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How to quickly check vehicle handbrake sensitivity

By, CoolMotor

• 2024-04-18
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I believe friends who often use cars know that the handbrake will definitely be used as soon as the car is parked. Because the driver leaves the vehicle, if there is no handbrake, the vehicle may slide and cause an accident. However, we must remind the majority of riders that the handbrake is not a universal insurance, because the effectiveness of the handbrake will slowly decrease as the number of uses increases.

How to quickly check vehicle handbrake sensitivity

Sometimes, the handbrake is obviously on, but the brake system fails, causing an accident. Therefore, car owners should perform proper maintenance and inspection on their car's handbrake regularly. The editor below will share with you the precautions for normal maintenance and inspection of the handbrake.

Determine the working position of the handbrake handle

Like the foot brake pedal, the handbrake handle also has a pulling stroke. Usually, when the handle is lifted to 70% of the entire stroke, the handbrake system should be in the normal braking position. Therefore, before checking the braking force of the handbrake, you should first find out the 70% working point. This working point can be passed Count the ratchet sounds to make sure. You can park the car in a quiet place, slowly pull up the handbrake, and count the clicks of the ratchet until the handle is pulled to the end. Then calculate the 70% position of the total number of sounds. This position is the effective working point of the handbrake handle.

Check the effectiveness of the handbrake mechanism

Drive the car to a slope with a large slope and good road conditions (preferably asphalt road), step on the brakes, put it in neutral (if it is automatic transmission, put it in N), and pull the handbrake handle to the working point just determined Location. Then slowly release the brake pedal. If the car does not slide, it means that the handbrake is working well. Uphill and downhill should be done once each.

Do not use the handbrake when driving at high speeds

Many car owners think that if the braking system fails, they can pull the handbrake to slow down. In fact, this approach is very dangerous. Since the handbrake mechanism is not precise and the braking force on the left and right sides is unevenly distributed, pulling the handbrake when driving at high speeds can easily cause one of the rear wheels to lock up and cause sideslip. The correct approach is to slow down by downshifting, and only pull the handbrake to stop the car when the speed is very low.

Test the sensitivity of the handbrake

In addition to braking effectiveness, you should also check the sensitivity of the handbrake, which is especially important when starting on a slope. Driving slowly on a road with no slope, slowly lift the handbrake handle and feel the sensitivity and joint point of the handle. This inspection method will cause wear and tear on the handbrake mechanism, so the number of inspections should not be too many.

During the inspection, if the braking performance or sensitivity of the handbrake is found to be unsatisfactory, it can usually be solved by adjusting the operating cable of the handbrake. There is an adjustable compensation mechanism at the connection between the bottom of the handbrake handle and the steel cable (usually covered by interior trim parts). Use a wrench to loosen the locking nut to stretch the length of the brake cable. However, the adjustment mechanism of some cars is located under the car. If it is inconvenient to adjust, it should be left to professional maintenance personnel.