97 saturn sedan

I put my vehicle in 1st, by the way it is a manual, and it rolls forward
about 5 feet after I turn the vehicle off and let off the clutch. It then
finally locks into gear and stops. I now have to always use my e-brake
because my concern of it hitting something.

 

I recall my owners manual saying to put a manual transmission Saturn in
reverse when parking it. But you should be in the habit of using the
e-brake anyway.

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]

 

Sound like engine is still spinning when you let clutch out. Use first
or reverse to hold it when parked but I would not use Ebarake in below
freezing weather as they have been know to freeze on from time to time
if moisture gets in the cables.

 

This is my fourth winter with my 98 SL1 manual trans. It gets to -30C here
at the extreme end of the scale. I have never had my ebrake/parking brake
cable freeze. I've seen them rust and seize when people don't use them
though.
IMO you should always use your parking brake (manual or auto) to keep it
moving, around here if it rusts and seizes they will make you replace it to
get a safety inspection sticker.
Good to have a brake on anyway. It's not as common as it was in the fifties
but sometimes cars pop out of gear.

 

It gets to -30C here

Same here. I'm in Wisconsin where outdoor winter temps reach -30 F
overnight (with windchills below -40). When my 94 SC2 was parked outdoors
for quite a few years during winters, the e-brake never froze or stuck on.
I used it every time I parked the car as well. I'm pretty surprised now
that I think about it, because there were ice storms where I couldn't get
the doors open because the rubber door seals were iced over onto the car
body, and the pop-up headlights wouldn't go up either - but the e-brake was
never a problem. The previous day's splashed slush on the underside didn't
affect the brakes either.

Lane [ lane (at) evilplastic.com ]
---
Visit my Saturn Car Audio and Performance Page at http://www.evilplastic.com

 

Consider yourself lucky because they can freeze and I have seen it and
when it does at minu 30C you will cuss up a storm because you will not
be able to move the car. I rarely use brake and only on grades and
never lost one yet but I always use 1st or rev, never a taller gear.