[spokey]

Any reason I shouldn't leave the Hill Holder on all the time?

The only thing I see in the manual is

Deactivate the Hill Holder function under
the following conditions.
. When towing a trailer
. When carrying a heavy load
. When you do not frequently use the
parking brake when stopping on an uphill
slope

If I use it all the time, do I put some extra wear on the brakes because they rub a little coming off as I accelerate? Perhaps the same thing takes a tiny hit on gas mileage?

Anyone leave it on all the time? Ever see any problems with leaving it on all the time?

 

[KansasMatthew]

Any reason I shouldn't leave the Hill Holder on all the time?

The only thing I see in the manual is
If I use it all the time, do I put some extra wear on the brakes because they rub a little coming off as I accelerate? Perhaps the same thing takes a tiny hit on gas mileage?

Anyone leave it on all the time? Ever see any problems with leaving it on all the time?

Well, the manual says don't use it if you don't need it.

>>>
. When you do not frequently use the
parking brake when stopping on an uphill
slope
<<<

Wear and tear on the electronic parking brake mechanism might lead to an early, expensive, repair. And nuisance trips are a possibility.

 

[Red Suburu]

I do not see the need of a hill holder if you have an automatic....manual yes for those not very good with a clutch.
I never understood why Suburu has the hill holder in an automatic!

Well, the manual says don't use it if you don't need it.

>>>
. When you do not frequently use the
parking brake when stopping on an uphill
slope
<<<

Wear and tear on the electronic parking brake mechanism might lead to an early, expensive, repair. And nuisance trips are a possibility.

 

[z28dug]

I do not see the need of a hill holder if you have an automatic....manual yes for those not very good with a clutch.
I never understood why Suburu has the hill holder in an automatic!

I've wondered the same. I have no idea if it works on my '15, have never tried it.

 

[AbsoluteZero]

I do not see the need of a hill holder if you have an automatic....manual yes for those not very good with a clutch.
I never understood why Suburu has the hill holder in an automatic!

The few times I've used it was in very slow stop and go traffic... such as in a construction zone on a hill. Cars in front move a few feet and stop. The feature made for smoother operation. Other than this situation don't use it .... but I do like the feature.

 

[KansasMatthew]

I do not see the need of a hill holder if you have an automatic....manual yes for those not very good with a clutch.
I never understood why Suburu has the hill holder in an automatic!

It will roll backward on a hill.

They probably have it:
1) because they can
2) maybe it saves the CVT from a little wear and tear from people that can figure out how to start moving on a hill.


I've used it a couple of times, both times when I wanted to see what the big deal was.

 

[IcePick]

The manual says this in 7-47:

When parking your vehicle, always perform
the following items.

. Apply the parking brake.
. For MT models, place the shift lever in
the “1” (1st) for upgrade or “R” (Reverse)
for a downgrade.
. For CVT models, place the select lever
in the “P” (Park) position.
Never rely on the transmission alone to
hold the vehicle.

 

[spokey]

I had never used it until recently and just was curious about it. You do need to apply to brake to set it. My road is a gravel with an uphill to the main road. If I stop and then press the button, the hold doesn't engage. But it will engage once I press on the brake which is pretty much what I gather from the manual. The slope I've tested this on is right on the threshold. With hill hold not engaged, sometimes the OB will roll back if I take my foot off the brake and sometimes not.

Sounds like the consensus is that it doesn't make sense to leave it on permanently. That was kind of my feeling as I couldn't see that you could hold the car as you hit the gas without putting at least a little wear on the brake pads.

As this is my first automatic and first car with all the electronics (my prev camry still had drum brakes although of course the Z was disk) stuff I'm still learning.

 

[charless]

When I bought my Outback, the salesman told me he leaves his on all the time -- which I thought was odd at the time. Under his advice, I left mine on all the time up until about a week ago when I got tired of it engaging and not disengaging when I wanted to move.

Seems like it's perfectly fine to leave it on all the time. Only annoyance is the light that stays lit in the dash and the few times it doesn't disengage.

 

[ammcinnis]

... this is my first automatic ...

Important tip: Don't use the throttle to prevent the vehicle from rolling back when stopped on a hill. Use the brakes. (Using the throttle dumps a lot of energy into the torque converter, which may result in excessive heating of the CVT/transmission fluid.)

I agree that the utility of "hill hold" functionality is very limited in a vehicle with an automatic transmission/CVT. I've driven our 2015 Legacy and 2016 Outback for over 40,000 miles in all kinds of road conditions, and I've never found a need to use hill hold; the brake pedal works just fine for me

 

[KansasMatthew]

I had never used it until recently and just was curious about it. You do need to apply to brake to set it. My road is a gravel with an uphill to the main road. If I stop and then press the button, the hold doesn't engage. But it will engage once I press on the brake which is pretty much what I gather from the manual. The slope I've tested this on is right on the threshold. With hill hold not engaged, sometimes the OB will roll back if I take my foot off the brake and sometimes not.

Sounds like the consensus is that it doesn't make sense to leave it on permanently. That was kind of my feeling as I couldn't see that you could hold the car as you hit the gas without putting at least a little wear on the brake pads.

As this is my first automatic and first car with all the electronics (my prev camry still had drum brakes although of course the Z was disk) stuff I'm still learning.

You enable it with the button. It engages automatically when you stop on a steep enough slope. It release automatically when you step on the gas AND have your seatbelt on.

 

[spokey]

Important tip: Don't use the throttle to prevent the vehicle from rolling back when stopped on a hill. Use the brakes. (Using the throttle dumps a lot of energy into the torque converter, which may result in excessive heating of the CVT/transmission fluid.)

wouldn't even think of doing that. Would seem to be equivalent to keeping the clutch partially engaged to prevent rolling. I'm cringing now just thinking about it. But then I kind of cringe just thinking about the torque converter when your stopped and not putting extra load on it. 'Taint right to have one side moving and the other not. Perhaps even ungodly.

 

[ammcinnis]

'Taint right to have one side moving and the other not.

Think of the torque converter as just a closely-coupled combination of hydraulic pump and turbine. It's designed to slip ... a lot ... but it's also true that when the vehicle is stopped, 100% of the engine output power gets dumped into the torque converter as heat.

 

[KansasMatthew]

In the winter I will accidentally enable HH. The button is next to the brake release switch and if I have heavy gloves on I can hit the HH and not notice. I generally find out when I get home and pull into my driveway. If I stop on the slope (right at the limit, so sometimes it triggers HH and sometimes it won't), and get out to move the trash can and then get back in, I will skip putting on my seat belt. Then I release the parking brake, pull forward, stop to double-check the mirrors will clear, and then HH will engage. I press on the gas to pull into the garage and the car won't move because the HH won't release since my seatbelt is off.

 

[spokey]

In the winter I will accidentally enable HH. The button is next to the brake release switch and if I have heavy gloves on I can hit the HH and not notice. I generally find out when I get home and pull into my driveway. If I stop on the slope (right at the limit, so sometimes it triggers HH and sometimes it won't), and get out to move the trash can and then get back in, I will skip putting on my seat belt. Then I release the parking brake, pull forward, stop to double-check the mirrors will clear, and then HH will engage. I press on the gas to pull into the garage and the car won't move because the HH won't release since my seatbelt is off.

You're saying that you manually release the parking brake but HH is on? That kind of sounds like a design flaw. I am aware that if you put on the parking brake and don't have the seat belt on the automatic step on the gas release doesn't work but if it doesn't release when you tell it to, well it's time to send that bad car to bed with no super!

 

[Dozhdbog]

The hill hold function in my BMW (an automatic transmission) was a nearly invisible element to driving. There was no turning it on and off, it simply knew when it was needed and worked smoothly and flawlessly.

 

[KansasMatthew]

You're saying that you manually release the parking brake but HH is on?

Not exactly.

1) manually release the parking brake (hill holder function is still enabled)

2) roll forward, then stop to double-check the mirror clearance on either side.

3) HH function, still active, now engages the parking brake

4) Mirrors are clear so I try to roll into the garage, but the brake is on unexpectedly. Step on the gas, but brake doesn't release because my seatbelt is off.

 

[spokey]

Not exactly.

1) manually release the parking brake (hill holder function is still enabled)

2) roll forward, then stop to double-check the mirror clearance on either side.

3) HH function, still active, now engages the parking brake

4) Mirrors are clear so I try to roll into the garage, but the brake is on unexpectedly. Step on the gas, but brake doesn't release because my seatbelt is off.

at 2/3 are you on a hill going in to garage? I'll have to play with combinations on this one. My driveway is flat but I would do the same thing.

 

[KansasMatthew]

at 2/3 are you on a hill going in to garage? I'll have to play with combinations on this one. My driveway is flat but I would do the same thing.

Yeah, my driveway has a reasonable slope to it.

Simple to recreate. Make sure HH is enabled, then pretend you don't know it's enabled. Stop on a hill, put into park and engage the parking brake. HH should have done it already anyway. Remove your seatbelt like you were getting out of the car to get the mail or move the trash can around, then manually release the parking brake. Drive forward a few feet and stop again but don't touch the parking brake. HH will engage the brake, just like it's supposed to. Now try driving - the brake won't release with your seat belt off, just like it's supposed to. Now, still pretending you didn't know HH was enabled, say to yourself, "WTF?"

 

[FSslacker]

I have a love-hate relationship with the hill holder. On my daily commute to work, I have to make a right turn in a school zone where it's fairly steep hill. I would definitely roll back without it and it's nice to not have to quickly gun the gas from a stop. I don't have to worry about accidentally running over a kid which is always a plus.

BUT, when I drop off my own kid at day care, I have to make a k-turn to get back onto the main road. The residential street is curved to channel water into the gutters...so when I drive up to the curbs and try to shift to reverse, the H-H applies the brake and I can't reverse out of it. I have to manually release the brake to reverse. It's a minor inconvenience but it's definitely a quirk.