The vast majority of the time, I DO use it. But my point was that if you are parked on a level surface where the vehicle is not going to roll, it serves little if any useful function....and using it just adds wear to the components.

 

Vehicle manufacturers and state vehicle administrations all disagree. Like I said someone could bump your vehicle and start it rolling…

You should always use the parking brake.

 

i never really formed a habit of using the parking brake in automatic vehicles until a few years ago, mostly to stop my truck from rolling forward an inch or two after putting it in park when I back it into my driveway. Now I use it a lot.

The car has the automatic parking brake which is nice.

 

I've always used my parking brakes in all of my cars, whether when parking on flat ground or on hills. Heck, I even use them when parked at home in the garage. It's just habit and I don't think to myself "nah, it's flat, I don't need to use it." It's just not a thought. Obviously it's automatic in the GS, but it's manual in the Tundra and Highlander.

As far as additional wear, I feel like it's one of those mechanical systems that will last longer when constantly exercised. They can get corroded, lock up, etc. if they aren't used enough. Or at least that's how I've always viewed them.

 

Yeah it is designed to be used. What happens is when you don’t use them is they get suck and fused.

 

I am visiting friends in Europe now and I always have car envy here. So far, I’ve been in Germany, Austria, Slovenia, and Italy. I love wagons (Kombis) and they are everywhere. I don’t care for SUVs because I don’t enjoy driving them and I do not need the space often enough to buy one. I don’t care for CUVs either. Many don’t have any more interior space than my ‘19 Civic and they are not enjoyable to drive for me. A wagon would be awesome but we have very limited choices in the US and the E Benz wagon is my favorite, but it’s not a great move financially for me. I completely understand that manufacturers are giving the North American market what it wants. There are drivers here as opposed to what I see in the US and there are very few if any left lane bandits. I wish we had more of a driving culture in the US, but I also get the concept of wish in one hand, crap in the other and see which fills up first lol.

 

Germans must be horrified at the crappy drivers and lane etiquette we have here.

I wish getting a drivers license here was the same as in Germany. It would remove 60% of drivers in the US.

 

I agree and, on this trip, I have had zero time on the road in Germany (but saw some Kombis), but significant time as a passenger in Austria, Slovenia, and Italy. The driving etiquette is the same in the latter three countries as it is in Germany. Move left (when safe) to allow another vehicle to enter the highway or speed up/slow down a bit so they can merge (ie don’t be an *** hole and drive right next to them which is a daily occurrence in SoCal) and do use the left lane for passing only. Move right when you have completed the pass and allow others to pass. Do not pass on the right, which of course, you don’t ever need to do if the left lane is a passing lane.

We will never see this in the US in my lifetime because it’s not enforced and there’s lots of entitlement where many drivers like to go to the left lane so they only have to be concerned with vehicles on one side. Of course, I am speculating at any logic behind it and may be completely wrong in thinking there is any. I’ve met people here in the US who say they are bad drivers and they think it’s funny. It isn’t.

 

I agree with you on the wagon. Would be really nice if there was a lower end version and not just the fully optioned. I love the little c class wagon when I see them where I am. Great post

 

Thank you 🙏🏻 and we don’t even get the little C wagon here. The E appears to be an E63 which is $123k. That’s the bargain of the bunch lol. I have my own opinions about CUV buyers who say, “I like to sit up high” because I don’t have any confidence that they actually look beyond what they see at the end of their hood, but the vehicle will protect them from themselves. Driving is viewed as a right in the US and it’s problematic.

 

I really like the E Class wagon. They’re not that terribly expensive here, start in the 70s, fully loaded in the 90s.

I would get one of those in a second if it had the space we need.

 

Forget lane etiquette. We can’t even get people to stop at red lights here. I just got home and I almost had a horrible wreck because some idiot in a Cadillac cts ran a red light in front of me as I was turning left an intersection, and I had to slam on my brakes and swerved to the right slightly thankfully I wasn’t going very fast so I came to a stop pretty quickly.

Scared the crap out of me, but I’m glad I made it home safe and sound.

I think Germans would be horrified at so many things on American roadways!

 

I want to like it but I'm not there yet
Might take a while. Lol

Probably $100k for that car. 🙈

 

$190k. $100k is a Suburban nowadays lol

 

Could be a fake?