A faint electric motor noise can be heard when the electrically-operated parking brake is being applied. The noise can also be heard during the automatic function checking of the parking brake.
If the car is stationary when the parking brake is applied then it only acts on the rear wheels. If it is applied when the car is moving then the normal foot brake is used, i.e. the brake acts on all four wheels. Brake function changes over to the rear wheels when the car is almost stationary.