NEVER!!!!!!! trust the parking brake alone!!!! It barely maintains on a tiny grade if a fat guy leans against the car; I have tested this.

 

^^^^^^^Funny !!!! ^^^^^^^

AND the fat guy is/was WHO ??

 

That may be true for other vehicles but, according to the HHR owners manual (all years; 2006-2001), it's reverse...period. No stipulation is made for uphill or downhill.

 

Just take a guess. The same one who measures torque by which hand the PBR is in (which, by the way is fairly accurate!).

 

Your rear brakes probably need major adjusting then.

 

And the manual leaves out how much OTHER stuff???? I would not rely only on the owners manual imho.

 

Whether you choose to rely on the owner's manual or not 07azhhr, never leave the vehicle parked with only the parking brake holding it. Always put the vehicle in reverse gear and set the parking brake, if it gets loose and causes an accident or injures someone, you will be held liable.

And Don, get your brakes adjusted buddy, if you can push your HHR with the parking brake applied you are in serious need of an adjustment. Every 5,000 miles, or at every tire rotation, adjust those rear brakes and you'll save yourself headaches in the future.

*Of course we are talking about manual transmissions here, if you have an automatic, place it in Park and set the brake. Parking pawls have been known to slip or be broken off which will let a car with an automatic get away too.

 

Been successfully doing this for 22 years but to each there own. Again on hills I will leave it in gear but either first for uphill and reverse for downhill. As for the manual, I am meaning I wouldn't treat it like gosspil for things like this (first vs. reverse). I was taught to use the gear that goes up the hill. For maint./service intervals yes but for how to park on a hill NO.

 

First off if you don't ever use the parking brake on a SS your rear brakes will get totally out of adustment. The parking brake Auto or manual is what keeps the pads adjusted up and keep you from getting a low pedal.

Note if you have not used it you can step on the pedal and pull the handel and then release Then step on the pedal again holding it and setting the brake again. You can hold the button in and prevent it from holding to adjust.

If you are totally out of wack then you will have to push the piston out a little and work the lever on the caliper. If you don't know how to do this I would recomend professional help.

As a general rule most MFG's recomend reverse for parking. In the past many cars would not let you remove the key unless it was in reverse.

The bottom line in todays 4 wheel disc GM cars is use the parking brake and avoid brake issues even with an automatic.

 

A) I'm the one who says "adjust your rear drums every 3K"
B) I have been automatic trans for the last 10 years
C) you don't know just how fat I am
D) My brand new rear brake shoes & drums, that are adjusted maybe too tight, will not hold my car on a 2% grade with the trans engaged in the down direction at anything much more than idling.
E) the E-brake will not STOP the car from rolling, it may keep it from starting to roll on a small grade, but do not bet on it!
F) I think we are agreeing; always wear a belt with suspenders! (yes, I said it in that order on purpose)