URGENT help required please!

[hyperbluejames]

Hello everyone!

I left my MINI Cooper March 06 on a mate's drive which has about a 5 to 10 degree incline. I put my handbrake on up to the third click, although I didn't leave my car in gear, which maybe I should have done. Anyway, I come back 2 minutes later and it has rolled down the drive into a metal fence and scratched the rear right hand corner of the car behind the wheel and buckled the rear right plastic wheel arch.

I'm going on holiday on Tuesday and wondered whether there was an issue with MINI handbrakes? Should the 3rd click really slip on a 5 to 10 degree incline? I'd like to know your opinions, because in mine, this was a handbrake failure, and the damage to property and people could have been a lot worse!

Any quick reply would be very useful as I intend to ring MINI tomorrow morning and I see it as the car's fault, therefore I don't want to pay a penny.

Cheers

James

[MiniMpi]

There was a post on here about this happening before.
Thought it was pre-facelift cars were affected though.
They altered the handbrake system somehow.
Something to do with the brakes cooling down after a run and then the handbrake isnt up enough,
Fergal.

[dakini]

search around ... i remember seeing posts about handbrake failure, but never really paid attention to what years were reporting it.

[insane*mini]

What year? I know the 02's and 03's were known to have the failure, but other's HAVE had it on their 04'+ MINI's also. It is a known problem, and imo the dealer and or MINI UK should fix your handbrake AND MINI.

-Cody

[GBMINI]

It's nothing to do with "third click" or whatever - on a slope apply the handbrake HARD, pull it further than it easily goes.

Having said that, there's been a couple reports of handbrake not holding a car, and as described here it seems to be related to the brakes having been well worked (so hot) prior to parking ...

[Themikanic]

I realise it's a bit late now, but for future reference, always park your manual transmission car, in gear. And there have been reports of this occuring in Australia, too.
If your car was an Auto transmission it would be parked in gear.

Mike in Australia.

[BlueMax]

Had this happen to me 2 years ago. Mini rolled across a street but fortunately it did not hit anyhting. Was just sitting part of the way in the street with the hazard light flashing, alarm triggered when it moved. Since then I ALWAYS leave it in gear, not matter if there is an incline or not and pull the handbrake up really well when stopped on an incline. Story I got was that the brake discs contract when cooling down and if the handbrake was not pulled up tight enough, the loss of clamp force and friction can cause the car to move. First car that I have owned that has done this (April 04 MCS) which was built after the "fix" was supposed to have been done on the 02 & 03's

[mg1232]

There are quite a few posts on this, including people who have experienced it with the 05/06 models. Here are some of them:

http://www.mini2.com/forum/faults-fi...dbrake+failure

http://www.mini2.com/forum/general-d...dbrake+failure

Including this one where BMW where the car had only just been in to the dealer:

http://www.mini2.com/forum/general-d...dbrake+failure

[Tigger, Eeyore & Roo]

The first time it happened to me was on a Citroen XM in 1994; it was for the same reason then, the discs contracting as they cool and the pads loosing grip. So, it's not just MINI's, any car that uses discs all round might be affected.

I have never since relied on the handbrake and always leave any car in gear, even turning the wheels to the curb if the slope is very bad.

Tigger.

[smc]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tigger, Eeyore & Roo

The first time it happened to me was on a Citroen XM in 1994; it was for the same reason then, the discs contracting as they cool and the pads loosing grip. So, it's not just MINI's, any car that uses discs all round might be affected.

I have never since relied on the handbrake and always leave any car in gear, even turning the wheels to the curb if the slope is very bad.

Tigger.

Plus placed a brick at the back of the tires when parking at 20degree gradiant for double sure.

[hyperbluejames]

Thanks everyone! You've all been fantastic! I knew I could rely on you guys at MINI2!

[Root Ginger]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tigger, Eeyore & Roo

The first time it happened to me was on a Citroen XM in 1994; it was for the same reason then, the discs contracting as they cool and the pads loosing grip. So, it's not just MINI's, any car that uses discs all round might be affected.

I have never since relied on the handbrake and always leave any car in gear, even turning the wheels to the curb if the slope is very bad.

Tigger.

Your right T, E & R any car with rear discs can be affected the MINI suffers due to the fact the rear discs take around 40% of the bias which is high compared to other cars. Even moderate braking uses the rears a lot and being smaller calipers they don't bleed off heat too easy.

It does say in the manual that if parking on a slope to engage 1st or reverse. It also says this in the highway code.

[dalboyne]

It's unfirtunately all too common with all-disk cars. We had similar experience a long time ago with a Citroen BX, and now leaving in gear has become second-nature, even on the flat. I used to have a plastic cup that I put on top of the gearknob to remind me, but don't need to any more, as it is just part of my routine.

Sorrry you had to learn the hard way...

Ian

[MINIMAT]

Happened to me too. I left the car on a slope pointing downwards and put the handbrake on. A neighbour saw it rolling. She shouted and I ran out but it had already stopped. Luckily the front wheel pointed into the kerb so it just ran into the kerb and stopped.

Always leave the car in gear on a slope and perhaps angle in the wheels too.

[hyperbluejames]

I appreciate everyone's feedback. But I can't quite understand how a car built in the year 2006 should NEED to be left in gear. The hand brake system should be well enough designed to not need to be left in gear. I had a 2001 VW Golf before this and I had never had a problem with its handbrake. It seems to me that the 'leaving in gear' is a relic from the past, which is why many of you older drivers still implement it as a matter of course. I know for my part, and many of my friends (who have been driving for four years) that I have not been taught to leave the car in gear, as a modern car should be able to handle it, just like you don't have to double de-clutch!

Does this not seem logical to anyone else? And if the brake calipers remain in the same place with hot brakes shrinking, should you not get a warning from MINI that this could happen?? It's a pretty serious thing to happen! My car could have hit someone, not just a fence.

And I know the Highway Code says to leave the car in gear and turn towards the curb, but the Highway Code also has antiquated braking distances and hasn't adjusted THOSE to modern cars.

Oh well. This wasn't supposed to be a rant of any sort, just what was going through my head!

James