Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

Just trying to get the correct size of handbrake shoe for my car, I am seeing different sizes and have have to return one set I bought that said they were correct fitment for my S.
The ones I was sent were way too big and this was just from looking at them in the packaging, they looked like they were for a drum braked car, they were 230mm x 40mm.

I'm also seeing 164mm x 20mm and 180mm x 26mm, without removing mine I can't find out a definite answer.

The reason I am changing them (rear shoes and discs) is I have an issue with the offside handbrake not gripping sufficiently when the nearside one is totally fine. I have adjusted correctly several times and fitted a new cable without success, just hoping new shoes and discs will do the job, or I'll be back asking questions.

You are lucky I thought I'd deleted the workshop manual for the 944 as I sold mine a while ago & the others I worked on have been sold on as well.

OK, the drum size is 180mm x 25mm, the same for all of them (944s that is). Although Turbo & S2 have different disc sizes overall. Wear limit on the drum is 181mm max.

Thanks Jim, I have managed to find a set that state 25mm width (rather than 26mm) and they were Mintex, I have also bought a fitting kit to go in while I'm in there. Fingers crossed my drums are shot and this will now tighten up the handbrake bite.

Handbrakes are notoriously crap on 944/968

That's because mist of them haven't been serviced / maintained or setup correctly since they left the factory

the normal thing is the mechanism at the bottom, that levers the shoes apart is in the wrong way round

This is something that I have swapped around when I last tackled the issue, I will maybe get a picture up once the wheel is off for an opinion. Been timing the cams today so will maybe get to the handbrake at the weekend.

Eventually got to strip the rear brakes today and did find some curious findings, I do think the offside swan was on the wrong way around as mentioned above.

A lot of the parts internally of the fitting kit are from various sources, I need to find a few new parts but only have this weekend as it needs to be completed before Monday as I'm on track at the RS track day at Oulton Park on the 9th and will be busy all week not giving me time to finish.



The shoes I got needed drilling to accept the spring pins and these shoes do have some extra meat on each end so this should also help with handbrake bite.





The drum part of the disc was 180mm so still within tolerance but they do seem quite old, new discs being fitted anyway now I have bought them.



Fingers crossed this will be the end of the crap handbrake.