I have an issue when the DSG is in  park, if I put it in park the pawl does not engage. This results in the car being able to roll when in park with the handbrake off. 

I can go in to the engine bay and manually engage the pawl on top of the gearbox and the car will hold in park without the handbrake. If I move the gear selector to any of R, N or D the pawl release and the car will move. 

This tells me the cable must be in one piece, but can any one tell me why the gear selector will not engage the pawl but can release it?

 

Could just be a bit sticky. If you are able to get to the bits from the engine bay, can you get some squirt in there to help free it up?

Can we ask why you can't just use the hand brake?

There have been instances where the handbrake has released itself and the car has rolled.

29 minutes ago, ords said:

There have been instances where the handbrake has released itself and the car has rolled.

And, indeed, where the park pawl has slipped and the car has rolled.

1 hour ago, ords said:

There have been instances where the handbrake has released itself and the car has rolled.

 

Do manual owners put the car in gear every time they park up? I find it difficult to believe hand brake failures are that common. 

47 minutes ago, MarkyG82 said:

 

Do manual owners put the car in gear every time they park up? I find it difficult to believe hand brake failures are that common. 

When I had a manual, it was always left in gear.

 

 

1 hour ago, MarkyG82 said:

 

Do manual owners put the car in gear every time they park up? I find it difficult to believe hand brake failures are that common. 

 

I do as a matter of habit as it's what I was taught eons ago when I passed my test.

Fair enough. I've never done it (on the flat) and don't know many that do but there seems to be a large number out there who do. 

 

@MarkyG82 Hand / parking brake or even e-Brake / finger brake failure might not be that common.  It is not Parking Brake failure if it is the brake applied with hot rear discs and then them cooling.  Which is not uncommon.

 

@octavia_vn67welcome to the forum.

Is it a vRS you have and with a 6 speed wet clutch DSG so a DQ250?

9 hours ago, MarkyG82 said:

 

Do manual owners put the car in gear every time they park up? I find it difficult to believe hand brake failures are that common. 

I had the handbrake fail once on my previous manual 1.4TSI, I came out of the shop to find my Octavia 'resting' against the rear bumper of the car in the parking space in front - no damage to either car.

14 hours ago, MarkyG82 said:

Could just be a bit sticky. If you are able to get to the bits from the engine bay, can you get some squirt in there to help free it up?

Can we ask why you can't just use the hand brake?

I do use the standard handbrake as normal, but being an engineer I always like to have things work as they should. 

I will try putting some lubrication on it but when I move it by hand there is not much resistance but worth a try.

4 hours ago, toot said:

@MarkyG82 Hand / parking brake or even e-Brake / finger brake failure might not be that common.  It is not Parking Brake failure if it is the brake applied with hot rear discs and then them cooling.  Which is not uncommon.

 

@octavia_vn67welcome to the forum.

Is it a vRS you have and with a 6 speed wet clutch DSG so a DQ250?

It is the 1.4 petrol with the DQ200 (7 speed DSG)

1 hour ago, octavia_vn67 said:

I do use the standard handbrake as normal, but being an engineer I always like to have things work as they should. 

I will try putting some lubrication on it but when I move it by hand there is not much resistance but worth a try.

Would it be an MOT failure?

The Parking Brake is tested at a MOT.  The gearbox locking the front wheels in P is not. 

Is the gear lever going fully forward, or is it hitting up against the surrounding trim? I had this on a Jeep, and over time it got so bad that even the ignition key release would not work. Dealer ordered a new cable, but found it was the trim that had “shifted”, and was stopping the gear level making full movement. A bit of adjustment of the centre console and all good again, still with old cable.