Tiny SG: 10 handbrake designs and locations that are most unusual

10 handbrake designs and locations that are most unusual

source: https://uk.motor1.com/features/432392/10-unusual-handbrake-designs/

Sometimes, a simple manual lever just doesn’t cut it.

You might be familiar with a well-known phrase that says necessity is the mother of invention. Laws necessitate that automobiles must have some kind of handbrake – whether it’s called a parking brake or an emergency brake – and it’s often a simple, manually actuated handle located in a vehicle’s centre console. Pulling up the handle operates a cable that activates the rear brakes, thus holding the rear wheels in place.

That said, creativity is the father of invention, and for reasons that sometimes aren’t clear, designers will ditch the simple method of handbrake functionality. The persistent march of technology means we’re seeing more electronic handbrakes these days, but whether it’s innovative, or clever, or just plain crazy, there plenty of vehicles that nix the simple handbrake concept for something different.

This slideshow takes a look at some specific vehicles with out-of-the-ordinary handbrakes, but it also showcases styles and locations that appear on many other models. With that said, jump into the slideshow to see some familiar and unfamiliar ways in which automakers keep cars from moving.

The Foot Brake

This design isn’t unusual at all for Americans, as foot-actuated parking brakes have been common on U.S. vehicles for decades. As seen here on a Toyota Sienna, most foot brakes are simply pressed down into position, then released either with a separate handle, or by pressing the brake lever a second time.

Electronic Dials And Buttons

Similar to foot pedals, electronic brakes are becoming more common in modern automobiles – much to the bane of enthusiastic drivers wanting to execute neat handbrake turns. Electronic brakes can be anything from a simple toggle switch on the centre console, to basic buttons like one featured here on a Chrysler Pacifica.

Single Modern Paddle

We’re seeing more automakers swapping the basic handle for something more like a paddle or an animal paw. This palm-friendly brake from the Citroen C4 Aircross is mounted in the traditional location at the centre console, but features a button underneath the large handle to release the brake.

On The Steering Column

Here’s Tesla’s take on the electronic brake. Instead of a button or a small lever in the console or dash, it’s simply part of the car’s column-mounted gear selector switch.

On The Wrong Side

Handbrake placement near the door instead of the centre console is rare. Perhaps best known on the Porsche 944 or Jaguar XJS (pictured here), the location offers a cleaner centre console but can be problematic for drivers wanting to exit the vehicle with the lever engaged.

Aircraft Throttle: Part One

Mixing aircraft design themes with cars certainly isn’t new, and hey, who doesn’t want to feel like a fighter pilot behind the wheel? Several vehicles have offered interesting handbrakes that mimic the throttle quadrant of a jet aircraft; the Pontiac Sunbird was famous for this in the 1980s. But the first-generation Ford S-Max MPV featured here continues that theme many years later.

Aircraft Throttle: Part Two

Not all jet throttles have two levers, and frankly, we also love the quirky Subaru SVX too much to not give it a slide all its own. Mixing the previously seen paddle theme with a throttle-style design, the Subie’s handbrake is still one of the coolest of all time.

In The Dash: Part One

Dash-mounted parking brakes of the non-electronic variety are actually found in a range of vehicles. There are some noteworthy styles that we’ll look at individually, starting with the pull-and-twist type seen here in an older Toyota Hilux.

In The Dash: Part Two

The tiny Renault Twizy EV runabout would be a perfect candidate for an electronic brake, but that consumes electricity. The solution was a manually operated brake mounted low on the dash that operates with an awkward pull/depress action.

In The Dash: Part Three

Lastly, we arrive at what could be the weirdest parking brake of them all. Naturally, it comes from Citroen, specifically, the GS offered through the 1970s and 1980s. It’s another in-dash design but instead of making it a subtle feature, it’s mounted prominently in the centre of the dashboard where you’d expect to find a radio. Pull the large handle out to set the brake, and release it by pressing a button.

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I think handbrakes should be a standardise design among car designer. Like how all the seatbelt and seatbelt clip is. These are safety equipment, driver should react fast enough during emergency. But then again, nowadays the mordern car is very well equipped.

Can you imagine you give a pilot to drive the Subaru SVX, I scare he got occupational hazard.