Along with the automatic gearbox, the traditional manual handbrake is on the motoring extinction red list. A survey by car sales website CarGurus UK found that only 13 per cent of new models currently on sale have the ratcheted lever that has for so long been a driving staple.
In the vast majority of new cars, it has been replaced by the electronic parking brake which has increased from a 63 to 87 per cent spread in just five years. In 2022, the ranges of nearly half (45 per cent) of the UK’s 38 car makers don’t feature a manual handbrake at all.
From your correspondence and
requests for advice, we know that
electronic parking brakes are a particular bugbear. But why are they taking over?
What’s the difference between electronic and manual handbrakes?
Handbrakes and parking brakes are the same thing. The idea behind both is to prevent a car from moving when it’s stationary.
A manual handbrake is the traditional lever. When you pull it up, a cable running to the rear wheels operates a cylinder which pushes the brake pads against the discs or drum. Lower the lever and the cylinder releases the pads.
With an electronic parking brake, you pull a switch, usually mounted on the transmission tunnel. This electronically activates motors which push the pads against the discs. This is the whirring sound you hear when you apply a parking brake.
Why is the manual handbrake being replaced?
The electronic parking brake has a couple of big advantages over its manual equivalent. You no longer need a bulky lever in the cockpit which frees up space for other sexier features.
There are also technical and safety benefits. An electronic parking brake can be linked to the car’s central computer. It can detect when the car is about to be driven through inputs to the accelerator and automatically release the brake. Similarly, it can automatically release the brake on an incline for a perfect hill start – more on that later.
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The energy transition to electric is also responsible. Cars, combustion engine and electric, are increasingly started with a button rather than twisting a key. An electronic parking brake can be linked to this so when you shut the car down, the brake automatically engages.
“Overall, the packaging and usability benefits of an electronic parking brake outweigh the financial savings of a manual handbrake,” said Robin Hayles from Hyundai which has the most models still available with a manual parking brake.
What about reliability?
A lot is made of electronic parking brakes being less reliable. Some manufacturers have had problems with them, mainly addressed through recalls. But there’s a danger of us getting a bit dewy eyed about the traditional handbrake.
Product expert Hayles told us: “I think we’re forgetting the failed MOTs because of locked wheel cylinders or stretched cables from traditional handbrakes. Compared with that the chances of an electric parking brake motor seizing up are pretty remote.”
When electronic parking brakes do go wrong…
They cost a lot more to fix. According to warranty firm MotorEasy, the average manual handbrake repair claim is £220.37, the average electronic parking brake claim is three times that at £665.98.
The highest electronic parking brake claim was an eye-watering £2,888.70 for a Range Rover Sport. Interestingly, while only 18 per cent of manual handbrake repair claims have cost more than £1,000, 27 per cent of electronic brakes’ have.
Does this make the hill start a thing of the past?
The electronic parking brake gives more cars a hill-hold function which automatically detects an incline and stops the car rolling back for a few seconds. This gives the driver time to move their foot from brake to accelerator for a seamless getaway.
The knock-on effect is that the traditional hill start – holding the car on the handbrake, finding the biting point of the clutch and releasing the handbrake at that perfect moment – is becoming a thing of the past.
Instructor and examiner Karen Bransgrove from the Driving Instructors’ Association said: “I think whether the traditional hill start stays in the driving test will be driven by the market. It will probably phase out naturally as it becomes less relevant because of the technology on cars.”
But it’s still taught to drivers. Bransgrove added: “We have to cover the syllabus so even if the instructor’s or student’s car doesn’t have a manual handbrake, we still have to cover how a traditional brake works.
“In the test, it doesn’t matter what the car is, the examiner will be looking at whether the driver moves off safely and in control without rolling back.”
How long will the manual handbrake last?
In the UK, BMW, Cupra, DS Automobiles, Honda, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot, Polestar, Porsche, Tesla and Volvo already don’t offer a single car with a manual handbrake.
Tellingly, cars that have recently stopped offering manual handbrakes include the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1 city cars and the Nissan Micra supermini.
If a new car is launched in the next couple of years with a manual handbrake, it will probably last until 2030 because there’ll be no point going to the expense of replacing it. But when all new cars sold in the UK have to be electric, the manual handbrake will probably be released into the motoring history books.
Will the manual handbrake be missed?
On paper, there’s much to like about the traditional handbrake. But as with the manual gearbox, the march of technology isn’t on its side.
Head of policy and Research at IAM RoadSmart, Rebecca Ashton, said: “I think some people will feel there’s less to go wrong with a conventional handbrake. And it does concern me that some people might miss maintenance or ignore warning lights because of the increased cost of repairing a faulty electronic parking brake.
“But maybe we should embrace the technology and get used to the electronic parking brake for the benefits it offers.”
So it comes down to personal taste. Do I miss the handbrake? I certainly don’t miss looking at an ugly lever. But I have noticed that the tiny switch makes it less likely that I’ll secure the car while stationary at traffic lights as I do with a regular handbrake.
