Interesting/worrying story from Scotland - ZS with no brakes.

[Gadget Geek]

 

[Tig170]

This happened to myself in the MG4, in that (in my case), the carmat managed to find itself behind the brake peddle, but infront of the accelerator peddle, so light braking caused the car to accelerate, but heavy braking caused the car to slow, but it took a minute (i was on the motorway at 70mph) to work out what was happening.

EDIT: I was in cruise control - middle lane at 65mph?, and normally just tap on the brake peddle to disengage ACC, but it caused the car to go faster!

 

[tsedge]

This sort of thing has been reported lots of times before across various makes - almost always turns out to be some other factor, like a car mat or something the driver is doing.

Reminds me a lot of these examples:

Sudden unintended acceleration - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

 

[johnb80]

Truth or not, can brakes can fail, no matter how the car is fuelled.

So how does that happen with dual circuit brakes?

 

[Alb]

I've merged the thread opened in the MG4 area.

 

[DisterBertieBear]

Bollards.

Springs to mind.

As in drive into some bollards.

Given how the ZS likes to stretch your neck when it detects a potential collision, given the story is growing in the telling and the "how very dare you" petulance I can't help but think:

Bollards.

 

[Susanna]

Throwing your car key out of the window would not have stopped the car - I drove 15 miles while my car key was left at home.

 

[Surfdog]

Throwing your car key out of the window would not have stopped the car - I drove 15 miles while my car key was left at home.

Wow. I've never tested this function but the sales person assured me it would only travel a few hundred yards. So very stealable then if the thief has a a garage to conceal in within 15 miles. Not good.

 

[DisterBertieBear]

Wow. I've never tested this function but the sales person assured me it would only travel a few hundred yards. So very stealable then if the thief has a a garage to conceal in within 15 miles. Not good.

If they do, just use the tracking function on the app to locate the garage, hit the lock button to make it honk the horn and call in the bacon.

 

[N2STY]

This happened to myself in the MG4, in that (in my case), the carmat managed to find itself behind the brake peddle, but infront of the accelerator peddle, so light braking caused the car to accelerate, but heavy braking caused the car to slow, but it took a minute (i was on the motorway at 70mph) to work out what was happening.

EDIT: I was in cruise control - middle lane at 65mph?, and normally just tap on the brake peddle to disengage ACC, but it caused the car to go faster!

This sounds more like it

 

[Lovemyev]

Wow. I've never tested this function but the sales person assured me it would only travel a few hundred yards. So very stealable then if the thief has a a garage to conceal in within 15 miles. Not good.

Just to reassure you ( or may be not ) it is this way on a lot of cars with this type of keyless system.
Once the car has detected the presence of the key and is operational, the key can be removed from the car.
In theory you car drive where you like.
However, once the car is shut down / turned off or stalled ( in the case of a ICE ) then it will not restart again, without gaining the presence of the key !.

 

[DisterBertieBear]

Just to reassure you ( or may be not ) it is this way on a lot of cars with this type of keyless system.
Once the car has detected the presence of the key and is operational, the key can be removed from the car.
In theory you car drive where you like.
However, once the car is shut down / turned off or stalled ( in the case of a ICE ) then it will not restart again, without gaining the presence of the key !.

Why would they take the risk of being kidnapped in the first place?

 

[Rolfe]

Throwing your car key out of the window would not have stopped the car - I drove 15 miles while my car key was left at home.

Wow. I've never tested this function but the sales person assured me it would only travel a few hundred yards. So very stealable then if the thief has a a garage to conceal in within 15 miles. Not good.

In another thread an MG4 owner reported having driven to pick up a friend after accidentally leaving her key in the house. She had been to the shops, come home, unloaded her purchases into the house and left her handbag there too, picking up a different handbag to go and meet the friend. She hadn't locked the car during this exercise and was able to drive off no problem.

This happened to myself in the MG4, in that (in my case), the carmat managed to find itself behind the brake peddle, but infront of the accelerator peddle, so light braking caused the car to accelerate, but heavy braking caused the car to slow, but it took a minute (i was on the motorway at 70mph) to work out what was happening.

EDIT: I was in cruise control - middle lane at 65mph?, and normally just tap on the brake peddle to disengage ACC, but it caused the car to go faster!

HOW??? I was telling this story to my passenger while driving to our music lesson this afternoon, and looked down to note that the accelerator pedal is entirely clear of the floor. In my old Golf it was hinged to the floor and it was possible for the mat to ride up over it if it wasn't securely fastened, but in the MG4 I didn't think it could happen.

My passenger has relatives who are in with the bricks in Kirkintilloch society. I await her report back with anticipation.

This sort of thing has been reported lots of times before across various makes - almost always turns out to be some other factor, like a car mat or something the driver is doing.

Reminds me a lot of these examples:

Sudden unintended acceleration - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

These "wild ride" stories are pretty much always of cars going at top speed. Often the verdict is that the driver was pressing the accelerator as hard as he could in the belief that he was pressing the brake.

This story is of a car doing a steady 15 mph (or possibly 30 mph depending on who you listen to) for some miles while flashing all sorts of warning indicators and being impossible for the driver to slow or stop. I've never come across anything like that.

 

[Susanna]

My story was similar. I had been out in the morning, came home and parked on my driveway without turning off the car, as the friend I was taking out next had already arrived. I took the bag containing the car key indoors, and picked up a larger bag. We drove to the shopping centre, but after turning off the car, it wouldn’t lock on the door handle button. Then it dawned on me! Fortunately, I was able to use the digital key on the iSMART app to both lock the car, and restart it later.

 

[rjb1970]

Its almost certainly a fantasist looking for clicks. He's got form for it, this "type of thing" seems to happen to him regularly!


Its just made up rubbish, but the car in one of the pictures is a ZS EV

I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought that! I've also seen the Farcebook threads, and it's now been reported by a number of sources - however I actually used to know this guy about 15 years ago, and back then he had a reputation for bizarre and extreme tall stories. It was like he lived in some sort of fantasy world or told these stories for attention, then later would take great pleasure in telling people it was all just a big joke.

 

[Susanna]

@Surfdog It doesn’t have to be 15 miles only - that just happened to be the length of my journey.

 

[evbull]

I smell this whole story fishy ... either deliberate hacking of the car electronics or mishap with breaks ( or accidental damage to breaks).

Seems like someone is not happy with MG's brilliant streak.... I smell smear campaign either by oil lobby or opponent!

 

[evbull]

Does anyone remembers these memes and incidents? This incident sounds as ridiculous and fictional

 

[Tim Green]

I am amazed, surprised and disappointed at the scepticism shown by most of the posts on this story. It is obvious that there is a computerised system that affects the working of the hydraulic brakes on the ZS. This system operates all the time when in ACC when approaching the rear of another car, or going down a hill. Therefore such a system can affect the oil pressure within the hydraulic brake system and it is conceivable that if it goes wrong, it could not allow the pressure in the system to increase -thus brake failure. AND if no pressure in the brake system, there is no way to cancel the ACC, so the car keeps running at set speed. The whole thing is entirely plausible and is the end result of any system that is allowed to interfere with a hydraulic braking system

 

[johnb80]

I am amazed, surprised and disappointed at the scepticism shown by most of the posts on this story.

If it looks like a duck, waggles like a duck and quacks like a duck in all probability it is a duck. There are so many holes in this story, probably a lot of them due to sensualisation by the media, it makes it difficult to believe. On first reading you get the impression it was at high speed that this terrifying event occurred, the truth being 15 mph. IF it was 15mph simply keep going round a roundabout until the battery runs out or drive it into a solid object.

It is obvious that there is a computerised system that affects the working of the hydraulic brakes on the ZS. This system operates all the time when in ACC when approaching the rear of another car, or going down a hill. Therefore such a system can affect the oil pressure within the hydraulic brake system and it is conceivable that if it goes wrong, it could not allow the pressure in the system to increase -thus brake failure.

Theres the first issue, you are right the electronics can have an effect on hydraulic pressure in the brake lines BUT only by way of releasing a little or increasing a little for the ABS function and they always have a fail safe system. At no time can it dump all of the hydraulic pressure which allow the pedal to go to the floor and have no brakes situation.

AND if no pressure in the brake system, there is no way to cancel the ACC, so the car keeps running at set speed.

Thats rubbish, the ACC is cancelled by electrical switch on the pedal not by hydraulic pressure. You surely must be able to reduce the speed set or cancel
with steering wheel / column controls as well?

The whole thing is entirely plausible

Highly unlikely

and is the end result of any system that is allowed to interfere with a hydraulic braking system

Exactly why they dont design brake systems this way.

This guy probably did have a scary event of some kind that has been embellished somewhat, it's more likely that it was pilot error rather than a serious car fault/design bug.