stevedavies

I have never had a good emergency (aka hand) brake. I changed shoes and have adjusted several times as per WSM and advice on this forum. Is this a common issue?? I just had my annual Government test and the E brake 'just passed'. Being an auto its no major issue but dont want to rely on the transmission to hold the car on a steep incline

Mrmerlin

how many clicks on the handle till the brakes are set?

stevedavies

E brake is 5 clicks fully on......but adjusted so takes a lot of effort to get there...but still the e brake will not hold he car on my driveway which is a moderate incline only

hacker-pschorr

I did not rebuild / adjust my e-brake (local shop did) but I can report it will hold my 928 on any incline and make it very difficult to back the car out of the garage if left on.

GlenL

Maybe the sides aren't adjusted evenly so only one is really applying any force.

SteveG

I don't think it is properly adjusted if you can "get" 5 clicks. It should be fully engaged on 3; and the handle should feel like a full stop at that point.

Mrmerlin

^^^^^ I concur 3 clicks the car should not move,

SO either the shoes are glazed and or the rotors have gotten badly rusted and or the rotors/drums are damaged .
You have somehow installed the locking arm incorrectly,
Or the cable transfer arm under the X member is damaged
Or you just dont have the adjusters correctly adjusted.

I turn the adjuster till the rotor wont turn then pull the brake handle then release, this sets the arm and shoes,
then back off the adjuster 3 clicks the rotor should spin freely,
if not back off another 2 clicks.
if it still wont turn freely then you have other damage that should be repaired.

if you have the shoes adjusted this way then the handle should come up 3 clicks this will stop the wheels ,
if not then remove the rear Handle housing and adjust the cable to the lever.

Bill Ball

I once drove for an afternoon around San Francisco with nothing but the "emergency" parking/hand brake in my 195? Volvo PV544. I survived going down some pretty steep hills in traffic. Thank God the cable didn't break.

Properly adjusted, the 928 parking brake should be able to hold the car if needed. Most I have seen are too loose and need adjustment. You should not be able to pull up more than 5 clicks on the handle.

Oh, and if the parking brake cable has ever been unfastened from the rear crossmember, there's a good chance it was not reinstalled properly. It's a chore to mount it correctly.

There is an adjuster for initial shoe position accessible through the rotor hat, but the major adjustment for snugness is just behind the handle under a carpeted cover in the back set footwell.

stevedavies

Ok , thanks all. Its useful to know that the e brake can be effective on these cars. I think I will start underneath and make sure everything is good there. Rotor/drums look good to me with little or no scoring. Shoes have only seen 2k miles, but will try changing anyway

WallyP

Unless the parking brake shoes have been glazed by running with them touching, or have oil on them, or have some other damage, there should be no reason to change them. There is virtually no wear with normal usage.