Emergency brake problems

[vitesse@domain.elided]

Hi Glenn and all,

A buddy named Steve McMath sent this to me and I asked if I could forward
it along to the list.  FWIW, he has a Stag that has the Rover V8 and if I
recall correctly, the TR8 5 speed.  It is his daily driver...all over the
state of North Carolina....but I digress.

He wrote advising of a problem that I've never seen anyone else mention,
but it would be good to store this away for future reference.

His message:

I just thought you might be interested in a potential problem regarding
the emergency brake on the Stag.  I seems that there is nothing that
physically holds the release button in the brake handle.  A half moon
shaped piece of rod fits over the ratchet that locks the brake in place. 
The problem appears if you don't keep the hand brake properly adjusted. 
It the brake is pulled up to far the rod slips over the ratchet and the
button and the rod come off.  You are now faced with the brake being
locked on and no way to release it.  I learned this the hard way.  We
were in Helen, Ga. during Octoberfest (we didn't mean to be there but
that's another story) and the last 1 mile into town took about and hour. 
The Stag was beginning to run a little hot and it stalled, so I coasted
onto a side street and when I stopped and set the brake the release
button came out.  I ended up having to take the brake arm loose
to allow the brakes to release.  The real problem came when I tried to
put it all back together.  It all connects from under the car and the
exhaust system and the drive shaft are in the way.  It took the best part
of a day to accomplish.  After all of this I just thought a word of
advise might save you from this fate.

Take Care

Hugh R. McAleer
Jonesboro, GA

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