Micra handbrake.

[MicraKeen]

Hi all. My 2001 Micra 1.4 SE handbrake has not been very efficient lately. The rear shoes were renewed last year and I've inspected them today, roughened the linings with emery cloth and cleaned out the dust. Wiped the inside of the drums with brake cleaner, friction surface is good - no sccores or damage.

I over-rode the auto adjusters on both rears and adjusted the handbrake to travel no more that five clicks when fully applied, hard. Everything looks normal, but the rear wheels don't lock solid when the handbrake is applied. Wheels don't drag when handbrake is released. Footbrake operates fine.

Any suggestions as to how I can improve handbrake efficiency? (MoT is at the end of next week!)

Thanks in anticipation of some pearls of wisdom!

 

[frank]

do the arms on the shoes fully retract ? because many owners adjust only the cables and that makes the geometry of the arm is all wrong

 

[pollyp]

sounds like the self adjuster has seized up and not keeping the shoes close to the drums when the handbrake arm on the shoe is fully retracted, and so ur having to tighten the cable length excessively to reduce slack and result in loss of cable travel range and altered arm geometry therefore doesn't engage as strong.

I suggest taking out the self adjuster mechanism,
fully clean dirt n grease off the whole thread till the threads screw in/out with ease and no gritty binding (wirebrush or retap the threads if it was rusted),
apply some copper grease on the threads to keep it lubed,
screw the ratchet nut all the way onto the thread shaft to reset it's position,
reassemble everything,
initially tighten the handbrake cable just to take up slack upto the 1st click.
now in a quiet place, u begin the brakes self adjustment by slowly pulling the handbrake fully up & down and you should hear the ratchet on both drum brakes faintly clicking away after each application.
continue applying the handbrake until both brakes no longer clicks, meaning the mechanism is keeping the shoes bout 1-click away from the drums.
adjust handbrake cable till it feels tight after 7 clicks.

here's a guide
https://www.micra.org.uk/threads/pollymobiles-rebuild.35251/page-8#post-416002

 

[MicraKeen]

Thanks for your replies. All good information which wasn't in the Haynes Manual! I will have a go at the resetting procedure you describe.

 

[MicraKeen]

Thanks for your replies. All good information which wasn't in the Haynes Manual! I will have a go at the resetting procedure you describe.

I followed Polly P's comprehensive instructions re adjstment procedure, but still the handbrake won't hold the car properly on a reasonable slope. The handbrake lever comes up to five clicks comfortably but will go one more with extra force. The footbrake is fine. More head scratching is imminent!

 

[wehey]

The cables need replacing mate. Follow the cable down the centre (underside) of the car. It then divides into two and each side goes to a rear wheel.
Water gets into the cables and corrodes the inner cable into outer and although the handbrake still works it's less efficient.
My Micra failed the MOT on two consecutive years, left side one year and right side the next because of this.
I can now lock the back wheels whilst driving

 

[MicraKeen]

Thanks for the tip. Will check further.

 

[frank]

my money is on "break drum wear"

 

[MicraKeen]

Well, after more attempts at roughing the brake linings, then cleaning them with brake cleaner, re-adjusting correctly and lubricating the cables (they weren't really stiff anyway), the car passed the MoT today. But I still can't lock the bacl wheels with the handbrake as I could before. So it must be a combination of deterioration of the linings and slightly worn drums.

Thanks for all the advice - much appreciated.

 

[tomwest]

my handbrake failed the MOT in january. i dismantled the drums to discover one of my extended studs hadnt been pressed in properly and had worn through the self adjuster spring holders (little pieces of metal that go between the spring and self adjuster). it was easy to discover, because when i took the drum off, the pieces fell out!
i replaced the self-adjusting mechanism in both sides, spent ages going through the correct procedure, and got the handbrake to work to about 80lb ft. finally, it passed the mot, but with 16% efficiency. just goes to show how bad a handbrake can be and still be good enough to be roadworthy!