I have just read the two threads about the possibilities of that part breaking in the gearbox and the car potentially rolling away if the handbrake fails .

 This has got me thinking . My driveway is on a very slight uphill gradient and I park the car forward facing UP this slight gradient . When I park up and come to a stop I put the handbrake on then put it into P (park) and then then remove my foot off the foot brake . When I take my foot off the brake you can feel some sort of very slight movement which im guessing is the handbrake taking the strain of parking , Is this the correct way to park on a slight hill without putting any strain on that part that could break in the gearbox mentioned in the other posts ?

You are doing it right. Thing is, the handbrake and gearbox locking device on these cars can and do fail.

The handbrake button can fly out releasing the handbrake in the process. The DSG park selector cable can stretch so the pawl release pin fails to engage the transmission lock.

Simply put, crap design. 

11 hours ago, sivrs said:

I have just read the two threads about the possibilities of that part breaking in the gearbox and the car potentially rolling away if the handbrake fails .

 This has got me thinking . My driveway is on a very slight uphill gradient and I park the car forward facing UP this slight gradient . When I park up and come to a stop I put the handbrake on then put it into P (park) and then then remove my foot off the foot brake . When I take my foot off the brake you can feel some sort of very slight movement which im guessing is the handbrake taking the strain of parking , Is this the correct way to park on a slight hill without putting any strain on that part that could break in the gearbox mentioned in the other posts ?

Well, that's how I'd park up with any automatic. irrespective of angle of slope.

Never really thought about it, but I go 1) footbrake then 2) selector to P then 3) handbrake. 

I was taught always lock handbrake before deselecting gear just in case....

3 hours ago, TDIum said:

Never really thought about it, but I go 1) footbrake then 2) selector to P then 3) handbrake. 

It's better to go 1, 3, 2 because that reduces the risk of the car rolling against the park pawl and effectively locking itself in park because you can't generate sufficient pressure on the selector button to get it back out.

57 minutes ago, KenONeill said:

It's better to go 1, 3, 2 because that reduces the risk of the car rolling against the park pawl and effectively locking itself in park because you can't generate sufficient pressure on the selector button to get it back out.

 

But not if your foot is still on the footbrake

1 hour ago, TDIum said:

 

But not if your foot is still on the footbrake

Well, unless your handbrake and footbrake work differently to every car I've ever driven except Citroens, that will put the handbrake on tighter.

If you wan't to be really careful.

 

Foot on brake, pull on handbrake, gearbox in neutral, release footbrake so handbrake takes the weight, gearbox in Park.

 

But sod it who wants to do that? Conventional Auto's have had parking pawls for decades without breaking. Most Americans don't even use the handbrake.

But having a tight handbrake is not the issue you were worried about, it was the P-position pawls. 

13 minutes ago, TDIum said:

But having a tight handbrake is not the issue you were worried about, it was the P-position pawls. 

 

That's how I read it as well, the handbrake being on tight has nothing to do with the parking pawls...

Surely when you come to a halt and keep your foot on the brake pedal until you have both selected p on the gear selector and park brake on (making sure you wait the couple of seconds the park brake servos need to come on) before taking you foot of the brake pedal it shouldn't matter which way around you do it. 

I have tried both ways on flat ground and on a slope and the car usually has a wee "rock" or "settle" either way I do it when on a slope. Just like when a manual transmission manual handbrake car squats down sometimes with the handbrake on a slope as all the slack in the driveline is taken up. 

Edited 4 October, 20196 yr by Gmac983

As far as I understand, in very basic terms. The parking pawl works very much like the locking mechanism for change a disc on an angle grinder. A spring loaded pin drops into a set of rotating holes. The rocking motion you sometimes feel is the car moving enough to allow the rotating parts to line up with the pin. As far as the actual handbrake/park brake goes, no matter how firmly you put it on the car will always settle on a slope. 

Unless your passenger is going to leap out with a set of wheel chocks every time you stop. 

Edited 4 October, 20196 yr by Gmac983

just make yourself a little ramp (about an inch high is all that is needed) to let the tyre roll over and let this hold the weight of the car. Then put it in Park. I do this.

 

I never even use the handbrake on my slightly sloping drive.

 

You will always get some settle through the suspension on a slope and as the handbrake operates on the rear wheels and the gearbox pawl works on the front wheels when applying both at the same time before releasing the footbrake then one or the other is going to take most of the strain.

This doesn't happen with RWD but it is still the case that the pawl should be strong enough to hold the car. If they are breaking with normal use it's a design or manufacturing fault.

 

I've not seen this widespread on the VW forums but more of their models have electric parking brake.

1 hour ago, Tilt said:

just make yourself a little ramp (about an inch high is all that is needed) to let the tyre roll over and let this hold the weight of the car. Then put it in Park. I do this.

 

I never even use the handbrake on my slightly sloping drive.

This is the major cause of parking/handbrake's siezing up on automatic cars, lack of use. Also states in the highway code a parking/handbrake must be applied even if the vehicle is set in park on public highway or private drive, if one of the systems fail the other other is still there as fail safe.

 

Anyway back on topic i do this 1) footbrake held on 2) parking/handrake on 3) the put transmission into Park. In a manual leave it in gear with wheels turned into the kerb on a slope or neutral on level ground.

Interesting read . I will carry on doing what I said I was doing in the first post and hopefully this park pawl is a few and far between issue .