V70 handbrake
 

On our V70 estate auto, the handbrake rarely gets used as you have to put the gearbox in park anyway.

However, on a ferry trip recently, gave it a pull and now the action is slack. i.e. no force required to pull handle up. Seems like return mech isn't working or something has come adrift/broken.

Brake doesn't appear stuck on (just as well).

What is the most common/likely issue before i get underneath it ?

The return springs can be distended or broken.
The brake shoe lining could be gone (like mine) and the hardware could be all "frozen" in position.
The cable mechanism could be rusted stationary.

Just to see, try adjusting the 10mm nut under the gator. Peel up gator, lift milky translucent plastic cover and see the nut to tighten. You might get lucky.

MOST likely, I can't ell you.

This should have been sorted long ago , how do you pass the MOT ? you will probably need discs shoes and shoe retaining springs , i would reserve judgement on the cables until the rest is overhauled .

Just for interest do you realise that P does not lock the wheels ? They are completely free to rotate in opposite directions Hence it is a legal requirement to always use the Parking Brake when you leave the car . IF there is an accident and they find the handbrake off you have no defence at all .

> This should have been sorted long ago , how do you pass the MOT ?

strange question - obviously last year it was ok. It's just it doesn't get used so when i went to use it, it seized in position.

> you will probably need discs shoes and shoe retaining springs

we'll see - just feels like the cable has broken or got stuck due to lack of use. there is plenty of meat on the discs and the pads too.

> They are completely free to rotate in opposite directions

it would be a strange set of events that saw the car move like that but i take your point about the legality of it. My feeling is that Park mode would stop a car moving a lot better than most handbrakes. For instance, if the car is parked up and got rear ended, I'd rate the Park mechanism as way better than most handbrakes.

> IF there is an accident and they find the handbrake off you have no defence at all .

i suspect my defence would be that i wasn't in the car

Have you ever experienced your handbrake at it's best ? It is the best in the business and should easily lock the rear wheels on the 2nd click when adjusted properly .

unfortunately disc condition is no indication of the handbrake shoe drum on the inside . The surface will be rusty and rust dust acts like ball bearings in between shoe and drum .

I mean if the car has an incident with the handbrake lever off and you are not there .

I do hope you get to enjoy the full effect of the parking brake shortly ..

A friend had the same mentality with his Jaguar, Left it in Park, NO handbrake, had a bit of a shunt , SMASHED Gearbox !!!

I had not considered that one ! when you see the tiny peg holding the car you would never ever want it to be responsible for holding the car on a hill . Also the peg is designed to shear off to prevent damage when you put it in P on the move .

Just get into the habit of doing things how you would (should!) if you had a manual: whenever you come to a stop, put the box into Neutral pull on the handbrake, and rest your foot...

We all had to do this to pass our driving test.....

The parking pawl is plenty strong enough to hold the car in all conditions. It is NOT designed to break off, instead, the edges of the slots it drops into are rounded off so that if you engage park whilst moving the parking pawl bounces across the surface until rotation speed (of the diff) is low enough to accommodate the pawl dropping in.

My old Mondeo auto had the handbrake applied precisely twice a year, once just before the MOT and once during it.
It is true to say that if you remove one wheel from the ground the other is clear to turn, but if you’ve engineered a situation where that applies, in reality the handbrake isn’t going to make a lot difference to where the car ends up.
As for a handbrake saving a transmission in the event of a shunt, I doubt very much that a shunt big enough to break a transmission is going to leave much of a car left around it to matter anyway. Breakdown truck drivers pull cars against the handbrake and park locking devices all the time; they’re way strong enough....

Just to be pedantic:
Pull on the handbrake, put the box in neutral, then rest your foot, is the correct order of things.