Any GTAM'ers own an electric vehicle?

Baggsy said:
There are supposedly cars now that you can't change the brake pads on, without connecting to a dealer network and using their software.
The era of the $500 oil change is approaching.
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My daughter's 2019 Jetta was the first car I've done brakes on with an electronic parking brake. Normally a dealer uses their software to tell the motor to retract. Or you buy a third party scan tool that has that function. Or you unbolt the electric motor from the caliper and turn the screw by hand. Or you disconnect the electrical connector and apply 12v to the appropriate contacts to retract. I went with the latter since I had a spare powersports battery handy. Still a pain in the ass, but cost me nothing.

What's funny is that once you get past that, VW actually made it easier to replace rotors by not needing to remove the caliper bracket - there's just enough room to tilt the rotor off the hub and sneak past the bracket. The cynic in me says they use the electronic parking brake to discourage DIY, then make the job itself easier for more profit to the dealers.
 
Relax said:
My daughter's 2019 Jetta was the first car I've done brakes on with an electronic parking brake. Normally a dealer uses their software to tell the motor to retract. Or you buy a third party scan tool that has that function. Or you unbolt the electric motor from the caliper and turn the screw by hand. Or you disconnect the electrical connector and apply 12v to the appropriate contacts to retract. I went with the latter since I had a spare powersports battery handy. Still a pain in the ass, but cost me nothing.

What's funny is that once you get past that, VW actually made it easier to replace rotors by not needing to remove the caliper bracket - there's just enough room to tilt the rotor off the hub and sneak past the bracket. The cynic in me says they use the electronic parking brake to discourage DIY, then make the job itself easier for more profit to the dealers.
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I tried to do my Odyssey's rear brakes once...a 2-3hr job ended up taking 8-10hrs, with @GreyGhost driving down from his place to come help me out.

I will never forget that man's good nature to help me out.
 
nobbie48 said:
When you got to the gist of the problem was there a “Gotcha” sticker from Honda?
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The gist of the problem was a momentary brain fart. Don't touch the ebrake button while the disc is removed. There is no logic, it just spins the motor and the threaded actuator inside the caliper comes apart. To fix it, you need to pull the piston, reassemble the ebrake rod, then reassemble the caliper and bleed the crap out of it.
 
GreyGhost said:
The gist of the problem was a momentary brain fart. Don't touch the ebrake button while the disc is removed. There is no logic, it just spins the motor and the threaded actuator inside the caliper comes apart. To fix it, you need to pull the piston, reassemble the ebrake rod, then reassemble the caliper and bleed the crap out of it.
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I'll make sure to call you BEFORE I start my Maverick brakes. Looking online for new rotors + pads this week as I'm feeling a rumble and the front 100% will need to be replaced soon...but I'd rather just do all 4.

Wondering whether OEM Ford or aftermarket is the better option.

Back to EVs...
 
I'm not a fan of them, either, but at the same time, I understand why things are going that way. Frees up real estate in the console for storage cubbies and the like, eliminates having to route mechanical cables from there to the rear suspension (no central tunnel in the floorpan in my Bolt! the cables would have to route above the battery and below the floorpan = very poor access should a cable need replacement), and having a sealed-from-the-elements stepper motor may be more reliable than a freeze-prone and corrosion-prone mechanical cable.
 
Brian P said:
I'm not a fan of them, either, but at the same time, I understand why things are going that way. Frees up real estate in the console for storage cubbies and the like, eliminates having to route mechanical cables from there to the rear suspension (no central tunnel in the floorpan in my Bolt! the cables would have to route above the battery and below the floorpan = very poor access should a cable need replacement), and having a sealed-from-the-elements stepper motor may be more reliable than a freeze-prone and corrosion-prone mechanical cable.
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It also allows manufacturer to mostly count on parking brake being set every time you park. That may allow some leeway in design of trans parking pin. I assume that most electronic ebrake vehicles will also set the brakes after a collision.
 
5,000 at a time in their own boat!!! :rolleyes:
Screenshot 2026-07-24 at 10.39.42 AM.jpg
Good read
www.abc.net.au

Automakers in shock as China takes over

In June, a bulk carrier made an unprecedented delivery of EVs to Australia, sounding an ominous warning to the world's automakers.
www.abc.net.au www.abc.net.au

The dramatic decline in Japanese vehicle domination has been coupled with a sudden shift away from fossil fuel-powered cars.
Last month, almost a quarter of all cars sold in Australia were fully electric. A year ago, it was just 7 per cent. Add in hybrids, and EVs are now neck and neck with petrol- and diesel-fuelled automobiles.
According to Pitcher Partners' Steve Bragg, the Iran war has helped shift the dial.
"Five years ago, most people who wanted to drive an EV were doing it for environmental reasons," he says.
"Now it's financial reasons."
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