Rear Brakes binding

[mrmorrisminor]

Hi there, got a call from my mum to say that her rear brakes were smoking after a long run this moring. She also said that the brakes were not very efficient (I guess due to the overheating and associated brake fade), she also said that the pedal went almost to the floor.

I Jacked it up (with the handbrake off) and both rears were binding equally so I thought it might be the handbrake. (you could turn them by hand but not easily)

-The handbrake appears to go right down and the cable goes slack. cratch:

-I took each wheel and drum off in turn and backed off the self adjuster. (it seems as if it had over adjusted itself)

-It looks as if there is meat left in the shoes (I'm only going by what I would expect to see on my Morris Minor mind!)

All now seems well...... we have pulled the handbrake and it bites well, the brakes opperate as normal and do not bind..... Why would it try to 'over adjust' like this? Anyone got any ideas? I'm not going to let her use it until we get to the bottom of it.

[ron]

Did you slacken the handbrake?Are the cylinders free & dry?If the brakes were smoking I advise the shoes are changed as overheating can affect the shoe/lining bonding.If a lining breaks free, it will ride round & possibly lock the brake solid.Make sure the auto adjust ratchet lock is located into the star wheel.Changing the fluid is also not a bad idea.Good luck.

[steve valentine]

Also, make sure the brake fluid didn't boil as this can cause pitting on the rear cylinders and make them leak!

[mrmorrisminor]

Thanks for the suggestions. I released the handbrake so that it was in the driving position. Is there a separate adjustment for that? All seemed ok with the star wheel. I slackened off the adjustment and then (very gently) got someone to press the pedal slighly so I could see it notch round on its ratchet.

I will get a new set of shoes for good measure and replace them.

Thanks again.

[BlueBlingo]

Thanks for the suggestions. I released the handbrake so that it was in the driving position. Is there a separate adjustment for that? All seemed ok with the star wheel. I slackened off the adjustment and then (very gently) got someone to press the pedal slighly so I could see it notch round on its ratchet.

I will get a new set of shoes for good measure and replace them.

Thanks again.

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