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Foot brake on hills

CowleyStJames

Active Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2015
Messages
345
Location
North Wales
Car
Mercedes Benz S212 E350 Sport Cdi
Okay, picked up my 60 plate C200 2.1 manual and I'm struggling with the foot brake.
How do you guys in a manual car manage in traffic up hill?
My route home each evening takes me on a long uphill stretch of road that has nose to tail traffic.
I'm having to engage neutral, foot break on, depress clutch, back in first, wait for traffic to start, release foot brake and go.
A few feet up the road, I go thru the whole procedure again.
What do you guys do our am I missing a trick?
 
Perhaps best summed up by the fact Mercedes refer to it as a "parking brake" rather than a "handbrake" . Its use is primarily designed for cars with automatic gearboxes as owners of manual gearbox cars find to their cost! Later cars had an ELECTRONIC HOLD facility where the brakes could be temorarily applied to all 4 wheels via the brake pedal but this wasn't introduced till mid 2012 afaik?
 
Your first mistake was buying a manual gearbox Mercedes.

I guess you did not consider this issue before purchase?

He's only asking for advice, no need for criticism.
 
Can't you hold it on the clutch? That's how I always did it in my manuals.
 
Your first mistake was buying a manual gearbox Mercedes.

I guess you did not consider this issue before purchase?

Looking at post #2 here, you appear to be consistently helpful!
 
Surely you just come to a halt using the footbrake , dipping the clutch and putting the car in neutral, then, whilst holding the car with the footbrake apply the parking brake with your left foot.

When you want to move off you engage gear as normal and release the parking brake with the hand operated release. Is this what you are describing?

If so it is little different in principal to a conventional hand operated parking brake just a different mode of operation.
 
Surely you just come to a halt using the footbrake , dipping the clutch and putting the car in neutral, then, whilst holding the car with the footbrake apply the parking brake with your left foot.

In slow moving traffic up a hill (per the OP) you'd be on the accelerator rather than the brake though.
 
Press the brake firmly to activate the hold function, as soon as you're on gas, it'll deactivate hold
 
Where is your contribution? :rolleyes:

At least I am trying to help the OP.

Sorry, my mistake, I thought you were just being a smart ar$e. I can see how helpful you were being now I've re-read your post.
 
In slow moving traffic up a hill (per the OP) you'd be on the accelerator rather than the brake though.

Indeed but the OP mentioned having to wait for the traffic to re-start so he is having to stop as well.
 
My car is older than yours but has the HOLD function.

Have you tried firmly pushing the brake pedal once stopped? You might see a HOLD icon on the dash and the car stays still until you accelerate again.
 
Don't use the parking brake, just use the normal brake when on the hill and when you need to move off just use the accelerator and clutch as you would anywhere else.

When you get used to it you will not roll backwards. Anyway...I found it easy...but I'm an experienced driver. I do find people present challenges as problems...just get on with it.:thumb:
 
Your first mistake was buying a manual gearbox Mercedes.

I guess you did not consider this issue before purchase?
Why it is a mistake??? All MB's I had with manual gearboxes were faultless and am looking forward to buying my next Merc with manual too. Current one and 2 previous were auto and I'm missing a "stick".

Surely you just come to a halt using the footbrake , dipping the clutch and putting the car in neutral, then, whilst holding the car with the footbrake apply the parking brake with your left foot.

When you want to move off you engage gear as normal and release the parking brake with the hand operated release.
^+1
 
Real men don't RTFM!
 
A 60 plate car will have hill start assist. I have a 59 plate manual and was initially worried how I'd manage on hill starts but it's not been a problem. Forget the parking brake just hold it on the normal brake pedal and when you take your foot off the brakes will hold for approx. 2 secs which is plenty of time to move your foot to the accelerator. Really it works like dream.

"All MB's must be auto" attitude pisses me off. I've owned both and the guys with manual cars don't need constant reminders that they should be driving an auto. It's a free world.
 

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