G'Day all,

I have an issue with my brakes that has become worse over the last 4 months.
Foot pedal: I can use the foot pedal and stop the car; however, the foot brake pedal does travel a long way (not to the floor). I have found that it works better when I pump it a few times, it 'hardens up' and doesn't travel nearly as far.
Hand Brake: Basically it doesn't hold me on any kind of hill. When I engage the hand brake the car tends to ' very slowly ' roll down hill. I need to park it with the hand brake on and engaged in 2nd gear to stop it from rolling away.

The brakes I have are all drum, I believe they are stock standard for a '73 clubman. I cannot see any problems with the master cylinder but I have an untrained eye .
I was hoping someone could tell me what the problems (I know there could be more than one) could be so I don't get some salesperson trying to do me over with the creditcard and spinning fancy terminology.

Thanks in advance for any info,
Swanbourne, Perth

_________________
Cheers,

Fade77
Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.

This means you have some air trapped in the system and it will need bleeding to remove it.



Could be a simple adjustment, you could try tightening up the two adjusting screws at the back of the handbrake lever.

A common fault with Mini handbrake is that the pivot point on the rear arms siezes up. It's a small quadrant that the cable runs in. They are pretty easy to take off.

Pete

It could be as simple as an out of adjustment issue, where 20 minutes and a screwdriver will fix it.
Alternately, it could be as bad as leaky cylinders, worn shoes and drums and ages hoses. The list goes on.

I would seriously suggest carting the thing down to a mini specialist and have them do the repairs. Brakes are the only safety feature on your car, and when you drive around with them in a poor state of service, you are compromising your safety and everyone around you.

Thanks for all your help, I will be booking it into a brake specialist today.

_________________
Cheers,

Fade77
Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.