Has anyone found a way to improve the handbrake?

[PeterN]

I have access to three 406 Hdi's and the handbrake is pretty well useless on all of them unless you have just adjusted it. Even my MOT man says they are useless in fact they broke the cable last time trying to get it through the test.

I have replaced the cables,disc/drum, pads and shoes, still the same, will hold facing down hill - sometimes but not going up when you need it most. The problem seems to be that the drum/shoes are to small, I bet the ones with rear drum brakes are OK. I have looked for ways of modifying them but there is not much you can do, I think perhaps softer linings would help but can you get them?

Peter

[benczuk]

Also tried everything. It improves for a month or so then goes back to its Chocolate teapot state. Apparently Jasper can make them hold on a 45 degree incline but cant articulate the secret

[GingerMagic]

The handbrake on my 406 is bob-on - it holds really well, for a 406.....
Maybe they differ from car to car, but this one just needed a turn of the adjusters in the disc/drum and its been good for over a year.

My old 406 was rubbish though - you could adjust it so its good and maybe 2 weeks later I find the car in the middle of the road in the mornings....

On drum brakes, the shoes get a good bond with the surface as they are always used, whereas the disc/drum affair just pushes the shoes against a shiny surface when stationary. I do find myself using the handbrake to slow the car every now and then when in a traffic jam, just to get some friction/head etc, seems to do the trick.

The wife's Picasso has rear drums and the handbrake is excellent.

[steve_earwig]

Jasper's done a how to in the, erm, how to's.

I never had much luck with mine either, so I had a set of shoes lined with softer material. It's better but still not perfect so now I wish I'd gone with the even softer material.

[PeterN]

Thanks for your comments, seems its really a case of bad design, I suppose it was easier/cheaper than having proper handbrake callipers although they were already made for the Xantia/XM although on the front wheels.

With the old fashioned type with linkage on the end of the cable you could lengthen the lever to give a bit more torque but this idea is so simple there is no scope for modification.

Steve - where did you manage to get different linings fitted?

Peter

[steve_earwig]

Just down the road in Čabdin (that's really not going to help you is it, sorry.)

I don't know about the new one but the design of the handbrakes was identical on the old yoyo and I think that would've rolled onto its nose before a wheel turned, they were so good. The only difference was it had two cables.

BX's also handbrake on the front wheels. Oh, and Commer Spacevans...

Some VWs had the handbrakes working through the rear callipers, they're really good for seizing up and smoking.

[PeterN]

I had one of those 15cwt Commer vans many years ago, I had forgotten it had a front wheel handbrake - it was quite a long way to the back wheels!

After the car had been standing for a couple of days when we had all the rain, the handbrake worked a treat the first time I used it as presumably the drum had gone rusty so we need some sort of abrasive surface on the drum, wonder if you could get it coated with diamond dust?

Peter

[jasper5]

The key to having a properly working 406 handbrake is correct adjustment...assuming all the pivot points are free and lubricated allowing full movement of the cables and linkages.

Setting the adjusters inside the drum before adjusting the cables is vital....if the cable adjusters are adjusted before the drum adjusters you will not get full movement from the pivots inside the drum and therefore a bad handbrake.

I can honestly say that the 406s I have had and have all had/have a perfectly good handbrake.
At mot time the handbrake had a 26% reading on my estate...a pass is 16%!

[jasper5]

Just down the road in Čabdin (that's really not going to help you is it, sorry.)

I don't know about the new one but the design of the handbrakes was identical on the old yoyo and I think that would've rolled onto its nose before a wheel turned, they were so good. The only difference was it had two cables.

BX's also handbrake on the front wheels. Oh, and Commer Spacevans...

Some VWs had the handbrakes working through the rear callipers, they're really good for seizing up and smoking.

Those VW are so bad I keep a pair of working calipers in my van all the time!

Changing handbrake cables on those Citroen models was a whole lot of fun!!

[Doggy]

I agree with jasper5's comments, but would add that I have found it necessary to bed in a new set of shoes/drums. Do this by driving slowly, (10 mph or so), agains a partly applied handbrake for a 100 yds, leave plenty of time to dissipate any heat, (or get out and carefully check drum temperature). Repeat a few times and you will get much better holding power. After all, the actuator only moves one end of the shoes, so you will get minimal contact area with all new parts.

[PeterN]

I have done that, I make sure that the linkages can move freely with the brake right off. When I first adjust it, it's OK for a few days and then reverts to type. If I pull the handbrake up really hard it will sometimes hold but then my wife can't release it and I don't really want to have to replace the long cable again!

Peter.

[jasper5]

Cleaning the shoes up with some 40 grade paper every now and then helps the shoes grip.

[dirtydirtydiesel]

Peter,
It must be something you are doing wrong as I rebuilt my rear brakes over two years ago & there still working fine
That well in fact that it'll hold my car & caravan fully laden facing uphill .
But I must confess I give it a little pull once a month or maybe twice in crap weather from 10mph until stand still (just to de-rust the drums & deglaze the shoes).
Then once a year re-adjust the shoes in side the drum just to take up the gap from said cleaning process.

[PeterN]

I have heard others say that they work OK but they seem to be in the minority, even my MOT man says they are all useless so there must be something different about yours, if I knew what it was perhaps I could cure mine.

I wonder if its the type of brake lining material, what shoes do you use on yours? Has anyone else found that a particular make of shoes works better than others?

If I adjusted mine every week they would probably be OK.

Peter

[Doggy]

Having all the moving parts as free as possible increases the amount of useful pressure you get on the shoes for a given amount of force on the handbrake lever.

Beyond that, the only other improvement you can make is to increase the contact area betwixt shoes and drum.