27 December, 2011 
I’m feeling chilled this evening.
No, it’s not due to post-Christmas relaxation. I’ve spent five hours lying on frozen ground beneath our Land Rover Defender TD5 changing the handbrake cable.
It’s a job that requires liberal use of the swearbox as, unlike as our previous Defenders, the ‘improved’ design of the TD5 means a cable change entails removing the rear propshaft, the handbrake drum and the brake shoes before pulling fittings out the wrong way. (And I’d thought the 300 TDi’s was challenging to change!)
The ‘improved’ design also includes no access to the back of one of the shoe retaining pins and limited access to it from inside the mounting.
On top of the design issues, previous work on the propshaft and brake drum was a bodge. I found a mix of metric and imperial nuts and bolts, some damaged, on the propshaft, the brake drum retaining screw was damaged and a retaining spring was damaged.
I also went through three lights and five light bulbs as the freezing temperatures proved too much for them.
I finally finished at 5.30pm, well after dark, with the help of the Other Half. The new hand brake works but will need a slight adjustment tomorrow and the propshaft was okay when I tested the truck. Well, when I say okay, I mean it didn’t fall off and propelled the truck forwards.
Actually, the propshaft is knackered with far too much play in the sliding joint. How much? It fell apart when I removed it. I’ve fixed it enough to make the truck driveable in the short term but a replacement is already on order.
As for the handbrake, job done. I’ll do a detail ‘how to’ later.
Here’s how it unfolded:
Replacing handbrake cable on our Defender TD5. Means taking off the rear propshaft. Bolts are supposed to be 14mm, actually they're 9/16in.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
Most of my tools are metric, only have one 9/16in ring spanner. Fortunately neighbour has old tractor & imperial tools so has 9/16 spanners.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
Rear propshaft off the Defender TD5, revealing the large Pozidrive screw that holds the brake drum on. Some sod has stripped the screw head.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
@Krizanovich An idiot using power tools? Yes, the "bacon comes from dead pigs" story is always a jaw dropper.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
With judicious filing, I restored enough of the screwhead to get some purchase & remove the screw. Defender TD5 handbrake drum is now off.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
Old handbrake cable removed from Defender TD5. New one is through backing plate & hooked into retainer. Need lunch before continuing.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
@Krizanovich I have Stonehead face pack in place at the moment: 2 parts grease, 1 part WD40, 2 parts mud. Looking better by the second.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
New handbrake cable fitted to Defender TD5—much use of swearbox! Propshaft back on. Truck tested. Okay but small adjustment of cable needed.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
Will adjust Defender's handbrake cable tomorrow. I'm too frozen after spending five hours on freezing ground under truck. Need to thaw now.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
Thawing was not a good idea. Every muscle in my shoulders, back & legs that was in contact with freezing ground under the truck is aching.—
Stonehead (@stonehead1) December 27, 2011
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(lifeattheendoftheroad.wordpress.com)
Shame about the screw head however the propshaft bolts should have been imperial not metric – they are the same as on all the series and current defenders. 9/16th and 14mm are so close in size it comes down to the quality of the tool/amount of corrosion/rounding of the fastening, normally there is no problem interchanging.
http://www.difflock.com/buyersguide/tools/lr_propshaft_tool.shtml are quite nice but hard to justify financially….
None of my numerous 14mm spanners or sockets would fit the old bolts, but the 9/16th did. The 9/16th spanners didn’t fit the new new bolts, but the 14mm spanners and sockets did. The old bolts were fractionally loose in their holes, the new bolts were slightly tight. The various TD5 guides on changing the cable/removing the propshaft also referred to 14mm tools. Given all that, I assumed the TD5 was metric.
Aaahh…… for a mechanics trolley eh Stoney (with padded head cushion of course). Perhaps even a small electric blanket with long lead.
As for spanners I purchased a set of spanners not so long ago, being tired of what you are finding with ill fitting and wrong types. A vertical standing cased set with metric and imperial spanners on either side. Of all common sizes and it has been one of the most useful tools I have in my shed.
But the vehicle manufacturers still work to “improve” their new vehicles, probably hoping that we will go approved garages or buy specialised tools for one off jobs.
Hey, I would love to see more of this repair. I have to replace the cable on my Disco 1, and they have the same drum. I’ve already taken the shaft and the drum cover off, but I don’t really know what’s next.