A mechanic shop is in disbelief after discovering the new location of the emergency brakes for the 2025 Chevrolet Trailblazer.
In a TikTok that’s generated over 37,700 views as of this writing, Sims Automotive Repair (@simsautomotiverepair) reveals the new location of the emergency brakes, leaving commenters to ponder why.
"The First Time We Have Seen This on a Vehicle"
In a TikTok, a Sims Automotive Repair worker performs a service job on a 2025 Chevrolet Trailblazer.
"If you are looking for the emergency brake, it’s on the front of this vehicle," the mechanic says.
As an independent automotive repair shop, the mechanic notes that they typically don’t see newer cars because of dealership warranties.
"In the independent world, we generally don’t work on vehicles ‘til four-ish years after they come from the factory. People are doing warranty work through the dealer and whatnot," he shares.
Sims Automotive Repair typically doesn't work on newer cars. So the worker was stunned to see that the Trailblazer has its emergency brakes on the front wheels.
"This is the first time we have seen this," he says.
"The electronic parking brake, the caliber motor’s on the front and not on the rear," he adds.
This left the mechanics wondering why they'd changed the location.
"We had a 2025 Chevy Trailblazer come in today and saw something we’ve never seen before…The parking brake is now on the FRONT brake calipers, not the rear. Yep, no more rear parking brake setup," the post is captioned.
Is It Really the Emergency Brake?
Some viewers weren't sure that the mechanic was right about the brakes.
"It's a parking brake not an emergency brake," one said.
"These don't work like that, it's a parking brake not an emergency brake lol," another agreed.
Others made general observations of the new location and what it’ll do to the car.
"Imagine hitting the E-brake and expecting the rear to slide out lol," one said.
"There is not enough weight on the rear of the vehicle for the parking brake to work is what I have heard," opined a second.
"I work at a Chevy dealer and never realized this haha," a third said.
Several people said this isn't exactly news.
"Been like that on those and Buick Encore GX since 2020," said one.
"Don’t ever go look at a 90’s SAAB. They were on the front then too," said another.
"80's subarus had front e-brakes too," a third commented.
When Should You Use the Emergency Brakes?
Using your car's emergency brakes doesn’t have to be limited to emergencies.
There are four types of emergency brakes: stick lever, center lever, pedal, and electronic or push-button. Understanding what emergency brake your vehicle has is essential for your safety, and knowing how to use it.
According to Nationwide Insurance, the following situations are a good time to use your emergency brakes:
- When parking: Enabling the emergency brakes gives you extra stability and prevents the car from rolling away. In addition to using these brakes when parking on hills or during inclement weather, they can be used for flat parking and in pleasant weather for extra security.
- While working on the car: Setting the emergency brakes during service can prevent the car from rolling away, in particular, when working on the brakes or wheels.
- In an emergency: Given the name, these brakes can support immediate stops. When things are getting close and dicey, the emergency brakes can be used to slow down and stop the vehicle.
Sims Automotive Questions GM
Bradley Sims from Sims Automotive Repair told Motor1, "As far as the parking brake applying the front brakes, I honestly don’t know why GM chose to do that. The only thing I can speculate is maybe they’re trying to lock the drive wheels but vehicles have been front-wheel-drive for decades now, so it’s unclear why the parking brake wouldn’t remain on the rear like it traditionally has."
Sims, who says he's been a technician for 28 years and is ASE Master Certified, added that, generally, he likes electronic parking brakes, as they're always "tight and ready to work."
"With the older cable-style systems—what we used to call emergency brakes, hand brake, etc.—you had to adjust cables and brake adjusters routinely, especially with drum brakes. Electronic parking brakes don’t need adjustment: they work, or they don’t in most instances," he said.
He says they've seen complications with these brakes.
"We’ve even had an ABS module fail on a Chevrolet product despite following the GM Technical Service Bulletin exactly during a brake repair," he recalled. "I know other technicians across the industry are having similar issues when retracting electronic calipers using the correct scan tools modules are failing, and this is not something we see from other manufacturers.
Regarding the engineering, he has two questions for GM.
"First, why are your brake modules failing during normal, by-the-book brake service procedures? Second, why move the parking brake application to the front brakes when GM has used rear-based systems for decades? Those are the things that really stand out to me," Sims said.
Motor1 has contacted Chevrolet via email. This story will be updated if it responds.
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