Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Mot is due shortly which meant I need to finally sort the handbrake. Since buying the car it has always worked well if the car is going backwards or parked facing uphill, but if the car is on the flat I can easily push it forwards with the handbrake full on.

Adjusting it had no affect, so I fitted new shoes today. It now works very well in reverse - tried to move in reverse gear and it jacked up the back of the car and didn't budge, but is still totally useless in the more important direction (especially for the MOT).

I have gone for a drive and held the handbrake on to bed it in, even when coasting you can't feel any affect from it being pulled as hard as possible.

New pads have made virtually no difference, all moving parts were cleaned and received a little copper grease, the pads and drums were cleaned with brake cleaner before reassembly... And it works excellently in reverse

I'm quite stumped... I wonder if the MOT would test the brakes in reverse for me

Any ideas much appreciated!

That's a good scratchy head one. However - are you sure about the cable adjustment - two clicks on mine ensures rock steady...

Dave
CT

I had this problem, and it was solved by flipping the actuating levers over....It was quite a fiddly job as it meant disconnecting cables and readjusting the handbrake.

I got to that point after replacing the handbrake lever, shoes, springs and cables! The only thing left to try was the handbrake actuating levers in the drum. I noticed on a picture in both the haynes and in the workshop manual they were fitted the other way around. I tried it out and voila it worked!

Thank you! That sounds quite likely, comparing pictures I took to the parts diagram and they do indeed look wrong. I'll give that a shot on Monday

Interesting, what do you suggest if it's rubbish in both directions

Mine works but far from brilliant like most 944/968's

Let us know if you get anywhere! It drove me mad, as well as failing an mot and a re-test including forking out for a local mechanic to look at it as well, in the end I sorted it myself!




Does it pass an MOT? Its interesting as the same shoe size (and I think geometry) works on a BMW 5 Series (E28) which is a heavier car.

I have one very effective handbrake First test when moving locked the wheels with no effort at about 10mph.
Reversing the spreader was actually really easy. Pair of pliers to un clip the pin holding it to the cable, little fiddle to get the pin out, flip the lever and all back together. Cable length was still fine so I just used the top adjuster in the drum to readjust each side... put the car on axle stands and wheels/calipers off last night so only took an hour or so tonight. Thanks barbeast!

Not sure I needed the new shoes in the end, but this is now the best handbrake I've ever had in any of my cars (short list admittedly )

Light checks all done, time to book an MOT.

I have to ask, how the hell do they get reversed in the first place???

Were they fitted arse about face in the factory?

No idea, I came to it by elimination - it was the only thing I hadn't changed. I think in my case they had been put on the wrong way round by someone who refitted cables once in it's life. If you just look at them it isn't obvious which way they go round and that if you put them the wrong way, clearly the lever isn't as effective as opening out the shoes.

I've been finding things which have just been done stupidly wrong all over this car, I'm guessing the PO was a budding mechanic with no mechanical understanding. His best ones so far are a missing spacer on the rear stub axle meaning that tightening the hub nut pulled the stub axle into the swingarm, a self tapping screw straight into one of the would be pressurised air conditioning pipes, and some unfused 12v wire dangling bare next to the fuse box... and now the hand brake of course.

There is no way the car would ever pass a genuine MOT with the spreaders reversed... As I proved, even with brand new pads and a good yank on the handbrake I could still push it along the drive :/.