Technical Parking Brake Cable Length

[Guber1]

Hi everyone.

I'm planning to replace my parking brake cable, I'm always having problems on the annual inspection, brake pads are new, and disc also, so next point are the cables. But taking a look to the catalogue I can't figure out which ones are the correct ones, mine is a Ducato L3H2 and I don't know if each ducato have its own cable depending on the length or is always the same and the only difference is the length of the metal connecting rod which is above.
I have seen on the catalogue different sizes and I'm not sure, I tried measuring it but no length seems to be exactly equal...

Thanks

 

[Communicator]

Hi,
I assume that you are referring to the rear bridle cable. There is adjustment for any small variation in length by means of two nuts on the longitudinal rod. What is to be gained by fitting a new cable, if the old one is sound? If it stretches slightly in early use, a replacement cable may make matters worse.

 

[lycopersicum]

There is a procedure for adjusting the handbrake cable tension that is not entirely obvious on e-learn -- first loosen everything then tighten several places in a certain order, if I remember.

Besides that, have you inspected / changed the drum brake shoes?

 

[Guber1]

Drum brake shoes are new, I have tried many times to adjust tension, but is not enough. So maybe the cable is absorbing some of the tension because is old, similar thing happend on my bike's clutch.

 

[lycopersicum]

One last thing to check, out of the top of my mind, is that the cable attaches to a lever under the van and if the cable length is not set right this lever can end up with a poor angle that gives it no leverage to pull on the brakes.

 

[bugsymike]

You don't mention which engine and year etc. I see gen three with the 3 litre engine has disc brakes on rear. If a handbrake on a disc brake caliper and the internal self adjusting has failed then handbrake will be poor until a new caliper is fitted. If working correctly a small movement with your thumb on the caliper lever should bring brake on.
Either way shoes or brake pads on the hand brake side they have to be working correctly at the wheel so minimal brake linkage travel before it starts to work most efficiently. Which ever set up I always test/adjust at the wheel, so that I know that as soon as I start to activate the brake is at it's most efficient position.
The reason for this is to do with leverage, the pull on a lever at 90 degrees is most efficient, once a brake is out of adjustment then efficiency drops.
So if all that is good and handbrake cable is undamaged , often little or no cable adjustment is needed.
If your vehicle is a L3 LWB then somewhere along the handbrake system that extra length needs to be taken in to account. It may be a rod section for the longer vehicle in which case standard length hand brake cables are OK, but until you know for sure make sure your supplier has all the details of your model.
I see in my long reply some of my queries have been answered.
So with correctly fitted rear brake shoes, bedded in and self adjusters adjusted manually, I would expect system to work well.
I have had 3.5 tonne Iveco Daily's with a 3.5 tonne loaded trailer on the back with smaller handbrake shoes working inside a disc rear brake and had no problem holding on steep hills.

 

[Communicator]

For general information I am attaching the handbrake adjustment procedure extracted from 244 eLearn. As far as I can see the only difference for the 250 model is a reduced initial clearance between brake shoes and drum. I have adopted this for my 244, and noted it on the document. I have also added required spanner sizes, which saves venturing underneath with the wrong size.
For comparison I am also attaching the almost identical procedure for the 250 model saved from a forum.

 

[lycopersicum]

@Communicator I believe your x250 document is missing some steps at the end.

 

[Communicator]

@Communicator I believe your x250 document is missing some steps at the end.

Thanks, quite possibly, since it is a copy of information published on a forum. However I think that the only significant difference between the two procedures is the smaller initial clearance suggested in the x250 version.

 

[Reg 65]

I got an MOT advisory that the outer sheath of my X2/50 long handbrake cable was rusting, so I replaced it. But on cutting the cable open I found the outer cable still had plenty of thickness and inner cable was still in perfect condition so I need not have bothered,

 

[bugsymike]

I got an MOT advisory that the outer sheath of my X2/50 long handbrake cable was rusting, so I replaced it. But on cutting the cable open I found the outer cable still had plenty of thickness and inner cable was still in perfect condition so I need not have bothered,

I would have taken the advisory as just that, unless my own inspection convinced me otherwise.
A favourite used to be rusting ferrule on brake flexy hoses. I have often found different Mot testers have their own pet "hobby horses", I had one who would always fail Ford Fiesta rear suspension arms for excess movement by rocking the car with the handbrake on, until I fitted a brand new pair of genuine Ford arms and said try that, they were exactly the same!