REAR BRAKES

The rear brakes consist 1 of vented discs with single piston calipers and handbrake shoes inside the disc. After prising off a spring clip for the outer brake pad, we slackened two Torx T40 slider bolts, which were surprisingly tight.

After easing off the 2 caliper, the brake pads were extracted and looked to be in good condition and with plenty of miles remaining, unlike the front brake pads. The discs were also in good condition.

We didn’t know the 3 condition of the handbrake shoes, so decided to have a look. First, we removed the caliper by undoing two 18mm bolts, which would allow us to remove the disc and inspect the shoes.

The brake disc is 4 retained by a single Torx T30 screw. Mer-tech always checks this can be undone when it starts the job. If it has seized, it can sometimes be heated up, but may need to be drilled out.

The adjuster for the 5 handbrake shoes needs to be backed off before the brake disc can be removed. It’s positioned at three o’clock and any of the wheel bolt holes can be used to access it with a flatblade screwdriver.

Despite the handbrake 6 shoes having been backed off, the brake disc refused to come off until we hit its face with a hammer. This helped to shift the handbrake shoes and fully back them away from the disc.