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The owner's manual says "if equipped" but as far as I know its a standard feature of the M7. I assume the brake lights stay on as the car holds the brake for a second or two to keep you from rolling back.
Took me a few tries to get used to the feature as I would let off the clutch in an effort to creep forward but the car wouldn't move immediately - turns out Hill Start Assist (HSA) was keeping the brakes on for me.
My personal experience with the HSA feature has been that it doesn't always work when you need it (i.e., the grade has to be fairly steep for it to kick in). Here's what the 2014 owners manual says:
I use the EPB for situations where some knucklehead pulls up so close and I'm on a grade where I might roll back just a little before clutch engagement. Here's the info on how that works.
In either case, I don't believe the brake lights go on. When activating the EPB in this case, the parking brake light illuminates in the DIC.
Last edited by monicatomokc; Mar 24, 2021 at 08:42 PM.
Our Subaru Forester & Subaru Crosstrek both came with this...I was able to disable both through the infotainment options. I wish that I could do the same on the C7. It's also odd on the C7 in that it goes off after a couple of seconds and then you start to roll backwards.
Having driving manual's for 45+ years, I don't need it...and anyone (like my wife & kids) whom I taught to drive stick I wouldn't want to use that, otherwise when they switch to a manual that doesn't have this feature, they'd have a hard time until they got used to it.
In either case, I don't believe the brake lights go on. When activating the EPB in this case, the parking brake light illuminates in the DIC.
HSA and EPB are two separate systems. HSA uses the regular, hydraulic brakes while the EPB uses a power activated cable system. EPB is just the modern electronic version of the good ole hand-brake lever found in the center console of manual transmission cars. The lever has just been replaced by a electric motor that pulls on the cable for you.
As the manual says the HSA "holds" brake pressure. I assume this works by using the ABS pump to maintain pressure in the brake lines thus keeping the brake pads pressed onto the rotors so the car doesn't roll back. Now normally the brake lights are activated by a switch in the pedal, so when your foot comes off the pedal I guess it possible the light goes off yet the brakes remain "on" (held) for a second or two given you time to release the clutch. This seems like a bad idea as the driver behind will think you are moving when you are in fact sitting still. Not sure what the legal requirements are regarding this are, IE: since the brakes are "on" does the light have to be on too?
Good questions and concerns. I'll have to do more combinations at a stop on grade with hill assist. I always put my M7 in neutral at almost any stop. I only hold the brake pedal down. I engage the clutch on the green light, as I shift into 1st.
The tailight illumination by hill assist would be truly momentary in my grade stops. Since I'm on the brake pedal while stopped, utilizing hill assist when pushing in the clutch, going into 1st/reverse gear, and going for the throttle to give it RPMs
Last edited by Skid Row Joe; Mar 25, 2021 at 01:53 PM.
My 2015 Camaro SS was manual and had it. I hated it at first but got used to it after a while. It was always quirky though. There is a work around on those. You can buy an automatic yaw rate sensor and swap it out.
After I converted my '52 Starlight Coupe from a 3 spd+OD to an automatic, i tried using the hill holder like a line lock at the drags. It didn't work that well IIRC for that application.
HSA is an ABS/ESC "feature," it's just one of the first steps to "brake by wire" where the car decides to hold the brakes even though your foot isn't on the pedal.
Someone driving an auto would just keep the car from rolling with a touch of the gas pedal. Nobody drives into them.
Most autos will move forward (slowly) once your foot comes off the brake - no need to touch the gas.
But I agree - almost nobody gets hits leaving from a stop... its the other way around. Its not like the person behind you is reacting to your lights like a Christmas tree at the drag strip. They are often too busy on their phone or slipping a latte to notice you'll moved.
Perhaps the largest obstacle to overcome when HA has the M7's brakes locked up, is giving a sufficient amount of throttle when engaging the drive away without killing the engine. When HA has a hold on the car's movement its not going anywhere until the time off the brake pedal is reached. I'd hate to get rear-ended when the engine is dead from mismeasuring the throttle at clutch let out. I've killed the engine enough times at green light to already have been hit. That's driver error. Not HA's fault
