Parking brake adjustment

[carryoncampers]

Hello, I’ve been searching the forum but can’t find any advice on adjusting the parking brake on a ‘10 XC90.

I’ve found the cable in the central tunnel inside the vehicle, but it’s such a tight gap I can’t quite see what to do and what tools to get in there with.

Any advice gratefully received. I just failed the MOT just for the parking brake!

Thanks.

[theseriojca]

This is what I used as a guide.

As per tools, if you a specialist tool, great. If not, you'll need to come up with combinations of pliers/spanners/spacers.

Tips:
- remove the passenger seat for easier access.
- tie a string around the wee clip as soon as you can, it WILL fall into the space under the seat and it's very difficult to find then.
- after adjusting the parking brake there, and if it's still not strong enough, install the in wheel adjusters - like these

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362727761...0AAOSwaNBUa0GS

- best £7 ever spent.

[Familyman 90]

What did it fail on, efficiency or insufficient reserve travel?

Adjust each one at the wheel for efficiency, and then adjust the cable for travel.

[TruckbusUK]

[QUOTE=Familyman 90;2767602]What did it fail on, efficiency or insufficient reserve travel?

Adjust each one at the wheel for efficiency, and then adjust the cable for travel.[/QUOTE

Fairly sure unless we are talking about using the adjusters from another model that there is no shoe adjustment on the XC90 parking brake (save cleaning the expanders from corrosion/crud)... all the adjustment is at the passenger footwell.

[carryoncampers]

Originally Posted by theseriojca

This is what I used as a guide.

As per tools, if you a specialist tool, great. If not, you'll need to come up with combinations of pliers/spanners/spacers.

Tips:
- remove the passenger seat for easier access.
- tie a string around the wee clip as soon as you can, it WILL fall into the space under the seat and it's very difficult to find then.
- after adjusting the parking brake there, and if it's still not strong enough, install the in wheel adjusters - like these

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/362727761...0AAOSwaNBUa0GS

- best £7 ever spent.

Thanks very much. The wording in the document is a bit unclear but will hopefully make sense when I get to it! Apart from a tool to pull out the clip, is the adjustment done by hand or does that need spanners or whatever?
In wheel adjusters look like a good idea, but hope I can get enough adjustment without having to wait for a delivery.
How easy is it to remove the seat?
Cheers.

[carryoncampers]

Originally Posted by Familyman 90

What did it fail on, efficiency or insufficient reserve travel?

Adjust each one at the wheel for efficiency, and then adjust the cable for travel.

Failed on efficiency, but no, I don’t think there are any adjusters at the wheel. Not yet anyway!
Thanks.

[Clan]

Originally Posted by Familyman 90

What did it fail on, efficiency or insufficient reserve travel?

Adjust each one at the wheel for efficiency, and then adjust the cable for travel.

there is no adjustment at the wheel ....

[Clan]

Originally Posted by carryoncampers

Thanks very much. The wording in the document is a bit unclear but will hopefully make sense when I get to it! Apart from a tool to pull out the clip, is the adjustment done by hand or does that need spanners or whatever?
In wheel adjusters look like a good idea, but hope I can get enough adjustment without having to wait for a delivery.
How easy is it to remove the seat?
Cheers.

The " wheel adjusters " are not approved by volvo for the XC90 , they are not part of the original design . They do not hold the shoes square to the drum like the forked spacer does .
If you run out of adjustment of the cable behind the passenger side centre console panel there is something wrong with the cables or expanders which needs repairing .. The " adjusters " are just masking the underlying fault which will still be there .
If you can get a short travel but still no grip see below :
The XC90 parking brake will be entirely adequate when repaired and adjusted and more importantly bedded in , heat the shoes up by driving at about 15 mph or a short distance with parking brake partially on , then when cool re- adjust . you should be able to lock the wheels with no more than the 2nd or 3rd click ...

common failure causes are :

1 - Rusty friction surface on inside of discs , no amount of cleaning will help
here , New discs required .
2 - Seized expanders
3 - Rusted / stiff cables
4 - No bedding in procedure Carried out
5 - Non-Volvo shoes used , very poor coefficient of friction .

[glengibson]

I used this guid, simple enough to understand
I did not have the correct tool to spread the 2 sections so used an adjustable spanner on left hand side and levered a small crowbar between that and the right hand section. You hear it click as they spread.

Quick tip when doing this (spreading the 2 sections) make sure handbrake is on first click BEFORE you try parting them
Also it needs quite a bit of force!

[theseriojca]

You're most probably correct, Clan, and the adjusters are not the 'ideal', or 'absolutely correct' solution to the problem.

But spending £7 and one hour resulting in a working parking brake always beats removing old cables, buying new genuine ones, running them under carpets, around seats, through the floor, under the car and only then maybe achieving the 'same' result - an MOT pass in this case.

Not trying to be cheap, but adjusters are the way to go for me. Of course, after new discs/shoes are fitted and everything else inside the wheel works fine.