brake will auto-release the rear brakes and away the car goes, hence there is no need to depress the parking brake button nor use the footbrake to release the electric parking brake.

In addition the hill start assist system is supposed to help reduce the possibility of the car rolling back when starting on inclines/declines. After the parking brake is disengaged and/or the foot brake pedal is released, the brakes are released after a 2 second delay. This time delay is subject to introducing error in some situations. Some manufacturers use a 5 second delay which offers an even greater potential for driver error.

The issues I have raised concerns the electric parking brake automatically releasing the brake when the car is in neutral, this should not never happen in any circumstances. Image the possible consequences if children were walking behind a car parked on an incline/decline and the parking brake suddenly released, or a car is parked behind or in front, if the driver doesn't immediately press the footbrake to stop the car then what !

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - bathtub tom

Perhaps the 'hill-start' wasn't working properly on the couple of Vauxhalls I've driven. I'll look more carefully if and when I get another opportunity.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Gareth C

There is a serious safety issue with electric parking brakes, they can release unexpectedly when in neutral which may result in a front/rear collision unless immediate brake intervention is applied.

To reproduce the problem do as follows :

(1) The car is parked on a hill or slope with the electric parking brake on.

(2) Start the engine.

(3) If not already depressed then depress the clutch but do not engage any gear (still in neutral).

(4) Press & hold down the throttle (even by a small amount).

(5) Take your foot off the clutch pedal, the electric parking brake releases the rear brakes and the car will start to roll forwards or backwards depending on the type of hill or slope. including a slightly slopping garage driveway.

The missing safety protocols in the above processes are :

(1) The electric parking brake should not disengage whilst in neutral.

(2) The electric parking brake should not disengage until a gear is engaged and the clutch begins to bite and the throttle is pressed at the same time.

Has anyone else experienced the above issue and if so which cars/models have this problem ?

So far had three near misses due to this problem: when you start the car if you touch the accelerator when starting the car in neutral the brake disengaes. Sitting at traffic light applied electronic parking brake put car in neutral touch the accelerators and you start to roll. Parked up electronic parking brake on gears in neutral and leaned to get something from the glove box must of touch accelerator and starts to roll. This cannot be safe. I have just filled in a VOSA Vehicle Safety Defect Report and would addvise all Vauxhall driver with same fault to do the same. I have taken it to the dealership they tell me this is how it is meant to work. Just wait for machanic who leans through the door to press the accelerator on hill and the car start rolling or the MOT tester doing an emisions test on unevenground

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

Haven't found this with Vauxhalls (only 5% of my loads), but other makes i've experienced unplanned handbrake release when unloading car transporters a number of times.

The car has to be on fairly steep gradient to be fair, once you've started the engine the weight pushing against the handbrake can be enough to trigger release.

Simple cure, don't buy a new or used car of any make fitted with one of these non devices, they'll soon go back to proper trouble free handbrake design.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - southcoastsounds

Had a hired Meriva yesterday and I've had a serious problem with the electronic handbrake - as I've never used one of these things before its difficult to know if its my inexperience or a fault with the brake. In my first hour of driving the thing I parked facing down hill between two cars. When I wanted to leave, I was close to the one in front so needed to reverse to get out of the space. I followed what I thought was the correct procedure but when I took my foot off the foot brake to reverse, the car moved forward a couple of inches. I put my foot back on to the foot brake and tried again (and again and again). By the fourth attempt I was half an inch from the car in front and bailed out and rang the rescue service.

When faced with a two hour wait I thought I'd have one more go by leaving my foot firmly on the foot brake and seeing if I had enough juice to reverse on tick over. When I did this, I felt the car pull backwards slightly so quickly moved my foot to the throttle pedal and (phew) got out of the situation and cancelled the rescue.

I've been trying since then to understand this electronic brake and it seems totally erratic to me. I've studied the manual, but still can't rely on the thing and have been parking only in carparks and only on flat ground since.

One problem is that there is no indicator to tell you whether the electronic handbrake is on or off. The clunk of it going on isn't very loud and its very hard to tell if its on or off.

Another problem is that its either on or off with nothing graduated in between - its all or nothing and if you get it wrong you roll forward or back depending on the gradient. Hellish on T Junctions on a slope.

Frankly, this "feature" would make me feel that I'd never buy a car with it.No doubt its me being ingnorant of how it works, but should it be this difficult? In my view its a huge hazard as no doubt there are drivers thicker than me.

Tom

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - daveyjp

I thought they worked via clutch and accelerator - no need for footbrake for such a manouver.

As soon as you put it in reverse and start releasing the clutch the auto handbrake should release - that's how the Audi's and Jags I've driven have worked.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - MikeTorque

I reported this issue to Vauxhall last year. Their electric parking brake systems are fundamentally insecure and dangerous and not fit for purpose. I sold the Astra.

Edited by MikeTorque on 02/09/2011 at 23:36

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - OG

There has to be some way of releasing the EPB with the gearbox in neutral in the event of the car needing to be towed. How is this done if the car has lost all power?

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

There has to be some way of releasing the EPB with the gearbox in neutral in the event of the car needing to be towed. How is this done if the car has lost all power?

Had C4 Picasso handbrake(s) stuck on before though the engine was running and operating as normal, in the tool bag is something that looks suspiciously like an IUD, you insert this tool through a cut out in the passenger footwell, it connects with the HB mechanism and you wind till it goes bang.

The handbrake is then broken and the car needs to go into the dealer for repair.

Brilliant design, i want one, preferably with the automated manual gearbox from hell..:-)

Edited by gordonbennet on 03/09/2011 at 01:59

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - OG

I gather it cuts the cable and leaves the owner with a bill for its replacement.

As you say a brilliant piece of design.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

This Tuesday, 28th August 2012, I eagerly took delivery of my new Motability Astra SRi 2L, by about 4-0pm I'd almost written it off no fewer than 3 times.
My wife will no longer get in the car and the 'parking brake' fails at just about every given opportunity, even by slightly 'breathing' on the accelerator pedal when not in gear. Might not be much of a problem on a test track/road, but in busy traffic/narrow forest hills its a $loody nightmare. Oh, and the stop start stops for no apparent reason; drivers behind do not appreciate. Another 'safety issue' is that when reversing on a slight incline with the brake on, it is released so fiercely that there is a real danger of damage to your and any other vehicle close by

I note that from 11th June 2012, Vauxhall had on its web site that the 'new' Astra's (for delivery from August 2012) that previously had 'electric parking brake' will now have a manual handbrake, if that's not an admission of an inherent fault I don't know what is?? Now pressing Motability to change the car, there is no way I'm being stuck with this heap of junk for the next 3 years. I did order the 'new' Astra as advertised on the Motability web site, now I find I'm being off loaded with surplus 'faulty stock' with all the inherent risks to life and limb.

Also the build quality is v poor, at least compared to the Hyundai i30 1.6 CDRi Ive just let go,

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - trackday

The Vauhall Insignia I have just bought
(1 year old) has an EPB problem. Several people have said on this forum that the EPB wll only release at biting point. With my car this is not so, it rolls backwards/forwards before I have got biting point. You then have a choice. Your natural instinct is to jump on the brake before you smash into your garage door (well my drive slopes downwards anyway) or try to catch it on biting point.

Has Vauxhall admitted that some of these EPBs have a problem. I would have hoped that a 62 plate car would have had the problems sorted by the time the car was manufactured if it has been known about for so long.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - focussed

Haven't found this with Vauxhalls (only 5% of my loads), but other makes i've experienced unplanned handbrake release when unloading car transporters a number of times.

The car has to be on fairly steep gradient to be fair, once you've started the engine the weight pushing against the handbrake can be enough to trigger release.

Simple cure, don't buy a new or used car of any make fitted with one of these non devices, they'll soon go back to proper trouble free handbrake design.

"Proper trouble free handbrake design" Vauxhall couldn't even do that properly-remember Vectras from a few years ago? I personally witnessed a parked Vectra take off backwards down a hill, tried to stop it, succeded in setting the alarm off by rocking the car, fortunately it stopped without hitting anybody or anything. The owner came out of his house and I told him what had happened-he said it had just been back to the dealer that day to cure-guess what? You guessed it, the handbrake kept letting go when parked!-What's their current slogan? Put the fun back into driving-Hmmmm- muppets.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - madf

If they can't get an electric handbrake right , imagine what they will get wrong with a hybrid..

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - TeeCee

If they can't get an electric handbrake right , imagine what they will get wrong with a hybrid..

Well, not putting enough seats in it for a start.....

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - diddy1234

like the Ampera, batteries catching fire a few weeks after a crash test.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Ethan Edwards

I'm testing the Yaris Hybrid tomorrow.

Far as I noticed it has the usual complement of seats. ??

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

Update on my Motability Astra SRi with 'troublesome' electric parking brake, they have agreed to cancel the contact, costing me £250, but I should get a refund on the down payment I made. So, over a three year period I should be marginally better off financially as the weekly payments are now less than they were when I first signed,(and there is now no advance payment on the 'new' Astra) and a whole lot better off stress wise, and so will be my wife.

Away Saturday to order the Astra, but now the one with a manual handbrake :)

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - MikeTorque

The Vauxhall brochure shows the electric parking brake is still in use on the models SRi, SE and Elite models but not lower spec'd models. What did they say about the SRi ?

Can you confirm the SRi, SE and Elite model now come with a manual parking brake ?

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

Link to the Vauxhall news page

http://www.vauxhall.co.uk/fleet/latest-news/2012/june/new-astra-august-introduction.html

In fairness to Vauxhall Motors they have agreed to reimburse the £250 cancellation fee paid to Motability. I'm now looking forward to collecting my new 2013 Astra SRi 2.0L automatic, with a manual hand brake. They also said that there had been 'isolated incidents' of EPB problems.

A work colleague of a friend awoke recently to find his new Audi A4 (with EPB) parked nose up in a dich across the road, a total write off.

Edited by Weary-one on 07/09/2012 at 00:31

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - MikeTorque

Thanks for the update. I've found the Vauxhall sales guys helpful but they have their hands somewhat tied when it comes to control of delivery. My Astra had the wrong tyres fitted on delivery but they rectified this but only after a wait whilst I found the correct tyres for them (yep they did try it on and say there would be about a 3 weeks delay in finding tyres ! (Not when I'm around, I sourced & got them fitted in 2 days at their expense).

The EPB incidents are not 'isolated incidents'. A lot of customers have complained but their complaints were never added to the Vauxhall report system as Vauxhall claimed it was a feature of the design. The so called 'isolated incidents' were the result of customers pushing very hard in getting the issues reported onto the Vauxhall system, me being one of them.

Weary-one - how do you find the seats in the SRi ? I found them a bit too low and rather hard on the bottom which caused numb bum syndrome (so to speak). Also the steering wheel height adjustment isn't sufficient. Be interested to hear how you found the rear view visibility as well as I found the car a pain to park due to limited visibility.
A really nice car to drive otherwise.

At least it's good to hear Vauxhall have decided to bring back the good old manual hand brake, a case of old technology being more suitable for humans day to day real world usage.

I note the Vauxhall web link doesn't specifically make it clear if all Astra models will have a manual parking brake so it's worth double checking.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

Sorry Mike T, I missed this.

Yes the seats are hard and low, and do result in NBS. I also find that to get a comfortable sitting position (long legs) I then struggle to get full control of the clutch pedal ??

I too find rear visibility poor when parking, front visibility when parking isn't much better either, but I think this probably goes for all modern hatchbacks. Several years ago I had the Citroen ZX 1.9 TD Avantage which had great visibility.

In the Astra's favour I don't get the same hard calluses on the heel of my index fingers I had with the Hyundai because of the raised stitching on the leather covered steering wheel - yet. Particularly bad on a long journey.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

Sorry Mike T, I missed this.

Yes the seats are hard and low, and do result in NBS. I also find that to get a comfortable sitting position (long legs) I then struggle to get full control of the clutch pedal ??

I too find rear visibility poor when parking, front visibility when parking isn't much better either, but I think this probably goes for all modern hatchbacks. Several years ago I had the Citroen ZX 1.9 TD Avantage which had great visibility.

In the Astra's favour I don't get the same hard calluses on the heel of my index fingers I had with the Hyundai because of the raised stitching on the leather covered steering wheel - yet. Particularly bad on a long journey.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - stringtheory
Hertz gave me one a brand new one to drive with no instructions how it worked. 30 minutes later confronted by very steep hill start on narrow roads in tight traffic. Passenger was really scared at how to control the car in such in an unknown way. Managed to get past that and parked the car. Came back an hour later to find it had rolled back 6 feet and chocked with stones by passersby. Whoever though the electronic parking brake was a brilliant idea needs electric shock therapy. I will never get in a car with this system again. That Vauxhall got it past countless safety engineering reviews says something about their thoughtlessness for their users. The car's foibles completely ruined our holiday such was it's bizarre personality.
Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Avant

The bad news is that reports this week on the forthcoming Mark VII Golf say that it too will be fitted with this completely unnecessary device. It'll lose them some sales, but VW are not known for listening to mere customers.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - unthrottled

That's disappointing. I suppose it was inevitable after the carbuncles appeared on the Passat.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

No one could have been more disappointed than me when the device appeared on Avensis, operated the opposite way to every car i've ever driven, the tourer of which i was most taken with, was.

Not to worry, there's dozens of cars not fitted with the thing to choose from, and with spare wheels too.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Happy Blue!

I have an EPB on my S-Max automatic and one in a fleet Saab 9-5 manual. Both work perfectly as designed. Niether will release automatically unless: -

  1. Your seatbelt is on;
  2. The car is in gear; and
  3. There is some drive to the wheels, either by lifting the clutch on the Saab or tickling the throttle on the Ford.

If you want to move the car without the seatbelt on or in neutral, you need to have the footbrake fully depressed and then press the switch down.

Its great in traffic queues with an autobox as I leave the car in Drive, put the EPB on and take my feet away from the pedals. Very relaxing and no brakes lights blinding the guy behind me.

I wish all cars had the system. I miss it when in a rental car or my wife's A-Class and it frees up room in the cabin.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Weary-one

Another 'problem' I've found is that the 'safety' headrest on the SRi does not adjust laterally. (front/backwards) Not sure whether Vauxhall simply ran out and fitted the static type but as I suffer from spinal stenosis, which the adjustable type I had on the Hyundai i30 used to greatly relieve, I do miss the support. Hopefully the next Astra I get at the end of this month will have the forward adjustable type.

Even after almost three weeks I'm still being caught out with the 'clutch/accelerator - gears in neutral - parking brake release' issue. Little wonder I panicked on the first day out when trying a hill start on a forest/mountain track..

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - memyself-aye

My son hired an Insignia with an EPB which after returning it without damage and when back at the hire shop released, sending the car into another.

These have to be the most idiotic invention ever.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

These have to be the most idiotic invention ever.

Agreed, but buyers have the power to stop this trend dead, more so used car buyers, if no one buys such rubbish used then very quickly they'll be untouchable new.

EPB is my line in the sand, together with automated manual or twin clutch gearboxes, i'm not having any of that tat on any car i buy at any time and thats it.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Stu11

My 63 plate insignia tourer crashed today. Had it on the drive running with handbrake on and in neutral.standing outside the car gave the gas pedal a press.next thing the car starts rolling down the drive and crashes into a parked car shunting it into a neighbours garage. Massive damage. SERIOUS ISSUES that need sorting very quickly.

Edited by Stu11 on 23/11/2015 at 20:02

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - alan1302

My 63 plate insignia tourer crashed today. Had it on the drive running with handbrake on and in neutral.standing outside the car gave the gas pedal a press.next thing the car starts rolling down the drive and crashes into a parked car shunting it into a neighbours garage. Massive damage. SERIOUS ISSUES that need sorting very quickly.

Were you not in the car to press the accelerator and so able to brake??

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Avant

I hate EPBs as much as I did when this thread was started. However, I may be missing something, but I'm not convinced that it was at fault in this case.

As far as I know, most if not all EPBs release automatically when you press the accelerator. But In 50 years of driving I don't think I've ever pressed the accelerator while standing outside the car.

Please tell me I've misunderstood!

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - dadbif
Never blipped your throttle from under the bonnet?
Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - John F

Methinks the EPB is yet another device to increase the economic activity of the motor industry. From merely annoyingly expensive repairs to causing extremely expensive accidents it is clearly a winner!

I rarely use the extra brake - either the EP or hand variety - perhaps once a month to keep them in good fettle, usually as a courtesy to avoid brakelight dazzle at night when stopped at lights.

Unless on a very steep hill a car will not roll if left in either first gear or auto P. Also, if nudged when parked it is better to 'give' a centimetre or two rather than being dented.

The dogma of 'always use it' dates from the days of small low compression engines which could be turned much more easily.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

Massive damage. SERIOUS ISSUES that need sorting very quickly.

The answer is to refuse to buy into such things at all, and to refuse any company or hire car so fitted, unless fitted with an auto box with its own parking lock, so TC/CVT boxes only basically.

You'll be overjoyed to know that lorries are going the same way, some new lorries come with electric parking brakes, oh and automated manual boxes with no transmission lock. Time will tell.

Anecdotally, my colleagues who have them have found that to put the brake on properly the silly little dash button has to be held for around 3 seconds or it doesn't lock on...i haven't had the (dis)pleasure yet so couldn't tell you if it's all automated as with cars, and i shall be doing my utmost to not be issued with such a thing when mine comes round for renewal in two years.

Looks like we'll be turning the clock back if we choose to have these things (which do have form in cars at least for being unreliable), back to 1940's then, keep a wedge or large brick around in order to place in front of the wheels and make sure the steering wheels are turned towards the shortest possible travel should the thing release or lose it's grip as discs cool.

They call this rubbish progress, and people believe it.

Edited by gordonbennet on 24/11/2015 at 09:27

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - nailit

Pressed accelerator from outside many times, though during self maintenance/servicing, you don't get oil and dirt inside :-) . My drive way slopes too but always chocked wheels when servicing and BTW always leave in gear when parked.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - catsdad
One of the issues is that there is no standardisation. Some apply whenever you stop, some need to be switched on, some release when you blip the throttle even without the clutch being engaged, some are instant, some take a second or two to apply, some you pull a switch up, some you push a switch down. I suppose you get used to foibles in a regularly driven car but if you switch between cars it's yet another thing to remember that should be instinctive and fairly standard.
Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - James Pennington

Hi I recently became the owner of a brand new Insignia and it has exactly the same safety issue as reported below.

I took in into the Vauxhall dealer and he said it was "Perfectly normal"!

Funny my wifes Audi doesnt do this as it has to be in gear before the handbrake disengages.

I also contacted Rory Harvey (Chairman and Managing Director) who passed it to Justin Woodcroft - Excecutive Support Manager and he stated that this operation is part of the "Drive away function" car (Not sure how you can "Drive away2 when the car is out of gear!

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Bilboman

EPBs are not prone to total failure, either. I once witnessed a car run away backwards and into a streetlight, seconds after its driver had "parked" it with guess-what-type-of-parking-brake. Thankfully the large glass light crashed down onto a grass verge and the screams from the driver - who watched helplessly from the side of the road - were of shock rather than pain.
A new regulation IMHO needs to be added to the Highway Code to apply the street parking rule already in place in San Francisco and a few other cities. Drivers who fail to turn their front wheels into the kerb find their cars are towed and they face a hefty fine. In the absence of a kerb, it is a matter of turning the wheels towards the area of least damage - a house wall, fence or tree - rather than a straight downhill run.
It is surely impossible for a car parked with tyres "biting" the kerb, steering locked hard left (or fight) and transmission in park or reverse to go anywhere without the driver's permission, even if that confounded EPB decides to take a day off!

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Roger Hadfield

I have just read all this discussion for the first time due to concerns about the EPB on my Zafira Tourer. Having had the car for a few months now I have got used used to the EPB but not without some heart stopping moments. It has worked reliably as designed (but still don't trust it 100%) but I think the design has two basic flaws in the control logic.

(1) It should not auto release in neutral, and

(2) it should automatically apply if the key is removed.

These would still allow the car to be towed with the key in the ignition with the brake manually released.

There have been enough disussions and reported issues, here and elsewhere, for Vauxhall to be doing something about it.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Mark Towno

I have identical issue to you, totally as described. When cold, if car in neautral and press accellerator the EPB releases without warning!! I was looking in the car at the time and car rolled back couple of ft into my house wall! Fuming!! Happy to see this isnt just my car and will write to Vauxhall and VOSA to complain and get my bumper fixed as well as this issue! Only does it when cold so maybe something to do with clutch oil being "thicker" when cold and therefore giving too much torque and tricking EPB into releasing as it thinks the car is pulling away??

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - gordonbennet

As i said 16 months ago, stop buying vehicles with these systems and they'll disappear without a trace or sorrow, even faster results for used car buyers when new car buyers find their electronic marvel worth the square root of sod all when they want to renew.

Hitting them in the pocket has always been the quickest route to results.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Old-Guy

This issue doesn't just affect Vauxhalls.

I discovered this thread while searching for safety issues and parking. Why was I searching? Because after one serious fright (but no injury of or damage) we will be trading in our Citroen C4 Picasso for an estate/MPV with a handbrake (effective, manual, mechanical one).

Our Picasso's parking brake after it released itself under similar circumstances (parking brake on, engine running, manual gearbox in neutral) - fortunately with nothing worse than a bad fright!

Ironically, our first encounter with these devices was on a hire Zafira - we rapidly christened it "Nagging Nanny" for the numerous irritating and unnecessary 'safety features' designed to reduce the number of stupid 'accidents' caused by incompetent drivers.

A stupid, badly implemented and generally unnecessary substitute for an effective and reliable manual handbrake. Previously we had Xantias with really effective manual handbrakes (emergency stop from maximum speed with a full load!) operating through cables of sun=bstantial size on the front pads/discs. A legacy from the original DS which designed to stop safely on the handbrake alone in case of a complete hydraulic failure (highly improbable without lots of warning signs over a period of time - warning lights, heavy steering, degrading ride).

My wife and I were taught long ago to leave a parked vehicle in first or reverse as appropriate and, on a hill, with the steering turned into the kerb. This was in both the driving test and the Highway Code.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - catsdad
VX conventional handbrakes are not immune to issues. As part of their Customer Satisfaction Programme my wife has been asked to bring in her 2010 Corsa D for a handbrake mod.

Apparently "if the hb is incorrectly applied by depressing the release button during application.it is possible the hb may partially relaase".

I think the pressing of the button, or not, is a bit of an old chesnut. I always press it as my mechanical sympathy hates the grating ratchet noise. Clearly I am not alone, hence the mod.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - Roger Hadfield

Yes, I have this issue with my Zafira Tourer. It does release when in neutral.

Also, althought it generally releases at the bite point correctly when in gear, if you have to abort a start when exiting uphill from a junction it can catch you out by rolling back when you drop the clutch again. This is normal behavior for an auto system but it would not happen if you were holding it on a conventional handbrake.

On the plus side it cannot be released accidentally from the switch without pressing the brake pedal, and the engine must be on. Accidents are reported regularly where cars roll away due to accidental release or being applied a notch short of full on, including one near me causing a childs death.

Overall, I am happy with EPB now that I am used to it but releasing in neutral is plainly wrong.

Vauxhall various models - Safety issue with some electric parking brakes - John F

I quite like my EPB, but for those who buy a second hand car and keep it as long as reasonably possible, it makes sense to use it just occasionally, because, like an electric window, it will cost a lot to repair if it breaks. Unless parked on a particularly steep hill which would put a strain on the auto 'P' locking pin, I never use it.