Help needed asap

I bought a series 2 a diesel yesterday. drove it back home 100miles everything was fine. fitted a full new exhaust today. took it out for a test drive and ran sweet as a nut.

Just tried to take the father in law out for a spin and it will move but forwards it is like the brakes are stuck on. goes backwards with no problems at all??

In low range it is easier to move but still feels as if the brakes are trying to stop me all the time. (I did take the handbrake off)

Any Ideas?????

sounds like the linings of the shoes either on the handbrake or the rear axle brakes. Take the drums off and have a look if this is the case the linings will fall out when you take the drum off

Thanks for your reply.

I had an idea to jack up each wheel to see if ithey would turn freely. back ones rotated no problem at all but the front ones wouldnt budge. I am suspecting front brakes need looking at..

does this sound correct/

Cheers

does it have drum brakes on the front? if so take them apart and the same will happen as i said for the rear if this isn't the problem then strip down the axle and look to see if any thing has ceased up

Had similar problem with my s3, the front brakes just seized on me, they were just nackered and old, pads had run too low as well which didn't help I'm sure. Threw them away and replaced them easier than trying to fix them.

Is there any free play in the brake peddle. There should be! Sometimes people adjust the play out of the peddle (because they want to sell it?) and this will cause the whole systen to pressurise.

If the brake shoes on the front are not at fault, check that the flexible brake hoses are not acting as non-return valves( locking in brake pressure on the cylinders) However unusual for both to fail at the same time. More likely that the shoes or the springs have failed, or some cowboy has over-adjusted the brake adjusters and they too could have failed causing the shoes to jam in the hubs.

Hi All

Thanks for the replies. The plan is to overhaul the brakes all round as i dont know the history of the brakes on at present. firstly need to get it off the drive and onto the street to jack her up, starter motor is in bits awaiting a new solenoid as it has failed. looks like has been faulty for a while judging by the hammer marks on the casing. oh well keeps me busy!

If the front brakes are jammed on you're likely to have problems getting the drums off. Roll it backwards to try to unjam them as much as possible and back off the adjusters on the brake backplate fully. I'm thinking the hydraulic wheel cylinders may have seized up. Regarding the solonoid, I managed to pull the solonoid to bits on the Lucas Starter on my Transit engine and clean up the contacts with sand paper - saved myself £50. You need a powerfull soldering iron to unsolder the windings from the end cap though.

Hello Fenby1976

I did try and take the old solenoid to bits for a cleanup to no avail. just couldnt get the thing to bits. £20 fleebay purchase for a new solenoid just waiting delivery. the adjusters on the backplate look like they have seen better days. paddocks sell a refurb kit for series brakes with shoes adjusters springs and cylinders for £68 so i think that'll be me next purchase for the old girl. trying to persuade the ball and chain to part with more money after it took me 2 years to persuade her we actually do need a tax exempt landy is a bit tougher than trying to get her to go out in it.

My brake adjusters are a bit chewed up too - I've found mole grips work well on them. I'd recommend making sure that the problem is in the brake drums before shelling out any money. I'd check that it's not something mechanical, like a broken diff, or a problem with the master cylinder. My own philosophy is to do only what's necessary when it comes to the hydraulic braking system as the brake pipe unions can get seized up, which means you'll need to replace copper piping and before you know it you've replaced nearly the whole braking system.

I did find after it had stood on the Drive/garden (diddnt finish the drive but thats another sore point) for a day or so it pulled away freely. I have had it round the block since and does feel like the brakes. wasnt near as bad as when it first happened but could still feel it binding slightly.

I have a Range Rover that grabs but will free slightly in reverse, problem oil in handbrake drum due to seal u/s.

Andy.