When Should You Invest in an Electric Park Brake?

Aussies and Kiwis demand a lot of their 4x4 utes. Whether for work, recreation – or usually a mixture of both – dual cab utilities often top the vehicle sales charts every year.

It’s the versatility of these vehicles that has seen them strike a chord with buyers because it’s hard to go past seating for five, a generous payload, around 3.5t of braked towing capacity and the ability to get just about anywhere.

The range of accessories and modifications available in this segment is also enormous, allowing owners to up spec their vehicles to suit their work application or leisure pursuits. This process however can expose some flaws, especially when it comes to the holding ability of the OE park brake.

The problem can be compounded in situations where a caravan or heavy tradie trailer is in tow, with ‘roll aways’ not unusual when parked on steep hills. The lack of holding ability simply comes down to the OE park brake not being designed to cope with the additional weight and stresses imposed by owners. Cable actuated handbrakes can also stretch over time, impacting how well the vehicle is held.

Bendix Ultimate 4WD™ Electric Park Brake

To boost safety and holding ability, Bendix launched an Electric Secondary Park Brake for Land Cruiser 76,78 and 79 Series in 2023, with the system quickly becoming a must-have OH&S upgrade particularly for vehicles working in mining applications.

The kit offers the convenience of complete ‘bolt-on’ fitment and complements the existing OE park brake, with no change to the vehicle’s hydraulic mechanism, pad shape and original park brake required. It features rear left and right single piston calipers that act on the rear disc brake rotors, minimising the likelihood of ‘roll aways.

Fitting the EPB is simple for a mechanic or brake technician with detailed installation guidelines provided. As a bonus, the vehicle’s ADR compliance is maintained and requires no engineering sign-off once the job is complete. 

Bendix also has kits available for N80 (2015 – onwards) 4x4 Hilux models with the added benefit of a Drum-to-Disc conversion, which upgrades the OE drum brake set-up, to 312mm diameter Bendix Disc Brake Rotors.

In both cases, along with the additional holding power, the kits provide the added safety and functionality of an ‘auto on’ feature, which allows the park brake to automatically actuate under certain conditions including when any cabin door is open (with speed below 10 km/h), when the vehicle is placed in ‘park’ or when the engine is turned off.

Bendix will expand the availability of its Electronic Park Brake range to suit additional popular 4x4 models in the coming months.

Is an EPB right for you?

If you answer ‘yes’ to any of the statements below, you should consider an EPB. 

• My 4x4 has extensive accessories, including weighty items such as front, rear and side protection, canopy and winch etc.

• I carry a lot of heavy equipment, tools and materials for work.

• I’ve fitted taller and larger diameter wheels/tyres.

• I regularly tow large/heavy trailers or caravans.

• I’d like the additional peace of mind in knowing I can safely park on steep hills.