Handbrake Problem Please Help!

[Mattpin2010]

Hi,
I have a Fiat Punto SX 60 and i have just had new brake shoes put on, once i did that i tried using the handbrake at 10mph and the nearside locks with the handbrake and you hear a skid but with the offside it doesnt lock! i have tried adjusting it on the offside and it still does not lock! what could be the problem? i looked behind the handbrake inside the car and the cable for the offside is sitting further back than the nearside! Would that be a new handbrake cable?? As i have tried adjusting and still get no lock from the offside wheel!
Please Help!! Thanks

 

[s130]

Some things come to mind:

Firstly consider taking the car back to the garage that did the work and get them to check everything out.

A possible cause of the problem could be

1) badly adjusted or disconnected cable mounting (I've not seed a Punto handbrake cable assembly so your "is sitting further back than the nearside!" is difficult to visualise without a picture

2) siezed lever assembly / or dismounted assembly in hub. If you directly operate the lever at the back of the hub (with wheel jacked up) can you a) move it at all & b) get any breaking?

3) contaminated drum / shoes with grease due to clumsy workmanship

4) leading edge of shoe braking compound has not been correctly chamferred. Some after market shoes require this treatment to allow the shoe to cleanly contact the drum with a larger surface area which then produces more internal force to allow shoe self centralisation followed by much better overall shoe surface to drum contact.

I've found Fiat handbrakes on drums to be notoriously poor. I'm trying to recall if I've ever been able to lock and skid the wheel on the handbrake except on loose gavel or wet surfaces. If you could do this before the shoes were changed then lucky you. If you are not sure that you could do this then there is the possibilty that the nearside is actually wrong and is snatching.

 

[noggy]

Hi

The person that has replied obviously has a lot of knowledge but just thought I'd comment as this sounds v.similar to a problem I had with my punto which I've now sold.

My advice would be to nip it in the bud with the dealer asap.

I had to make 5 or 6 visits to the dealer with this problem including 2 on a breakdown truck(!) and the issue was never resolved, I sold the car and am still in a battle with customer services who have been appauling in dealing with the numerous faults my vehicle had :bang:

The dealer's opinion was that the genuine Fiat parts (brake shoes) were made out of the wrong type of metal/coating and therefore it caused them to stick. I went through several lots of brake shoes as was reluctant to have non-genuine parts fitted to the vehicle but may be I should have done this. The enquiry then went off to technical dept in Italy and I never heard the outcome. Very frustrating.

Good luck with yours though.

 

[Mattpin2010]

Hi,
Thank you all for your tips, sorry its been so long since i replied but i have now resolved the problem, i had to get it done quick as it was an MOT failure, i changed the shoes on it and the brakes were fine but the handbrake wouldnt lock one of the wheels, it turned out in the end to be the handbrake cable that was at fault, it was worn completely, so i changed that and the wheel locked and it passed MOT.
Once again thank you for your replies!!