740 HandBrake: Adjustment or Shoes?

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 14 Jul 2004, 08:54

Hey guys, I always forget to ask my mechanic to check my handbrake cable. (I need a To-Do list everytime I visit, it took me 1,000 kms to finally get them to readjust my idle speed). It travels very far, more than just a few clicks. On an incline, it cannot hold the car still on anything less than the last click. If I have it up to say, 5-clicks (where I think it should be), I feel absolutely no resistance with the car coasting in Drive at idle speed.

I know handbrakes are seldomly used with automatics, but my concern is whether this is just an issue with tightening the cable, or overworn rear shoes? (i.e. someone rolling downhill and forgot to release the brakes?)

BONK.

LaRy · Post by **LaRy** » 14 Jul 2004, 10:02

Maximum number of clicks should be 11 and after adjustment, it should be 3 - 5 clicks.

ozzimark · Post by **ozzimark** » 14 Jul 2004, 10:28

yeah, mine does that too... i'm constantly tightening it, but i think that there is a combination between the brakes wearing down and the cable stretching that is always loosening it. just go in underneath that centre console from the back seat of the car, and you'll see the nut for tightening it, it's not too hard.

potroast · Post by **potroast** » 14 Jul 2004, 10:42

you can also tigthen the brake at the drums. Remove both rear wheels (with the car on stands) and you can insert a screwdriver into the drum to adjust the emergency brake. Sometimes it takes a combination of this and the above mentioned procedure to get a properly working parking break.

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 14 Jul 2004, 19:07

Alright, so the verdict for my car is:

Applied Force: "Drive" position at idle speed.
Operating Range:
Total Number of Clicks to Top: 11-12.
0-9 clicks: no effect
10 clicks: some resistance
11 clicks: able to hold the car still.

And I realized that the handbrake indicator is simply set off by a small button that the lever presses when it's down.

Do the hydraulic brakes activate the same shoes, or are they independent?

LaRy · Post by **LaRy** » 14 Jul 2004, 23:58

They are totally independent. The brake for driving is a hydraulic disk brake with pads and the handbrake is a totally mechanical drum brake with brake shoes.

petershen1984 · Post by **petershen1984** » 28 Aug 2004, 03:20

Well I couldn't get it any tighter than 8 clicks to the top, because the cable may be aged.

LaRy · Post by **LaRy** » 30 Aug 2004, 12:06

I suppose you have an automatic and the parking brake is used very seldom. Then the wire should keep it

bluepilgrim · Post by **bluepilgrim** » 17 Jun 2005, 14:11

Just got a 1990 740 wagon (with a Haynes book), but it still took a while to figure out how to adjust the hand brake. I saw this forum the other day, but it didn't help too much, so I'm posting what I found.

The ashtray/ seatbelt housing just comes out by prying the sides out and top down -- there a couple of tabs at the top that need to clear. What I found looks a bit different that in the Haynes book. There was a big horizontal hex-nut shaped thing towards the front, and I could pull that back and tighten it by hand (top of it goping towards the right to tighten). Got it up to about 7 or 8 clicks like that. No big deal now that I know how.

I'm guessing that when the brakes are done this should be loosened and tightened up at the wheels so that the whole travel of the adjustment mechanism is retained.