Hi guys. Thanks for an informative set of postings. I appreciate it was a while ago but helped me today. Good pictures too. Exactly what I needed.
First thing was to check the top of the handbrake lever. So, gently eased off the window switch cover using an electrical contact screw driver, then released the four small cross heads holding the switch panel in place. Eased that out of the way and found it wasn't the sort you can adjust from the top!!
I think if I wasn't doing the work outside in a wet field behind my house, I'd have slid underneath first to check in the tunnel above the brake drum itself. May sound daft but sitting in the car with a cuppa and a smoke seemed a lot easier than getting soaked again just to confirm something!!
To be fair, access from underneath is not quite as easy as it at first appears, due to a lack of space. Getting two hands into the area is near impossible when laying underneath.
So, Trans Box set to neutral, main gear selector (auto-box) in neutral and hand brake off.
After putting the chock in place at the front, I jacked up one rear wheel about a half inch off the ground, to check for wheel rotation and brake operation.
The adjuster bolt head on the front of the brake drum is easy to find and adjust. Tightened it fully and then backed off one and a half turns and checked the hand brake travel. I was still getting over five 'clicks' which was an MOT fail.
Above it, in the 'tunnel' the cable/adjusters from the lever are obvious too. I pulled down the protective shielding, gave the threaded area and nuts a quick wire brush down and tried to work out how best to do it. Several expletives have been deleted here as this is a family show.
I ended up jamming a spanner on to the lower nut and the ring end on top of the Trans Box. Mole grips were tried but I couldn't see past them to the top nut.
To access the top nut, I used a small adjustable spanner. All my other 20 mm's are just too long. This was the beginning of a long period of rotating the top nut to the right (upwards or clockwise as I looked at it). After coating the tunnel with bits of knuckle skin and blood, I finally had the travel of the hand brake lever down to three 'clicks', the recommended number.
Quick dab of grease and slid the protective cover back up.
I'd like to say easy and I suppose compared to many 'jobs' on the Landy, it is but what a pain in the you know where! Not a mechanic, just an enthusiastic DIYer due to to a lack of money so there may be a better, easier way to carry this little job out, without removing the entire centre console. Any 'pro's' out there got any tips on a simpler way?
It still leaves the question begging of why did they change the design from the relatively simple top access adjuster? Plenty of space in there for it. Cheaper? Or just another example of unnecessarily complicating it and making the DIYer work harder and not want to get stuck in......?
Regardless, thanks again fellas, you've come through again, so thanks for posting.
Regards
Rob
