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voodoo92
Fully Licenced
150 Posts
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 Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 11:10:52 AM
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So my handbreak is being a pain. The rod in the middle fell down the shaft when i tryed to put another button on it a few weeks ago and got jammed. First i couldnt get the brake to stay on and then my brother had a crack at it and made it worse. It wouldnt stay off now. Since then i have managed to get it off slightly and move my car but the rod is still jammed down. My bro said that i would have to take out the passenger seat and rip up the carpet to get to a hole to undo a part of it and pull it out to fix it. I was wondering if there were a simpler way to fix this than doing something drastic like pulling half the car apart. Cheers
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Bassist by day, VN nut by night |
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Mechknight73
National Driver
1001 Posts
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Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 2:02:13 PM
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For a start, to back off the handbrake, you will see a "pulley" with a bolt adjustment on it under the car. This will allow you to back off the handbrake so that at least you can move your car. Very simple mechanism, just spray it with CRC if it gives you trouble.
There is a zip down the front of the handbrake boot. If you unzip that, you can see and feel inside the handbrake lever, should allow you to get at that rod. If you REALLY have to replace that handbrake lever, I can transcribe the instructions from my repair manual. It is however, very unusual for these levers to completely break down. It would mean that the rod has somehow snapped and that's REALLY unusual. |
Edited by - Mechknight73 on 17 Apr 2010 2:05:38 PM |
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voodoo92
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150 Posts
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Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 3:43:32 PM
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| Atm and for about a week and a half, i have had removed the whole centre console so i can see the ratchet machanism and everything. It appears to me (an 18 yr old idiot btw) that the rod has slipped off a kind if shelf that it was sitting on and according to luke (bro) a spring has come undone. |
Bassist by day, VN nut by night |
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Mechknight73
National Driver
1001 Posts
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Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 4:51:35 PM
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He's right about the spring, but now that you have the console off, it's also an easy process to get the passenger seat out. 4 allen key bolts hold it to the floor. Side it fully forward first, undo the back ones, then slide it full back to undo the front ones. Then all you have to be careful of, is not scratching anything when you lift the seat out of the way.
The ratchet mechanism consist of only a few moving parts; the arm itself, the ratchet rack that has the teeth the end of the rod locks on, and the rod itself. There should be a pivot somewhere within that mechanism that releases the locking mechanism from the teeth.
To disconnect the mechanism from the handbrake cable, undo the pulley/cable arrangement from underneath. Once that is done, there will be 4 bolts holding the lever assembly to the floor. Find the park brake switch connector and unplug it. The good new is that this entire handbrake lever assembly barely changed at all from the VB-VS Commodores, so even if new parts are unavailable, there's no shortage of them in wrecking yards.
If you're careful how you cut it, you don't have to take out the whole interior. You can hide the cuts under the console. You may also be able to "seal" the sides of the cut with an iron on mender. You can buy mending patches from anywhere that sells sewing stuff. My VN has a tear in the driver's seat, and used one of these to good effect to hold the seat together, until I can afford to get it fixed professionally. That may mean taking out the driver's seat as well. You just have to be firm with the iron, and make sure you don't touch the iron directly to the carpet; being nylon fibre, it will melt and look ugly if you get it wrong. Restrict the heat only to the patch, and nobody will know it's been patched, as it's all under the console. |
Edited by - Mechknight73 on 17 Apr 2010 4:54:57 PM |
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voodoo92
Fully Licenced
150 Posts
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Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 6:19:28 PM
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| I was working at 530ish time so daylight was not my friend, but can only find 3 bolts for the seat. The front/right hand part does not have a bolt but wont come out still. And does any of that involve getting under my car at all? because i have a flat front right tyre and to bald backs and its parked in my driveway on a hill. So jacking her up wont be to easy or safe from my POV. Cheers |
Bassist by day, VN nut by night |
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Mechknight73
National Driver
1001 Posts
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Posted - 17 Apr 2010 : 11:07:00 PM
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The bolts should be in the tracks that the seat slides along, one for each corner. You may have something covering the bolts, such as someone's misguided version of a trim cover, or crap covering the bolt heads. You shouldn't have to get under the car at all to take the seats out, unless someone has somehow messed with the original bolts. Try gently rocking the seat back and forth, to see if you can source exactly where it's pinned down
If you need to get under it at all, firmly chock the rear wheels, lift up the front end, and put the front wheels down on some bricks. If it's in park, or a manual gearbox is in top gear with the rear wheels chocked, it's extremely unlikely it's going anywhere. This is the basic way to raise a car when you either don't have axle stands, or it's unsafe to use them.
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