Cavalier handbrake unbalanced.

Can't remember cavvy h/brake assemblies but on most cars its usually the little arms that the brake cable connects to at the drum end. THey are notorious for seizing up.

But these are brand new! The brakes do work on each side, but not equally.

usually

I believe the correct procedure is something like adjust the adjusters in the drums themselves according to the manual - usually something like lock them on then unlock a number of clicks (although you say they are self adjusters so this shouldn't be necessary - the adjustment here is for the footbrake as much as anythign else) *then* raise the rear of the car put the handbrake so many clicks up then adjust the cables so that the rear wheels only just turn with the same amount of force. Sometimes you might find that the handbrake lever linkage has worn which means one side works less than the other.

Yes, it makes a good deal of difference to the footbrake....

I don't know how to adjust the handbrake cables! They hook onto the lever arm on the shoe, and end in a thing that sits loosely on the "axle". There is one long threaded adjuster on that thing, but I can't see a separate one for each cable, tweaking up that adjuster takes slack out of the handbrake (reduces clicks to come on).

Maybe I should back off one self adjuster in the hub a bit?

Argh!!!!!!!

First off, have you adjusted the handbrake cable to give lots of slack, then adjusted up the brake adjusters, then adjust the handbrake cable?

If you are reasonably certain that everything is assembled correctly, and are really scratching for a fix, try swapping the drums left and right.

otherwise it might be that the brakes just need to bed in.

mrcheerful

I put the shoes on, then the drums. I kept on removing the drum then clicking up the self adjuster until the drum would just go on and revolve. Then I adjusted the middle thing so that there were six clicks on the handbrake tatchet (brake then hard on). The adjuster thing in the middle looks like the letter "y", or a bloke lying down with one leg raised at an angle - the leg goes to the handbrake, the head/foot end to each wheel. I can't see that it is possible to adjust each brake individually, but it might be, I don't know. The off-side brake cable is slightly frayed where it goes through the "eyes" on the axle before it goes into the drum.

Hmm. Hadn't thought of that!

I have been "testing" the brakes quite frequently! Will see what happens tomorrow.

I adjusted my Daewoo Nexia rear brakes last week. It has many GM parts so probably similar to your cav. With both rear wheels off the ground I pulled up the handbrake 1 click. I then adjusted the adjusters on each side until the drums just fitted over the shoes. Release the handbrake, take off the drums and give them a further couple of even turns on both side and replace. Pull up the handbrake 1 notch at a time and rotate the wheels (easier if you refit the road wheels to give extra leverage) You should be able to tell if both sides have a similar amount of resistance and lock fully on the same notch of the handbrake. I was surprised to find that just 1 tiny little tweak of the self adjuster cog can make a big difference.

Is it the sort where the outer applies the pressure to one brake and the inner to the other? If so, the lever is probably partially seized. It also needs to be at the correct angle - ie in the maximum leverage position with the brakes on. This is usually at right angles to the main cable.

I'm just guessing, but there could be an adjustment at the handbrake for cable stretch, and the other one for balance. The SD1 is similar. If you attempt to adjust the 'easy' one, ie the balance one, to reduce handbrake travel you end up with severe unbalance.

Surely the whole idea of self adjusters is they adjust themselves?

You'd have thought so but they don't seem to do it very well. I give them a good clean and oil the threads but with there been very little wear in the back shoes they often seize by the time it comes to adjusting, or one side only will adjust. I much prefer the old manual method.

The message from "Dave Plowman (News)" contains these words:

Up to a point, Lord Copper.

Trouble with self-adjusters is that when they're elderly they get arthritic and rarely perform as advertised.

Like I said, have you completely slackened the cable BEFORE winding up the adjusters? If you don't have sufficient slack then the brakes are unlikely to be right. The handbrake relay lever needs to be able to go fully back or the adjuster will not work properly.

If the cable is frayed then you need a new one, any fraying is an mot failure.

mrcheerful

The MOT man is wrong,(on 2 counts) brake imbalance is only a failure on the front wheels, and only for the service brakes.

To adjust the brakes, make sure the adjuster on the cable is loose, allowing plenty of slack in the cable. With the drums fitted, adjust through the backplate, so the brakes just start to bind. Then have a drive, making a few very hard brake applications, to allow the brakes to centralise in the drums. You will probably find that you can get a little more adjustment, then have a drive again etc. When you can no longer get any more adjustment, back the adjusters off so the brakes just don't bind. Once you have finished adjusting the shoes, then adjust the cable so the lever has about 3-5 free clicks before the brakes start to come on.

IIRC, the adjuster on the cable is the type where the inner of the cable pulls one side, and the outer pulls the other side. For this arrangement to balance properly, you must make sure that the cable and the outer are both free to move, it should all be mounted on some sort of sliding arrangement, which must be free and lubricated.(I think it slides through nylon bushes, make sure it is all free, and there is no fraying cable where it goes through the bush)

Dave Dave Dave....

After owning Rover SD1s how can you honestly say that?

Brake imbalance covers all brakes.

From what I remember, the brake adjustment on cavaliers is quite sensitive. I'd try winding the adjuster on the wheel that is locking up back off slightly.

Service brake only, steered wheels only.

Then there's no point in adjusting them manually, as after short use they'll be out of adjustment.

Some *do* work. The P6 ones, for a start.

With the SD1, just make sure they're clean and rust free. Don't lubricate them. And if you're lucky, they *might* work. ;-)

..and wait for it to adjust itself back again as soon as you stomp on the brakes a few times? If it's not a seperate cable for each side then it sounds as if there's some binding somewhere or indeed the frayed cable is stretching more than the other one.

I've no experience of the Cavalier handbrake but this may help:

On Fords the handbrake lever will only pull a link cable which will connect to an 'equaliser' (like a semicircular pulley) and the main brake cable will wrap around this and go to each rear wheel. The principle is that the equaliser will be pulled forward by the lever and link cable, pulling the brake cable with it. When the shoes on one side contact the drum that half of the brake cable stops moving and the other half is pulled around the equaliser so that that side continues to apply and the lever can still be pulled. Once the shoes on both sides are in contact with the drum then the brake cable, equaliser and lever cannot be pulled any further.

Ideally the brake shoes on both sides will move at roughly the same rate and the friction on both sides will be about the same, therefore both brakes will apply at about the same time. However, if there is unequal friction on both sides of the brake cable then one side will apply before the other. The friction can occur in three places: 1) The equaliser itself may not be free to swivel around it's pivot with the link cable, or the main brake cable may not be free to slide around the equaliser. 2) The main cable may be sticking on one half, caused by contamination or fraying for example. 3) The shoes, operating lever or self-adjuster on one side may be stiffer than the other. This could also be caused by incorrect release spring fitment or missing release springs on the brake shoes.

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As you've already replaced both brake shoes and you mention the brake cable is fraying, I would suggest you replace the main brake cable before going any further. Whilst it is off you can compare the effort required to actuate each rear brake (ideally using a spring balance) to see if there is any unevenness there, and you can check/lubricate the equaliser mechanism.

Hopefully there should be some clues above which might help.

Darren