I don't know the best way to achieve this. I have thought of a couple of ways.One would be to put a cable tension monitor on the parking brake cable. If the cable tension exceeds expected amount, the klaxon sounds. The other way would place a sensor that checks for simultaneous engagement of the clutch and brake while "in gear".
This way a driver would never have to think 'no, I didn't drive with the parking brake on, ... did I? ... I wonder if my spouse ...' It would also tend to alter the feeling dumb feeling following a sequence like : Hmm. the car doesn't feel right. What's that red light on the dash? Oh crap! (disengage parking brake) oops. I say alter the feeling as the sequence would change to : Aaah! (disengage parking brake) oops. Well at least I didn't drive halfway down the block.-- Zimmy, Apr 04 2006 SsangYong Rodius/Stavic http://www.smotor.c...m/rodius/safety.jsp"Parking Brake Warning: An alarm sounds if the driver attempts to start out while the parking brake is still engaged." Woo-hoo! [jutta, Apr 04 2006] My '77 Cadillac had a neat little mechanism that automatically released the parking brake when you shifted the car out of park. I dont know if the horn is really the best device to warn of this. This seems like something that would create more confusion than it would actually be effective in an unwanted brake engagement.-- Jscotty, Apr 04 2006 [Jscotty] I didn't know it was mechanically possible to do what you said. I wonder why that is not now a standard feature on all cars?-- Zimmy, Apr 04 2006 Because the evil car manufacturers *want* you to drive fourteen miles with the brakes on. They *want* you to ruin your brakes. They *want* you to have to replace them as often as possible. It's all part of their evil plan to rule the world. And they would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you stupid kids, asking your stupid questions! Bah!-- NotTheSharpestSpoon, Apr 04 2006 They have gotten away with it. My family has three cars. Three. What the hell?!?!-- notmarkflynn, Apr 04 2006 Somehow, this is a problem that I don't have. I think it depends on habit: For example, I don't forget to put the car into gear when I want to drive off. In the same way, I don't forget about the parking (hand)brake.
I think, in my youth, my engines were so feeble that I couldn't drive at all with the handbrake on. So I was trained at an early stage.
Anyway, since most handbrakes are designed so badly that they barely hold the vehicle on a slope, I suggest the following solution: Make the handbrake so good that, with it engaged, the vehicle will not move.-- Ling, Apr 04 2006 [marked for deletion]. Baked - shown in [jutta]'s link. I did search for it though.-- Zimmy, Apr 04 2006 The blazing red light on the dash isn't warning enough?-- Texticle, Apr 04 2006 //What's that red light on the dash?//
What's that loud noise?-- imaginality, Apr 04 2006 What's that burning smell?-- normzone, Apr 05 2006 I dont know about the rest of you but the parking break on my car holds my car in position. You just really have to wrench up on it.-- Antegrity, Apr 06 2006 I think that it should just ring the ignition reminder and flash the "BRAKE" light.
Jscotty, in my opinion that's not a great design from a safety standpoint if one has children about. Yes I realize it's not advisable to leave a car unlocked when you have kids but I wouldn't lock my car if I'm going back and forth to pick groceries up or something- I'd have to unlock it again every time I came back!-- Dickcheney6, Feb 17 2012 My 1997 Mercedes beeps at me if I start moving with the parking brake on. I was under the impression that all cars did this - am I just spoiled by German engineering?-- DIYMatt, Feb 17 2012 random, halfbakery