Is it good to use the Emergency brake while parking?

Question

A Drivers Education teacher of mine said that when you put the car in park you should also use the Emergency brake. His reasoning for it was that it eliminates the "creep" forward when you just put the car in park... But when I asked my dad about this he said he only uses the E-brake when he parks on a hill. So what is the best thing to do?

Answer 1

If your car is older and never used before (DO NOT USE IT) the reason is over time rust will stick and the car will not move.Then you will have to adjust the brake.I believe you would not want to do this in  dress clothing.It is personal choice of how and when to use the brake.Only use the emergency brake if your brakes go out.If the E. brake is used frequent then use it it will keep it working.Good Luck.  

Answer 2

Is your car manual or automatic?  I would use it if manual.

Answer 3

no, it is a good habit to use the PARKING BRAKE when you park the car. In many/most vehicles the self adjuster relies on the park brake being used at least occasionally.

I corrected your nomenclature because the parking brake is very dangerous if used to slow a moving car. In many vehicles it applies only the rear brakes and as such can actually cause an emergency as control is lost with rear lockup and fishtailing the car.

Answer 4

I live in Saskatchewan. The nearest hill is 200 miles from my house. I use my parking brake every time I park my car. Even if you don't use your parking brake you should set it at least once every couple of weeks to keep the cables from seizing up.

Answer 5

it is best to set the parking brake before you release the regular brake. ALSO use it on a hill. this will save the tranny from the very harmful creep. also wait until the car comes to a COMPLETE stop before taking it out of drive or reverse. your transmission will love you for it

Answer 6

In an automatic the only advantage is that you don't move those few inches after you take your foot off the brake.  If you're judging your parking by those few inches--Find a new spot!

Those few inches of movement are the transmission turning until it gets to a parking lock notch on the side of a large disc.  The parking lock is the size of your thumb.  There is no way it will be the part of your transmission that fails first--don't worry about wear to the parking lock.  I mention the parking lock because some people incorrectly think using the parking brake with an automatic keeps the car from resting on the transmission gears--true with a stick but not an automatic because of the parking lock.

The myth of protecting the transmission in the event your car is hit while it is parked is exactly that, a myth.  The parking lock will protect the gears.  Your tires will skid long before any damage occurs to your parking lock on your transmission.  And furthermore, the parking lock is much stronger than the E-brake and the E-brake doesn't even connect to the wheels the transmission connects to.  I hope that myth is fully dispelled.

There's not really any benefit to using the emergency brake on a hill with an automatic either.

So what's the E-brake good for on an automatic?  Not a whole lot.  Putting the car in park locks the drive wheels.  In most cars that means the front wheels.  The E-brake locks the back wheels (or often just one of them).  This can be useful if you're putting the car up on a jack--always apply the E-brake if you're going to be lifting one of the wheels off the ground, say to change a flat tire.  Also be sure to chock the tires with something so it doesn't roll forward off the jack.

Answer 7

YES USE THE E BRAKE EVERY TIME trust me this will save you in case your car is hit while its parked and plus its good for you car. you want to do this every time because if your car is hit while ur parked it could rip or strip the park gear (if its a manual u shouldnt even be asking this) witch wont be worth the cost of repair. also just having the car rest on jus the parking gear does wear it down (not alot but it does)

Answer 8

YES.

Go with the DriversED teacher's answer.  .

Answer 9

It's used so the car won't roll> Or if bumped it won't move>Safety first>