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Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 1:51 pm
by S_J_P
On Bank Holiday Monday I suffered from a potentially embarrassing situation whilst queueing at lights on a hill in the local town.

We'd pulled up in the queue at a set of lights on a significant hill. I braked to a stop and the auto stop-start stopped the engine. I manually engaged the parking brake and waited for the lights to change.

After a short while, probably 30 seconds the lights turned green and the queue started to pull away. I depressed the clutch and the engine started, I engaged 1st, and went to pull away but the EPB didn't disengage despite significant revs. OK I thought, new car, inexperienced operator, so I pressed the foot brake and manually released the handbrake, lifted my foot off the brake and went for the clutch/accelerator fully expecting the hill-start-assist to keep the brakes on for 2 seconds and we rolled backwards towards the white Audi behind :oops:

I quickly went back on the footbrake, re-engaged the handbrake and tried again. Lots of revs, clutch up, but again the EPB wouldn't automatically disengage. I then resorted to the old fashioned quick-step of clutch & brake to accelerator and performed a hill-start without rolling back any further.

Now I'm not sure whether this was a fault, a set of circumstances which conspired to cause the system to not operate as I expected, or (newbie) operator error, but it seems suspicious that neither the EPB nor HSA were working simultaneously.

Any ideas anyone?

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 2:19 pm
by gvmdaddy
Doesn't sound like a problem. It does really take a lot of boot to overcome the epb on a hill start. Hill start assist should have engaged though. I'll check it out on way home.

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 3:56 pm
by Gel
HSA only engages when on a certain gradient; it may be slope wasn't steep enough.
Did you notice if the green HSA icon appeared when stationary?

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 4:58 pm
by S_J_P
I gave the car plenty of welly - the car hunkered-down on the brakes and the clutch actually started to smell without the EPB releasing do I don't think it was a lack of power issue.

I didn't notice whether the HSA lamp was illuminated, but the hill was reasonably steep and I know it activates there on my Aygo, so I'd have expected it to activate on the Qashqai too.

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 5:33 pm
by gloucester
I'm confused - why didn't you just manually release the parking brake while you were pressing the accelerator? Why press the brake pedal and then release it?

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Tue May 31, 2016 7:05 pm
by S_J_P
I was under the impression that you have to have the footbrake depressed in order to manually deactivate the EPB, is that not the case?

Just checked the electronic manual which states:

"To release the parking brake, push the brake pedal, then push the parking brake switch down; the indicator light will turn off."

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 1:49 am
by gloucester
Sorry - you may be right there - I'll have to have a go - but I'm in bed at present!

So you can't do a conventional hill start with a Qashqai.

So you can't do a driving test in a Qashqai?

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 6:31 am
by gvmdaddy
gloucester wrote:Sorry - you may be right there - I'll have to have a go - but I'm in bed at present!

So you can't do a conventional hill start with a Qashqai.

So you can't do a driving test in a Qashqai?

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 6:44 am
by gloucester
I experimented this morning - yes, you have to be pressing the brake pedal to release the handbrake, but it can be a pretty momentary press. What I wasn't able to try it on was a hill since there aren't any around here.

Re: Electronic Parking Brake & Hill Start Assist probelms

Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 6:49 am
by gloucester
Apologies for going off topic - but...
gloucester wrote:So you can't do a driving test in a Qashqai?
The definitive answer:

https://www.gov.uk/driving-test/using-your-own-car

Using your own car for your test

...

Vehicle features

You can use a car with:

an electronic parking brake
hill-start assist


Returning to topic - sounds like you should get the car checked out by a dealer - if you can find a way of replicating the problem - never easy.