Larry/car

To definately have the hill assist function engaged, stop the car normally, release the brake and if the car drifts reapply the brake, hill hold assist will now be set. If the car does not drift hill hold is already set, reapply the brake, proceed normally. Hill hold assist will release within a few seconds after releasing your brakes. Amazingly the six speed automatic on my Colorado has hill hold assist and when engaged the DIC will inform you. Go figure!

Foosh

Yes, I understand that's what you said, but my car simply does not do that.

2K14C7

Oddly our Denali 6 speed auto has hill hold.

OVR60

Why would anyone need this useless safety option?

Widgeon5

I'm pretty sure it doesn't engage at all on flat or downhill grades.[/QUOTE]


It does engage on downhill grades if reverse is selected.

stevedun

I am with Bill on this. My car definitely requires more gas throttle if the hill assist is on. I have driven manuals all my life and would really prefer to have the option to turn it off. It just catches you a little off guard since it is not always on at stops.

mpuzach

Seriously? Even though you may be the world's best user of a clutch pedal in the world you can't figure out how HSA can be of value to some drivers?

SLOWRYDE

As Bill noted above, I also have experienced the HA feature hold the brake longer than I expected and stalled the car. I noticed on my car, the steeper the incline, the longer it seems to hold the brake. Once you are accustomed to the feature, it becomes second nature and you forget about it.

Foosh

This is a very interesting thread . . . I know it's there, but on mine don't even notice it, and have never stalled the car. It was on my '08 BMW M3 M6 as well, and it felt exactly the same as on my C7.

fumbling

Well HSA may be of value when it works always the same like for Foosh but for others, there is definite variation in throttle pedal effort where without HSA there would be no variation, and so for others HSA is of no value. It'd be great if drivers who find it of value can keep it on and drivers who find it of no value can keep it off.

Foosh

Honestly, my life would be the same without it, but it doesn't bother me a bit. I cut my teeth on the streets of San Francisco in old-school manuals.

woodsguy

I agree and it helps my wife confidence. Doesn't bother me either if some idiot gets too tight to me on a hill.

Corgidog1

I can see HSA being a good security blanket for a new manual driver, especially those who have shifting down but are intimidated by stopping on hills. On steep hills I catch the clutch before HSA kicks in and it makes no difference to me.

defaria

I find it useful. At first it took a little bit of getting used to because it's like you have another foot, not yours, and it's messing with your pedals! But the way I got over it was simply to convince myself I was on flat ground when I was on a steep hill with HSA. Slowly I got used to it and not it's no problem at all.

Some people always complain when they are something they are used to changes. Others adapt...

Widgeon5

Our 1955 Studebaker had the hill holder function. Not much needed with its automatic transmission, but it worked fine, just like our (manual) Corvettes.

PHILLIP YOUNG

Right.

Bill Dearborn

If HSA is working correctly on your car you can't move the clutch fast enough to catch the car before it activates. HSA is a function of the ABS and is activated by brake pressure, clutch in, stopped car and the car sensing it is on a 5% or greater grade.

I decided to look it up in the Factory Service Manual and here is a copy of the manual's theory of operation describing hill start assist.



Notice that clutch position is an input if the car is equipped so that sort of indicates it works on automatics.

Notice that it also calculates how much brake pressure is needed to hold the car so it seems like the amount of brake pressure is variable depending on amount of grade the car is on. Using the base brakes will also provide more brake grip than the parking brake shoes would provide.

Bill

$$$frumnuttin'

you might like this:

Speednet

The self-puffery of some people is loathsome - "I'm such a f'ing great manual driver that people who need it are stupid" or some similar asinine comment. Yeah, we know you are, hot rod.

Anyway, hill assist is a great feature that is totally transparent. For human beings who actually have the gall to make mistakes sometimes it is a nice safety net to guard against the bozos who pull right up to your back bumper on a hill.

If it's not engaging then I would say to check that you're in 1st gear. HA will only engage if you're completely stopped with foot on brake, clutch depressed, and in 1st. i.e., the normal status you'd be in when getting ready to go on a hill.

Foosh

My "unpuffed" self agrees that HSA is a great feature, which will hopefully keep manuals alive a little longer by encouraging new-to-manual folks to try them without fear. That's a good thing. However, the fact of the matter is, for some, coordinating the clutch and throttle, without rolling back, has become as reflexive as breathing, based upon decades of experience.

I didn't hear anyone saying people who "needed" it were "stupid" or incompetent. There certainly was a time 4 decades ago, when I rolled back too. As I said above, it doesn't change my life one way or the other, and it certainly doesn't bother me at all that it's there.

Relax . . . we're all just sharing our collective experiences here. There's been a first time for everything for every human on the planet. Gaining experience is one of the great joys of life.