Only One of 42 New Cars Launched in the Past Year is Equipped with a Manual Handbrake

• Dacia Spring is the only new model released in last 12 months with a manual handbrake
• Just 49 out of 587 (8%) new models on sale in the U.K. are fitted with a manual handbrake, according to annual CarGurus study *
• Discontinuation and replacement of popular models driving the continued decline, which is down 73% since 2019
• Illustrating this decline, BMW went from 14 models with a manual handbrake in 2019, to zero in 2024

20 Nov., 2024: Only one of 42 new cars (2%) launched in the last 12 months is fitted with a manual handbrake as the decline of this once omnipresent feature continues, a study from CarGurus has revealed.

The manual handbrake, formerly a staple of every car on the road, is continuing to be phased out by manufacturers in favour of an electronically operated parking brake, with only one in every 13 new cars available in the U.K. featuring it today.

The CarGurus Manual Handbrake Report, now in its seventh year, found that only 49 out of 587 (8%) of new models on sale today are fitted with this more analogue option.

Research from CarGurus — a leading automotive marketplace in the U.K. to shop, buy, and sell used vehicles — uncovered that the Dacia Spring was the only new car launched in the past 12 months that is fitted with a manual handbrake.

Currently, 80% of Dacia’s product range can be ordered with a manual handbrake (four out of five models) - the exception to the growing trend towards fitting electronic handbrakes.

Some popular models that have dropped off the list this year include the discontinued VW Up!, Vauxhall Crossland, and Fiat Tipo Cross. New models such as the Fiat 600 hybrid and Vauxhall Frontera are now fitted with electronic handbrakes.

The last six years have seen a rapid decline in the availability of new cars with a manual handbrake, with a 73% drop from 2019 to 2024 in models including this feature.

Of the 39 manufacturers analysed, 29 offered a manual handbrake on at least one model in 2019, compared with 19 in 2024, a 34% decrease.

Furthermore, 137 out of 463 new models (30%) were fitted with a manual handbrake in 2019, compared with 54 out of 595 models (9%) in 2023, and 49 out of 587 (8%) in 2024.

Just three of the 39 manufacturers in the study fit a manual handbrake to more than 50% of their model range, and only 14 (35%) fit them to more than one model in their range.

Manufacturers who have shifted the most include BMW, which, in 2019, had 14 models with a manual handbrake in its range, but now does not offer any. Similarly, Fiat, which offered 13 models with a manual handbrake in 2019, now only has four, and Renault has gone from eight models with manual handbrakes to only one over the same period of time.

CarGurus has created a guide to the manual handbrake for customers, highlighting the benefits of both the manual and the electric handbrake to support purchasing considerations.

Chris Knapman, CarGurus U.K. Editorial Director, said: “As with many examples of automotive technology, the electronic parking brake started out as a luxury feature, and was first seen in production on the 2001 BMW 7 Series. By 2019, when we first started tracking how the electronic parking brake was taking over from the more traditional handbrake, the technology had already made its way from premium brands into more mainstream offerings. And over the subsequent five years, we've seen the technology spread from being an exclusive feature reserved for top-end trims to standard equipment on the majority of new cars on sale.

“Of the brands in our study, only Dacia has launched a new car with a manual handbrake in the past 12 months, reflecting that its value offering applies to electric cars as well as petrol and diesel models. And, of course, for those not yet wishing to bid farewell to the manual handbrake, the used car market still offers buyers plenty of choice.”