Should You Shift to Neutral or Engage the Handbrake First After Parking?
4 Answers
After parking, you should engage the handbrake first before shifting to neutral. Below is the correct parking sequence: 1. Pull over: Stop the vehicle by the roadside, shift the transmission into neutral, and then engage the handbrake. Shifting to neutral prevents accidental throttle input. Once in neutral, even if the accelerator pedal is pressed, the vehicle won't surge forward. 2. Turn off the engine: Depress the clutch, shift into 1st gear, and then exit the vehicle. This step is actually a precaution against forgetting to engage the handbrake. 3. Prevent accidents: If the gear is left in neutral and the driver forgets to engage the handbrake, the vehicle may roll, leading to safety hazards. After shifting into 1st gear, even if the handbrake is forgotten, the vehicle generally won't roll on its own. This is an added safety measure.
I've thought about parking many times. After driving a manual transmission for over a decade, I've summarized this experience: It's best to first press the brake pedal firmly, then shift to neutral, wait until the car stabilizes, pull the handbrake tight, and finally release the brake pedal. On flat ground, you can directly shift to P gear, but when parking on a slope, it's better to follow this sequence. After all, shifting to neutral first allows the car to naturally roll slightly and engage the transmission gears, then shifting to P gear can effectively prevent rolling and damage to the transmission. I remember once parking at the steep exit of a shopping mall, because I didn't shift to neutral first and went directly to P gear, the gearshift lever was stuck solid when I started the car again, and the repair cost me about a thousand bucks later. The parking sequence may seem like a small detail, but it directly affects the lifespan of the transmission. Once you develop the habit, it becomes second nature.
When I first started driving, I didn't know the proper steps either. Once I parked on a slope and just shifted to P and left, then heard a scary 'clunk' from the transmission. Later, a mechanic told me the least damaging method is: come to a complete stop with foot brake → shift to neutral → engage parking brake → release foot brake to let the car settle → finally shift to P. Especially when parking on slopes, this transfers the stress to the parking brake. Actually, the principle of automatic transmissions is that P gear has a locking pawl that engages the driveshaft - shifting directly to P puts too much force on it and can deform the metal. By the way, for short red lights just holding the brake is fine without shifting, but if it's over 30 seconds better shift to N, otherwise transmission fluid temperature will spike.
Here's my usual routine: After coming to a complete stop, I maintain pressure on the foot brake, shift into Neutral while pulling up the handbrake. At this point, you can feel the car body settle slightly. Only then do I shift into Park and turn off the engine. The key is to let the handbrake bear the vehicle's weight first, preventing stress on the Park gear's locking mechanism. I remember once parking on Chongqing's hilly streets and forgetting the handbrake - the car was held only by Park gear. The next morning, I found the car had slid down about ten centimeters, deforming the transmission lock teeth. That's why I always teach my wife: On flat ground, you can go straight to Park for convenience, but on any slope whatsoever, always engage the handbrake before shifting to Park. This lesson was learned through painful experience.
