Parking Brake System: Description and Operation

Parking Brake

The parking-brake hand lever is mounted on the inner sill and incorporates the ratchet mechanism and release button.

The front cable is routed from the hand lever, under the carpet through to an abutment bracket adjacent to the transmission tunnel, and then connected to the relay lever. The relay lever is attached to a mounting plate by a center bolt on which it rotates. The relay lever mounting plate straddles the transmission tunnel, the plate is secured by four bolts on the coupe, and eight bolts on the convertible which has a longer plate. The relay lever acts as a center pull system to transmit the force from the hand lever to the rear brakes shoes. The equalizer which is positioned in the center of the rear brake cables balances the force that is applied to the rear brakes.

The rear brake cables are linked together: each cable passes through the suspension subframe and rear hub carrier and connects to a brake shoe expander lever. Application of the parking brake causes the rear cables to pull on the expander levers, the expander lever mechanism rotates on a pivot pin to force the brake shoes outwards to contact the brake drums.

The parking brake cables are adjusted by the rotation of a nut on the adjuster rod. The parking brake shoes are adjusted by means of a manual adjustment mechanism at each set of shoes.

If the vehicle is driven above 5 km/h with the parking brake applied, a warning lamp and text message will appear on the message center. The message clears when the brake is released or the speed drops below 3 km/h.

Parking Brake Shoe Arrangement





The adjuster mechanism enables manual adjustment of the brake shoes.

Retaining pins keep the shoes in contact with the dust shield.

The brake shoes locate into the expander lever and the adjuster mechanism.

Return springs retract the brake shoes when the parking brake is released.

The expander lever mechanism moves the brake shoes outwards, in contact with the brake drum when the parking brake is applied.