Who's truck has a parking brake, who has an emergency break?

One reason for most drivers not to try using an emergency brake is because on many automobiles, they can actually lock up the rear wheels, putting the vehicle into an uncontrollable skid. Very few drivers now have any idea how to handle such a situation. Especially so the ones that have a ratchet type activation that cannot be released quickly. With the lever type between the seats, you can bring a car to a controlled stop without locking it up.

I think it is more the semantic matter similar to 1/2, 3/4, 1 ton versus 1500, 2500, 3500 in that it is a hold-over from the olde tyme automobile technologies. Just like John02 put it well in describing what once was a real emergency brake is actually a misnomer if that term is used today.

Today's vehicles do not have an e-brake but many still use the term. As my old instructor would further elaborate... don't count on a parking brake stopping a vehicle in an emergency situation...LOL

The Mechanical brake that is installed on our Motor Home doesn't really seem to be anything but that. I really don't think it would stop the rig, and I certainly would'n depend on it to park on an extreme slope. It is connected behind the transmission on the drive shaft, and not to any of the actual wheel brakes. The old EMERGENCY brake systems were attached by cable to both of the rear wheels, and could easily lock up both, or either of them. Used them many times to slow a car without the brake lights coming on, especially if there was a police car behind me. BTW, they still work pretty good to get a tailgater off your backend, but it can get your rear end smashed also. Procedure is slow, downshift, gently raise brake handle, then drop handle and stomp the gas pedal to get out or the way. And if it is a new car and looks well insured, pull the handle again real quick and collect the insurance money. Note: beware nasty old farts driving beat up old cars with dents in the back.

Isn't this like asking who has marker lights verses running lights verses parking lights?

d3500ram wrote:
LOL...

When I was in tech school years ago, I had an instructor that would dock our grade on the lab work if we ever called it an emergency brake (because there is no such thing in his mind.) To him, an emergency break was what a student would take when they were about to piss thier pants...LOL :B

What is it, an Emergency break, or emergency brake?

Apparently he was too young to have ever driven a car with flakey single system brakes. I used the emergency brake several times, and it was not for parking. it was a last ditch attempt to get the blooming thing stopped! When we drove, you of the first things you learned was that anything could happen anytime, and most likely whenever you least expected it to. Now, a complete brake failure is an almost impossible thing to happen, but in our days, it was not unusual thing at all. Ane the emergency brake system was exactly that! Never used it for parking, to do that, you just turned the wheels toward the curb, or put the nose against a tree! That was a parking brake. Some of the smarter folks carried wheel chocks.

d3500ram wrote:
LOL...

When I was in tech school years ago, I had an instructor that would dock our grade on the lab work if we ever called it an emergency brake (because there is no such thing in his mind.) To him, an emergency break was what a student would take when they were about to piss thier pants...LOL :B

Lol