Runaway Sprinter

[quietlives]

Hi,

I posted a question under tranmission issues, but I will ask it again here.

We recently had our Sprinter roll down a hill after the parking pawl/transmission cable apparently failed and the pawl partially released the gear. The vehicle was parked on a flat, dry surface, but near a hill, the gear was set in in park without the keys in the vehicle. The parking brake then failed to stop the vehicle from rolling.

The incident has since been reproduced by professionals.

Has anyone else ever had this happen with their vehicle?

[Altered Sprinter]

[quote=quietlives;2365]Hi,

I posted a question under tranmission issues, but I will ask it again here.

We recently had our Sprinter roll down a hill after the parking pawl/transmission cable apparently failed and the pawl partially released the gear. The vehicle was parked on a flat, dry surface, but near a hill, the gear was set in in park without the keys in the vehicle. The parking brake then failed to stop the vehicle from rolling.

The incident has since been reproduced by professionals.

Has anyone else ever had this happen with their vehicle?[/quote

Well Hello quietlives you sure get around! the answers are where you are already looking
sprintervan : Message: Re: Problem with '03 Sprinter transmission cable SLA/ Pawl/valve body (http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/sprintervan/message/36326)
Unless someone else can answer you question as to what happened and why it did? not a normal mechanicial failure on any vehicle.
Problems with '03 Sprinter SLA ( Pawl and valve body) - Sprinter-Forum.com (http://www.sprinter-source.com/forum/showthread.php?t=662)

Richard

[quietlives]

Thanks Richard.

I have read those other answers and appreciate the insights. I think I am gaining a clearer understanding of how the parts of my vehicle should operate... something I never considered it prior to this incident...just assumed everything would work:idunno:

I am wanting to find out if ours is an isolated incident or a greater problem with the Sprinter in general. I figured that enthusiasts like yourself and others on these forums would be the people "in the know" if there had ever been probems of this nature in other Sprinters.

Thanks for your help. :D

quiet lives

[Altered Sprinter]

quietlives
It's not an isolated problem , that is specific to the Sprinter, in fact it's rare... I have heard of this before on other makes, including it did happen to my old Ford. many times but the Linkage was the problem
In most part it comes down to the linkage not being set 100% where you have not engaged into the full park mode, One must also remember the park position on any auto. is not the primary park brake, especially when facing down hill the bands can slip under their own weight, the reverse park lock position does fully engage.
hand brake foot brake is your main holding brake for parking, these need regular attention or they may and will fail on hold where a steep hill is involved, I'd consider the full brake set to be at the half way set on either foot break or hand brake, once these go to the floor or over the half way mark on a hand brake position the holding pattern is not as great, so a slippage can possibly occur.
What you have posted is not common, the answer is too hard to pin down , but it is repeat 99% of the time caused by {A} Human error {B} Lack of maintenance, either by yourself, or by a service tech who did not check it out as part of a program for the vehicles service. {C} in the final annalist's its the linkage out of adjustment or a defective cable they stretch as time goes by, it doesn't matter weather a valve or automated sensor is part of the problem , as they are only back up technology for the computer back up system maybe and it;s no joke there should be an indicator that shows an advance warning system, in fact the new Sprinter has this for the main brakes etc ,but not for foot brake cables.
Richard

[Scott_Mc]

Hi,

I posted a question under tranmission issues, but I will ask it again here.

....

Hi and welcome quietlives. You'll find much help here with out double posting. Just proper forum etiquette:thumbup: You can always "bump" your original thread to get it higher on the recent posts list if you've had no responses in a reasonable amount of time.

[quietlives]

Thanks for the help...just trying to find the right place to post. I appreciate the direction!:D

quiet lives