I was wondering, if you're parked on a hill and you have a stick, is it a better idea to leave the car in a certain gear? like if you are parked facing downhill is it a better idea to leave the car in reverse just in case the e-brake gives. And if you are facing up hill is it better to leave in first..etc. This is probly a stupid question but hey you gotta learn somewhere,
thanks

 

That actually made me think for a couple seconds...

It doesn't matter which gear the transmission is in, because neither gear will allow the car to move forward or backward.

I just use 1st when I'm on a steep hill, but your e-brake should be tight enough to hold the car on a reasonably steep incline.

 

yeah, i dont know if you recall my recent post about my dad's eclipse 5spd, but it is a 97 and i dont think the ebrake has ever been tightened. Anyway, we brought it to the movies and it was parked on a hill (not steep at all!) and the break actually slipped causing the car to roll down into a guard rail..bout 1k worth of damage.. not sure what gear it was in

 

Use first or reverse, either one, regardless of whether the car is facing uphill or downhill. The reason first or reverse is better than, say, fifth gear is that the engine braking effect is more pronounced owing to the greater gear ratio.

 

Umm... how about turning the steering wheel like they taught us in drivers ed?

 

drivers ed!?!? in Georgia!?! although it does say that in the book that you study before you go get your learner's permit. Forgot about that one. I guess the question refers to if there is no curb.

 

I think it's always good practice in both manual and automatic cars to use both the parking brake as well as leaving the transmission in 1st or reverse gear/park.

Many people I know don't set the parking brake. They claim that it's not steep enough to. However, if the car is only any incline at all, it will slight roll, putting the pressure on the transmission. Ever notice how it's hard to take an auto transmission out of park? That's because the weight of the car is resting on it. Now think about it this way, which is cheaper, the brake shoes (about $20-$30 worth of parts) or a transmission? The method I always use in both auto and 5sp cars is this, (1) come to a complete stop, (2) put the car in neutral while holding the brake, (3)pull up on the parking brake, (4) release the brake pedal while the car is in neutral and the parking brake is up (5) see if the parking brake holds, if not tighten more. (6) put the car in park or 1st or park and turn off the car. It sounds difficult, but really takes like less than 3 seconds once you get it down. If you have a 5sp, steps step (2) would be to press down the clutch and step 6 would be to turn off the car and release the clutch (which should still be in whatever gear the car was in when you pulled in to park). These extra seconds gives your engine a chance to cool off a bit a circulate some oil through the engine before you power off, helping to cool off some of the parts and prevent coking.

You should always leave it in 1st or reverse and/or park in an auto car as well. Some people just set the parking brake and leave the vehicle in neutral. I wouldn't recommend leaving in neutral because as the temperature warms and cools, the hand brake cable can stretch/expand causing the brakes to loosen and the car to roll.

-V

 

hmm, definietly a thought provoking question. i have always put the parking brake on and put it into 1st gear. but putting into reverse never came to mind. now, what im thinking about is putting the gear into reverse when the car is in the garage. its happened to me twice, where i forgot that the car was running, and i let go of the clutch. the car jerks hard and then the engine dies. good thing that the parking brake was on and i still have my foot on the brake, otherwise, the car might lurch forward into the third bedroom....... now if i leave it in reverse, then the car would jerk backwards (hopefully when the garage door is still open, instead of forwards... or maybe the engine will stall quicker because of the reverse gear ratio.


dfwmax

 

lol... I've done that several times too... where I absentmindedly let go of the clutch and the car would lurch a bit, but I'd still be on the break or the parking brake would be on

anyway, my rational is normalliy when i've pulled into a spot, i've either backed in or headed in slowly, and I leave it in either reverse or first as I turn off the car... the other rational being that either gear should be fine as reverse is geared even lower than 1st...

-V

 

I don't use the hand brake.
Sometimes I forget I put it up - 'cause I use it so seldom.
"Why is the car so slow?"
Big Duhhh...

But mostly I don't use it because it doesn't seem to work very well.
I have to pull it up all the way - pert near verticle.

At my last service I asked them to look at it.
They said it was fine.

Is there any way I can tighten it up myself
something I can do so it engages a bit sooner/more firmly?

 

The hand brake lever should engage firmly after being pulled up 10-11 clicks. If it moves more than that you may want to adjust it. The adjusting nut is located at the base of the hand lever. Please refer to the Chilton repair manual (page 9-14) or the Haynes repair manual (page 9-17).

 

is it like that in all cars?

 

I don't know about all cars. It is certainly true of many cars.

 

so if you pull the boot down there is a bolt and you just tighten it?

 

There's a little bit more to it than that. Please refer to the Chilton repair manual (page 9-14) or the Haynes repair manual (page 9-17).