Failed handbrake

My county pads are fine. I trust them and they work well so far.

My thinking.
If the rest of the irs is okay I‘d restrain myself and just do the pads and the adjustment mechanism.

Thank you all.

It sounds as though this is a job I can attempt without removing the IRS. And if I understand Janusz properly - also without removing the main calliper?

I am going to have a fiddle around and may be back here for counselling in due course.

Yes, correct.
20 char…

I have had a look and things make a lot more sense.

I can see how if I prise back the locking tabs in the two bolts that secure the fork to which the handbrake caliper is attached, that the handbrake assembly comes off fairly easily.

I had removed the exhaust section from the IRS anyway because the centre pipe and intermediate muffler need to be renewed. That helps a little with access.

But I think David’s advice may be relevant here. The LH disc is covered in what is presumably hypoid oil and I think I have a weeping output shaft on the final drive.

So it looks as though I need to bite the bullet and drop the IRS. Here is a picture - thoughts welcome…

One final thing. I can’t see how I release the handbrake cable from the handbrake caliper levers… any tips?

Thank you!




Once you remove the the hand brake caliper return springs the tension will be off the cable and you should be able to remove it from the caliper slots.
I also soaked the cable ends in penetrating oil for a few days before I did my brake job.
It also looks like the rotors have been changed already as they dont have the OEM wire around the circumference of the rotor.
This is the only pic I have of my completed job of complete rear brake component replacement.
brakes

That’s a pretty serious leak there Adrian… You have to bite the bullet indeed.
The exact reason my car failed inspection and why I dropped and overhauled the IRS.
It’s up to you to decide how deep you want to go, I went for the full monty as I didn’t want to have to drop the cage again any time soon.

Adrian,

in regard to the handbrake cable: I just finished the same job and in addition to what Bob recommended I also released the “slack adjuster” for the handbrake cable behind the rear seat. That helped a lot.

“w/o removg the cge” aka done in situ!1

Car

Ok… I am 95% there in terms of dropping the IRS.

I am lowering it gently onto a motorcycle jack and checking for any issues etc.

All looks good - except the prop shaft hasn’t detached from the diff flange (I have removed the 4 bolts of course…).

A whack with a mallet hasn’t moved it.

Is it a flush fitting and it will break loose as I drop the IRS further? Do I need to detach it in some way (I have tried pulling the jack back as far as I can to try and work the diff loose).

I thought I would ask before going for it and breaking something…

:+1:

Try getting a sharp wood chisel in between the flanges (I’m a tool maker, wood chisels don’t cut it for me😹) give it a good rap with a hammer, it should loosen. Replace a bolt to stop it suddenly falling on any tender bits!

Thank you Robin. It was about as much effort as cracking an egg, very satisfying!

Now the IRS is out I can see I have 1 out of 4 handbrake pads left. And the LH disc is covered in diff oil weeping from the output shaft.

The radius arms and shrouds have a lot of surface rust.

I need to decide whether to follow Aristides down the rabbit hole… or stick to the brief and repair the diff and handbrakes as simply as possible. Any suggestions welcome!





Are those copper brake lines? That would be illegal here in NZ.

Adrian,

In order to change the output shaft seals you have to:
Remove the hubs
Remove the half shafts
Remove the wishbones and bearings
Remove the callipers and brake discs
Remove the output shaft bearing assemblies
Dismantle the output shaft bearings
Change the seal
And then reverse the process to reassemble.

Basically the only part that could stay in place is the differential.
Only difference would be if you are buying and installing new bearings & seals or not.

Definitely change:
The output shaft bearings and crushing sleeve
The calliper seals, rubber boots and calliper pistons (if needed)
Wheel bearings
Brake rubber hose
De-rust and paint

Compared to the amount of work involved to get there, the extra work and cost is very little.
For all the rest you could see and decide, but definitely check everything.

My two cents…

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Thanks Aristides. Little I can do but push on at this stage!

Hi Robin, yes, kunifer lines… but I am not planning on driving as far as NZ so all should be well!

The cross overs look more like straight copper pipes rather than Kunifer or cupronickel.
Copper work hardens and I’m pretty sure thats why they are a no no.

Looks to me like the trailing arm bushings need replacement as well.

Adrian, as I stated earlier I just finished the same job (with a leaking brake caliper as a cause) and dropped the IRS. In my opinion it is worthwhile to go for the entire rebuilt as per Aristides’ list: It is so much easier to access all components with the IRS dropped. Like Bob, I also strongly recommend to replace the radius arms bushings. If you replace the pinion seal don’t forget to seal the splines on the flanges (this is what happened to me, see separate post).

I replaced radius arm bushings (with IRS in place btw)

Hardest part was pressing out/in bushings. Had to take it to shop.

Thanks. It’s going to be a long haul so I’ll approach it one bit at a time.

I tried to remove a hub this afternoon to get started. My puny puller would not purchase on the chamfered flange. I will need a much more substantial puller with deep jaws to actually reach the back of the hub.

The Nightmare Begins :rofl:

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Most probably someone mounted the stub axle with Loctite, maybe to eliminate play, or just because.
Makes it a big pain to remove it, you might need a press. Heat helps to brake the Loctite.