Replaced rear caliper - handbrake now uneven

[breeze]

I just replaced the OSR caliper on my car. Handbrake was not working on that side. I went with TRW which I understood to be the OEM part provider.

All went well, however I have noticed that the handbrake on the new caliper does not grab as quickly as the one on the NSR when pulling up the handbrake.

Thoughts? Aware that the hand brake on the caliper is supposed to be self adjusting - does it just need some time to sort itself out? At the moment, NSR grabs well from around 7 clicks and OSR around 9. I know that the handbrake cables can be adjusted but, having looked online, I suspect lack of balance will remain.

Ideas?

[mjmallia]

The calipers would need checking and adjusting......both rears

Check out this

https://www.pelicanparts.com/techarticles/Volkswagen_Golf_GTI_Mk_V/119-BRAKES-Parking_Brake_Cable_Adjusting_and_Replacing/119-BRAKES-Parking_Brake_Cable_Adjusting_and_Replacing.htm

[breeze]

Thanks for sharing.

It turned out that the cable on that side was seized. Rather than the steel cable sliding inside the outer layer, the whole thing was moving a little (if that makes sense).

Not entirely clear if I needed to replace the caliper at all, I was going by a previous invoice from a garage that recommended replacing it. Hmm…!

Replacement of the cables looks straightforward enough, with a bit of a pain getting the arm rest out of the way.

[LC5F]

I've got to replace my off side cable at some point.
Due to remaining old cable likely to be stretched and I also suspect that the centre console will be a PITA... + they are surprisingly cheap ranging from £10 to £20 a side it seem rude not to do both at the same time.

[breeze]

Lesson from me… the cable that was seized came out easily. The cable that was fine got stuck in the handbrake tube, requiring a new tube and quite a lot more work. I still haven’t fitted it yet. If doing again I would just do the one.

Edited to add: Another way that you can reduce the risk of the handbrake cable getting caught is by chopping off the end at the lever/cabin end before trying to pull through. Should have thought of that.

Edited to add again: Job now done. The tube replacement makes a straightforward job much more painful. Carpet and sound deadening up, lots of juggling to refit the new tube. You really want to avoid having to do that if you can. Take it easy when pulling the old cable back down through the car and do consider chopping off the end before you try.