BRAKES

Te Ao Hou, October 1958, Page 44

BRAKES Brakes nowadays are hydraulic, but most of the older cars we have had in mind in these articles have mechanical linkage of some sort or another. In the case of mechanical brakes, if the pedal goes too far down to the floor-boards, leaving little margin for emergency, first check the pedal adjustment. Where the pedal works the brake-rods or cables beneath the floor-board, there is always an adjustment point. In hydraulic systems all that is probably needed is more of the special fluid in the reservoir. If these adjustments bring no improvement to your brakes, the next thing in either case is to jack up each wheel in turn (or preferably in pairs, front and then back). Behind the brake-drum there is always an inspection plate, and beneath it the adjusting nut or screw which the instruction book will explain to you. Tighten up each brake in turn until the brake shoe is just binding on the drum, then ease off one notch or turn to free the whee’. Then by testing the car you will find whether one brake is binding more than the others, pulling the car out of line, in which case the remedy is obviously to slacken it off further. Sometimes a leaking oil-seal has allowed oil to get around the wheel-bearing on to the drum and lining, causing the brake to lock suddenly, or work erratically. From this stage on it is best to go to a garage or a brake specialist, for if the linings are so far worn as to need replacement it is cheaper and more satisfactory in the long run to have the job done by the expert. There are traps, especially with hydraulics, which are better left to the expert to avoid.