Passat Handbrake Failure

[thngbfht]

I need your help!

I am compiling a legal case against VW in connection with a problem which has occured to several Passat B6 owners. The electronic handbrake releases itself afetr being parked and "on"!

Our Passat rolled off the driveway and two weeks ago, roled down the street and into a brick wall. This was after the handbrake was on and holding the car stationary.

Needless to say this could have been fatal to any pedestrians etc.

The handbook does say to leave it in gear but this is not a legal requirement and not something you are taught under the Highway Code. Engaging the handbrake is, however, a law.

This error has occured to about 6 other Passat owners that I know off and I am in contact with VOSA and VW head office regarding this issue.

If anyone else has suffered anything like this please please please contact me at ambrose_keith@hotmail.com

Thanks and hope we hear from everyone who has had this happen.

Keith

[james_tiger_woo]

This hasn't happened to me, but I'm interested to see how thispans out.

What have VW said so far?

[thngbfht]

Well they could find no fault on the car on both occasions but we have witness to the second incident. The witness watched my wife open the car and the handbrake light was on (indicating the handbrake was engaged). She then started the car and tried to pull away without touching the button and it would not move as the handbrake was on.

So how the hell did it roll across the road!

As i mentioned this has happened to others in exactly the same way. One guy has a sloping drive so you cannot possibly walk away from the car without the handbrake holding the car in place. Two hours later his neighbours knocked on the door to ask them to remove thier car from their front garden!

VW deny the fault and also say this has not happened to anyone else when I know for a fact it has on several occasions.

Because we have gone to VOSA (vehicle safety within government) the dealer is saying they must wait for head office to tell them what to do.

What we want is for VW to give us forecourt value for the car (before it rolled away and got smashed up) and we will then by another car. We do not want it back in case it does it again. This could have killed someone.

Will keep you all posted but please anyone, get in touch if it has happened to you!

Mode

[jonesey]

Never happened to me in my Passat which I have had from new since Jan 2007 and 47000 miles. However I have always left the car in gear when parked, as I have done with all cars I have driven in the past 30 years. This was something my Dad taught me, I suspect because the old mini he taught me in had a dodgy handbrake! It's a habit I can't get out of now and I think with recent incidents of some other vehicle makes rolling away is now general advice for anyone parking a vehicle. Most cars now have all round discs and problems have occurred with overheated discs cooling down and and the parking brake losing grip due to metal contraction.
I'll be interested to see how this progresses, maybe something for BBC Watchdog which starts again next week?

[thngbfht]

I agree with the leaving it in gear thing but that is not taught anymore on driving lessons and is not a law to have to do. The highway code does not mention it under parking, but does say you must put the handbrake on. It is a recommendation only when parking on a hill.

For that reason alone I think the handbrake on a car should be a failsafe device, which this one clearly isn't!

Will keep you informed

Keith

[Quatrelle]

No problems with mine that I know of, but I always listen for the motor applying the brake and leave it in gear - like others on here l have done so since I started driving. My wife doesn't like the Passat's handbrake button. I've got used to it, and it invariably works as it should, but it's either on or off and I prefer to use my own skill and judgement, so to speak.

I'd prefer a small hydraulic lever in place of the button.

I wish you the best of luck with VOSA - waste of time and toothless.

You might think it worthwhile asking why VW suggest leaving the car in gear. This in itself might suggest that the handbrake is unreliable.

But no handbrake is reliable, electronic or, especially, mechanical - most recently, Vauxhall had a lot of problems last year, if my memory serves (it was on Watchdog, I think).

Things have got worse since the use of discs on all four wheels.

[Stuart W]

Plenty complaints about handbrake problems on the internet, but can't recall this particular one.

I think the Vauxhall problem was with the ratchet, so Passat must be something else

[johnloaderuk]

My car has now got 110k on the clock and I've never had this exact problem. However, the other day it did flash up an alarm something like 'Handbrake failure - service' (can't remember exactly what it said), and it felt like the brake was only being applied on one side. This has happened to me twice before, and on all three ocasions the problem has mysteriously sorted itself out, usually after a few more hours of driving, or overnight. Five days later the car was in for a service, so I mentioned this to the dealer who said they'd never heard of this before, and they would check it out. When I picked the car up they told me they had done a handbrake software update, but they didn't know what the difference was between the old and new software. So far no further problems. The three faults I've had may have been caused by me, as I sometimes try to press the button just before the car has come to a complete stop, but I can't be sure either way. Personally I always park my car with 1st gear engaged as well as the handbrake, and in my opinion this is common sense - why use only one safety device when you have two available.

[Quatrelle]

Plenty complaints about handbrake problems on the internet, but can't recall this particular one.

I think the Vauxhall problem was with the ratchet, so Passat must be something else

I was just making the point that both electronic and mechanical handbrakes can have faults.

There are other cars now being fitted with exactly the same sort of electronic handbrake - the new Picasso comes to mind.

Interesting to look at it from the opposite direction. Imagine we'd always had some sort of electric handbrake and a car maker comes along and says "We're now fitting our cars with a thick metal lever that sticks up in the middle of the transmission tunnel and is connected to some cables that operated levers to the rear brakes. The best bit is you can pull it up with the same hand that operates the gear lever, and it engages on a ratchet to lock it on. When you want to move off you press a button at the end of the lever to release the ratchet. With some practice you can easily coordinate release of this lever with the clutch and throttle for smooth progress. We're actively looking at ways of making it easier to operate on hills." And so on.....

Just a thought!

[nickmurphy]

Quatrelle - you're obviously a philosopher! That is a very interesting take on the handbrake issue.

I was dubious about the merits of the electronic brake at first but it really does make sense (as long as it keeps working). A colleague had a nasty episode when her Audi TT (mechanical h/brake) rolled away after being parked so the issue also affects "quality" cars with non-electronic brakes.