I'm replacing the handbrake cables on my 2014 1.2. OEM cables from Shop4Parts are Approx £120 (and only 1 side currently in stock) but they list after market cables at approx £33. I'm a bit wary of cheap aftermarket parts generally so bought a pair from EuroParts (Pagid) for £70. However, they are clearly lower quality than the originals and look as though they could be the same as the Shop4Parts after market parts (although difficult to be sure from the website photos) Does any one have experience of aftermarket cables (particularly Padgid or those from Shop4Parts)? Thanks
Technical Handbrake Cables
- Thread starter Skomervole
- Start date
Currently reading:
Technical Handbrake Cables
Not specifically handbrake cables, but various parts from S4P that have not been ‘genuine Fiat’ have been perfect. They wouldn’t sell you something they’d not be happy with.
A couple of things to be aware of if considering the S4P aftermarket cables (which are of course a lot cheaper than OEM or Pagid cables) Firstly at the handbrake lever end the inner cable is proud of the nipple and has to be filed off before the nipple will fit into the cable retainer (easier done before it is fitted to the car!) At the brake shoe end the nipple is longer than the original and doesn't fit as well (see photos) The Pagid cable didn't have the problem at the handbrake lever end. Not sure whether it would have fitted better onto the shoes as I had returned them before I noticed the issue.
Attachments
At the handbrake lever end if it is proud of the nipple you can't fit it into the retainer. Thinking about it now you might be able to by disconnecting both cables and removing the retainer so that you have enough loose so it will go in at an angle before twisting it flat and then reattaching the retainer. However neither the original or Pagid cables had cable protruding from the nipple at the handbrake lever end and could be installed flat. At the other end the problem wasn't that the inner cable was protruding from the nipple but that the nipple was longer than the original and therefore didn't fit as well
On reflection I wouldn't try the work around outlined above as it might be very difficult to remove if necessary in future. Far better to file the excess cable away.
