Handbrake cables - Help! lol

[Jhonno]

Right in the middle of my rear arm swap and i cant figure out how to release the handbrake cables.. they are the only thing stopping me taking the arms off now

Anyone able to give me a bit of a step by step before i do my own version

1. Select hacksaw.....

(i know i've asked before but i was bein thick n didnt quite get what needed doing exactly

[Jhonno]

Btw when i say release i mean remove them completely as i need to change them with ones for discbrakes

[Martinaston]

Take the nuts off the ends first.
Then get a pair of mole grips on the metal collar on the end of flexable sheath and just keep twisting untill it gives in.

[Jhonno]

on the back of the drum or up by the fuel tank?

[Jhonno]

nuts off the end? sorry for bein thick im not usually this bad.. just cant see any nuts

[Martinaston]

Up by the fuel tank and use loads of wd40.
If your changing the arms dont bother with that end.

[Martinaston]

The nuts that hold it to the handbrake

[Jhonno]

ah excellent - at last im beginning to see the light

Ta dude - your a legend

[Martinaston]

Do you have the new ones to go on ?
Have a look at them to see what your up against.

[Jhonno]

that means i gotta remove all the bloomin heat sheilds tho yeah?

[Martinaston]

No
they go into two pipes that run along the top of the transmissin tunnel, that's where they rust and cause problems when you want to take them out.

[Jhonno]

not got the new ones yet no.. was just goin to ring round see if anyone had some (nothing like forward planning eh? )

[Jhonno]

Woohoo!! My local ECP has one in - last one n all how lucky is that?!

[Martinaston]

You need two

[Jhonno]

er...... i hope he realises that then

[Jhonno]

Ԛ£12 for 1 cable? that sound about right? seems alot for just 1/2 of whats needed..

[Martinaston]

Ԛ£12 each side, thats without the VAT

[Jhonno]

right got 2 cables now...

can see how they work kinda..

i can see they go into those pipes along the transmission tunnel - where do they come out and attach to? do i have to remove the heat sheild to get to it?

[Martinaston]

eer the handbrake

[Karan]

Dan get inside the car remove handbrake gaitor and u will see where the 2 cables attach on the handbrake linkage.... there are 2 nuts holding them on,,,,

did u not get cables with ure arms?

[Jhonno]

D'oh! No didn't get handbrake cables just gone and bought them, think I understand now.

[Jhonno]

Handbrake cables are off, drivers side come off easy

[calder]

have you got the cables off the trailing arms yet?
If not you need to remove the bracket that the handbrake shoe mechanism pviots on from the trailing arm. This is held on with two bolts and IIRC these bolts need a 14mm socket with a 1/4" drive becuase of the tight access or a possibly very short 3/8" socket.
This bracket doesnt actually hold the cables to the arm but removing it allows you to relatively easily drive the ends of the cables out of the arms with a screwdriver and hammer.
hth

[Jhonno]

Nearly all done now.. all bolts just need tightening up

Rear antiroll bar fitted

Just need to work out how to attach the cables into the actual handbrake bit in the hub if you see what i mean.. gotta remove the old cut cables 1st tho

anyone able to help with that?

Big shout out to Karan and Martinaston for helping me get this far the penny droppped in the end The reason i kept asking bout the heatsheilds is i thought the handbrake cables attached to the handbrake handle under the car