Does anyone else miss having a hand brake?

My commute back and forth is always full of traffic. Makes me love electric motors all the more.

 

Come to think of it, Chevy Volt has a handbrake ... sorta .... ya DO pull up on it ;




wonder what happens if you yank that baby at 40 or 50 mph ...

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It warns you that it's on. It also won't hold and will release as soon as you let go.

 

I recall that Autos have gone through phases. They became bulletproof as 2 speed - then added a gear. Our Aussie 3 speed the TRIMATIC was dubbed "TRAUMATIC" and taxi drivers dropped old 2 speed Powerglides in instead after they died prematurely.

Then 3 speed Autos became great - the first Australian car with a 4sp Auto - again reliability issues - my Dad's died at 67,000kms!!! Then he bought a TOYOTA 4sp Auto - which was going strong for 300k kms.

BUT - I've heard some sob-stories about both DSGs and CVTs - most recent was a SUBARU which cost my friend about $1,200 to "just" get a solenoid replaced - current model but with 100,000km.

My question is - what is going to become of the new 8 and 10 speed Autos? I haven't followed how the layout inside works, but it's got to be quite complex - and tricky to fix, that's if they're fixable? I'd like to see how they go long term in the field before jumping into one.

Meanwhile - Hybrid Synergy Drive - seems to outlast the car in 99.9% of cases.

 

The basic step automatic seems to be as bullet proof as a manual, regardless of the number of gears. Improvement in the electronics as lead to better control of the mechanicals. CVTs seem to have matured to the same level. DCTs are still new, and may have issues. But all of them need to handled case by case. Some are just made better than others.

HSD is more than the transaxle though, and Toyota has had issues with the inverter and software that lead to the same results as a bad tranny.

 

"Does anyone else miss having a hand brake?"

Early teenage girls on a first date?

Fathers of girls?

Bob Wilson

 

Priuses have always done OK in that department without the handbrake.