Prado 90 Handbrake Adjustment & Cleaning

[pcambell1732 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close pcambell1732]

2nd post here guys - hoping to help someone out thats still working on their 90s (and seeking some additional advice)

My problem: The notoriously bad Prado 90 handbrake began failing to hold my Prado in place on slight inclines, forcing me to keep it in gear and putting all the pressure on my 1st gear - not ideal. I decided to have a go at fixing it myself. I was unable to find a full post on breaking down the assembly for cleaning/adjusting and reassembling so I'm making an attempt to do that with this post. If I missed a previous post let me know and ill add this there instead.

Pictures with step-by-step (to the best of my ability) here - http://imgur.com/a/SIeHg

I am STILL experiencing issues with the handbrake. Before I went at it myself, I took it to a mechanic to get an opinion and I was told the brake shoes were worn down to the metal/indicator. You can see in the pics above this is definitely not the case. Im at a loss for what else to do and looking for some advice from those much more experienced than me.

When I parked on a hill and engaged the handbrake, the tension was holding better than before, but still rolling forward/backwards. I decided to apply more pressure to the leaver (past 6 clicks) and felt a deep "thud" almost like tension was releasing somewhere inside the assembly. My best guess is the star wheel was too tight and the additional pressure caused it to fail, but I'm not sure. Have any of you experienced this before?

The last thing I will try, which I didn't have time to do over the weekend, is to adjust the bell crank on the backing plate. if anyone has some advice on this area please let me know.

Thanks for reading and looking forward to your comments!

[raydes Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close raydes]

http://www.lcool.org/technical/90_series/handbrake.html hope this helps... looking at your brakes you like playing in the mud. You will be forever cleaning and adjusting the rear drums, all drum brakes get full of s+it and do the same.

[juc33_prado Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close juc33_prado]

http://www.landcruiserclub.net/forum...our-hand-brake


http://www.pradopoint.com/showthread...ight=handbrake

[pcambell1732 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close pcambell1732]

Thanks raydes - The mud is too much fun to give up. I suppose I'll get better at it as time goes on! I see you're in Perth. I spend about 1-2 weeks a month in Perth and would love to explore some of the surroundings (+/- 2 hours from the city) if you have any suggestions. Flying in I always see tracks just outside the city that I'm sure would be a lot of fun to explore. I hear rented Prados have superpowers...

juc33_prado - Thanks, as well. Ill post this on the Pradopoint link. Now I remember coming across that one but didn't save it to come back to.

[Walky88 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Walky88]

Before adjusting the handbrake drum set up, back the cable off at the handle.

Adjust the rear wheel first, the best way i do it at work is by simply locking the wheels up (overadjusting) then back off 2-3 clicks on the adjuster. Then re-adjust the handbrake cable. Make sure you leave a little freeplay at the lever (so as to not overadjust the wheels).

Hope this helps yell out if you need anymore info!

[pcambell1732 Lurker Find all posts View Profile Close pcambell1732]

Thanks, Walky88.

Finally conquered it this weekend! Turns out I was backing off 2-3 full turns (down-up/up-down) instead of backing of 2-3 clicks! Whoops!!

Had a go at the bell crank as well, definitely needed a bit of adjusting as the stopper screw wan't touching the backing plate on either side. Also broke down the compensator arm, cleaned/greased and reassembled. Finally works a charm at 4-5 clicks of the handbrake.

Still haven't figured out how to adjust the handbrake cable in the cab on the handle. With pliers and a wrench, I just can't get a good grip on it due to the seat being in the way. Once I finally do have it secured (1 in 30 times) and try to loosen, the entire cable wants to turn. No need for this right now but as it's a challenge and I'd love to have another go at it one weekend.

Thanks for all the help here!