Brakes and near-stall

[yessoos]

I'm new to this site, so first and foremost hello everyone.

I've been an owner of an Aygo since last year and just wondered if anybody of you experienced any brakes-related issue with the mk2 model? What happens in mine is that the brake pedal becomes extremely stiff and and brakes unresponsive when the car is stopped i.e. in bumper to bumper traffic or during manoeuvring on a car park when only the clutch pedal is used on 1st or reverse gear. It usually goes stiffer gradually and needs to be pressed 3-4 times before becoming non-operational, but it already took me by surprise on more than one occasion, where it just did not make the car stop. It's been doing that since I bought it and I first attributed it to the car being new etc., but it doesn't look like it's getting any better with time. I have personally never heard of or experienced such behaviour in the past and neither did anybody I asked about it. Should I be more than just concerned about it? Do you experience similar problems with your cars? Thanks in advance

[FROSTYBALLS]

You're probably activating the Hill-start Assist Control (HAC).

[fordulike]

Probably as FROSTYBALLS says, but with brakes, better safe than sorry. Take it to the dealer to get it checked out. It's under warranty, so won't cost you.

[yessoos]

Thanks for your reply Frostyballs, but I'm not quite sure how would it affect driving on a flat surface... from what I understand it helps the car moving in desired direction and controls the speed of each wheel separately. Why would it activate on a flat surface and prevent me from using the brakes when needed, plus there is no indication of it switching on. Would you be able to explain this a bit further please? 

[yessoos]

9 minutes ago, fordulike said:

Probably as FROSTYBALLS says, but with brakes, better safe than sorry. Take it to the dealer to get it checked out. It's under warranty, so won't cost you.

Thanks fordulike, Taking it to the dealer is indeed worth considering and if the car is faulty they might even sort it out for free. If somebody decides to go past the back of my car whilst I'm reversing and the brakes don't work, then the car won't stop in time so... better safe than sorry indeed.

[FROSTYBALLS]

HAC, depending how much pressure is applied to the brake pedal, will operate whether the car is facing up or down a slope, however slight, and may operate when on an apparently flat road. Your owners manual describes how it operates.

Presumably when you're in traffic, you're holding the car using the foot brake rather than using the handbrake, and it is this sort of instance where, depending how much pressure you're using on the brake pedal, that the HAC may operate.

When manoeuvring, if you say you're only using the clutch pedal, how do you know how the brake pedal feels if it isn't in use?

[yessoos]

31 minutes ago, FROSTYBALLS said:

HAC, depending how much pressure is applied to the brake pedal, will operate whether the car is facing up or down a slope, however slight, and may operate when on an apparently flat road. Your owners manual describes how it operates.

Presumably when you're in traffic, you're holding the car using the foot brake rather than using the handbrake, and it is this sort of instance where, depending how much pressure you're using on the brake pedal, that the HAC may operate.

When manoeuvring, if you say you're only using the clutch pedal, how do you know how the brake pedal feels if it isn't in use?

Thanks Frostyballs... In your answer to a different post I read that the hill-start assist holds the brakes for 2 seconds after releasing the break pedal to prevent the car from rolling backwards. It does not seem to have anything to do with what I am experiencing, though, where the brake pedal cannot be pressed and breaks don't work at all. When I'm in traffic and slowly move, I don't use any brake until I need to stop, where on many occasions the brake pedal again was stiff and I could not press it down or after releasing the brake I needed to brake again when lights turn green and the person in front of me suddenly brakes. When manoeuvring, at one point I usually need to get the car to stop, which is where I find the same thing happening. Nobody I know experiences such problems with their cars and I just don't understand how could the HAC have anything to do with it in these situations. The only mention of the HAC in the manual is in the 'When the trouble arises' section under slip indicator, which would flash when the HAC is operating, but there is no indication of that when the brake pedal becomes stiff and I can't use it.

Does the brake pedal become stiff and brakes unresponsive when the HAC is engaged?

[FROSTYBALLS]

OK - get the car checked by a dealer.

[yessoos]

Thanks for your advice, the car has been there once before, some two months after the initial purchase from the salon and at the time it was determined that everything is OK with it and neither could they replicate the fault. They attributed the experience to the driving style, but my partner, who is also driving it has experienced same issues. Funny enough, within a week from getting the car back it happened again and at least a dozen times more since. No other driver I know of had had similar problems with their cars, so my question is whether anybody else experienced it with the Aygo Mk2 (2014-2016)? I'm pretty sure that the second time they examine it, they will likely come to the same conclusion and at one point somebody will end up run over with it and the only blamed will be the driver failing to press the brake pedal.

Has anybody experienced that issue at all or is it just me?

[FROSTYBALLS]

I've had mine since August 2016, and not experienced any issue with the brakes.

Moved to the Aygo club.

[Wiz201]

When my Hill assist control kicks in, the brake pedal is 'held' by the car so to speak so I can't press it down. I've been experimenting with it by letting the brake pedal go whilst facing up hill in traffic at a stand still and it holds it for a few seconds then I feel it let go so then I either set off on the accelerator or put my foot on the brake again and it works.