GUTTED!!

Parked up one night in December; fairly steep hill - so applied handbrake... got out... got my rucksack out of the boot... locked the car up and got buzzed into my mates apartment...

Had a rather belting Thai meal... came to leave a couple of hours later... and my car wasn't where I left it... instead it was about 20 yards down the hill; sticking out of a lampost!

Needless to say... I wasn't impressed!! After speaking to my insurers, they advised me to contact my dealer to assess whether it was a fault with the braking system; the result of which was a big fat 'nothing wrong here sir' (although my handbrake is now two clicks tighter now)..... Spoke to Skoda UK and they tell me there's nothing i can do!!

So now i'm left with a

and engage a gear!?!

Sorry to hear of your accident buddy...

Yes. Engage a gear on a hill, and normally at all times. Sorry to hear about your accident. How come your left with a £350 bill, and not your insurance?

Yeah , definately use the gears as well as the handbrake , never trust 2 long cables with holding your pride and joy on a hill!

I've known this happen to quite a few cars not just Skodas.

The reason lies in the rear discs cooling down after parking up. As the discs cool they contract between the pads a little which most times probably won't be enough to cause any problem but if parked on a steep hill may well be enough to allow the car to roll away.

The solution as everyone else has said is to leave the vehicle in gear as well, 1st or reverse being preferable.

I've known this happen to quite a few cars not just Skodas.

The reason lies in the rear discs cooling down after parking up. As the discs cool they contract between the pads a little which most times probably won't be enough to cause any problem but if parked on a steep hill may well be enough to allow the car to roll away.

The solution as everyone else has said is to leave the vehicle in gear, 1st or reverse being preferable.

Quite a few people have had this problem with Fabias...

To add another, now useless piece of advice, turn steering wheel if on heavy incline so if all else fails (handbrake AND gears!) the car steers into pavement and stops...

Hindsights a great thing...

thanks for the symathy! Was a real gut-wrenching experience... but as you guys say, a lesson well learned!

the car's booked in Monday for a new front bumper; decided to settle it out of insurance as i have a

this happend to me last year! got to m mates after driving from college, and parked up didnt think about leaving it in gear never thought about the handbreak failing opend their front door a few hours later... my car wasnt there it was half way down the lane backed into the rear of a tree!! i wasnt happy with myself only just fitted the gt bodykit on too!!:( from then on i've always left my car in gear!

Sorry to hear about your car mate, I'd be absolutely gutted if it was mine.

It's not just Fabias, either...

Octy vRS

It's not just Fabias, either...

Octy vRS

Bloody hell :eek: Do you know if that caused much damage to the 'Tavia? Was just looking at pics of that very car yesterday.

BX's were doing this years ago due to all round discs, easy solution is to place your foot on the brake peddle as you apply the handbrake, which will make the brake go on further (no idea why like, but it does).

Also leave it in gear.

You are quite lucky as it is only a damaged bumper.

Bloody hell :eek: Do you know if that caused much damage to the 'Tavia? Was just looking at pics of that very car yesterday.

Not so much as a scratch, jammy ba**ard!

my mate who runs a small car garage NEVER uses the handbrake and always leaves the car in gear.....

I think that there is probably something in the handbook about always leaving the car in gear too. Pretty sure that there is in VW handbooks.

Can you not just pop out the dent and respray, or do you WANT a full new bumper

I hit some deer and the bumper was stoved in, I took it off and it sprang back into shape (I see yours will not spring back but maybe teased back would work ?)

Just a thought, commiserations and happy new year

Jack McHammocklashing

same thing happened to me with my last polo.

went to the girlfriends, parked up put handbrake on, locked steering wheel and went into the house. a few hours later i went to window to see that my car had gone!!

ran out the house only to find it round the corner on someone elses drive.

it had somehow rolled down the street and around the corner and onto this guys drive bounced of his mondeo and stopped on this poor guys drive.

there was no damage to either of our cars and i consider myself very lucky....

always leave my cars in gear now.

Sorry to hear about that mate. I'm another one in the 'always leave it gear when parked' camp - force of habit, have grown up with it as my parents always do the same.

Just a little aside to possibly make you feel a bit better. A mate at work had a similar experience, but much worse. Parked his car outside his house, which is on a bit of incline. Didn't engage handbrake properly and left it in neutral. His Vectra then proceeded to roll 200 yards down to the end of the road, a T-junction with a main road. It proceeded to go over the main road and stop after hitting a dry stone wall. Worse still, a police panda car passed minutes later. He was subsequently charged with 'undue car and attention' (!!) - harsh, but perhaps fair one could maybe argue....

So chin up, and it could be worse

(sorry that rambled on a bit, but you get the idea).

Steve

I've always left my car in gear since experiencing vauxhall handbrakes!!!!!

When exiting a multi-storey car park last summer, i rounded one of the bends to find a car apparently parked in the middle of the road!!!! Handbrakes eh.....

I was going to say the same thing about Vauxhalls - possibly the worst holding hand brakes of all!

Another vote for leaving it in gear - picked up from my Dad, just a habbit now.

Sorry to see the damage. As everyone else has said, leave it in 1st or reverse. Also, apply the handbrake more firmly if on an incline. There is stretch in the system and applying the handbrake with a little more tension than if on a flat surface sould take up the slack as the discs cool. Pesronally I never had the car creep on the handbrake when fully applied.

Seen a car drive off on its own down the hill at a local park last year. Luckily it did not get going too fast so I was able to slow it down and control its speed by just pushing it. Ended up resting ever so gently against a steel post, not a scratch. The owner appeared shortly afterwards having witnessed my efforts.

Ex work colleague left a Golf outside her house and came out to find it down the bottom of the hill in someones front room:eek:

Chris

I'm so glad I live in the Fens!!!

Damned unlucky though... Hope you get it fixed up all nicely again without costing the earth.

I'm so glad I live in the Fens!!!

Thought I saw a hill up there once, but then realised I was tilting my head a bit.

Chris

Well to continue a story

I was at work one day as a service engineer and (thankfully) a woman came in and asked whose was the green car, (mine) she had jumped out of her car on a hill, and as she walked away it rolled back a hundred yards and whacked mine in the side door, she then said the same thing happened the day before :-(

No luck, I was having a problem solving a network at the same site next day and yes she parked up again and this time it took off missed my car but continued on a further two hundred yards across the T junction and took out the local double decker bus service

She said she was stressed :-)

two dented doors and a written off car in three days I would be stressed to

She was stressed running into UNI to take her exams, I do hope she passed if just to pay for her insurance premiums poor lass

As mine was a company car I found it funny

Three crashes in three days oh dear

Always leave the car in gear, handbrake on ,since,some years ago, some hooligans picked up the rear of my car and pushed it into a wall