Series
Land Rover Braking System
- Fault Diagnosis
Outline
of the braking system
operation.
A Series I,II or III Land Rovers has drum
brakes front and rear.
The 1948-49 Series I Land
Rover had a Girling hydrostatic
system which kept linings
in contact with the drum.
A later Land Rover has
the hydraulic system fitted.
80",86" and
88" had 10"
dia brake drums whilst
107" and 109"
had 11 inch drums. Series
IIa and III had the option
of dual braking system
with servo assistance.
Application of the hand
brake locks the rear prop
shaft and if in 4wd locks
the front prop shaft also.
Soft
brake pedal action
Air
needs to be bled from
system; fluid leaking
from pipes, master cylinder
or from wheel cylinders;
brake shoes or brake
steady post need adjustment;
swollen rubber components
due to incorrect fluid.
There is some advice
in the tech articles
section of this website on Bleeding
the brakes on a
Series Land Rover.
Hard brake
pedal action
Shoes
incorrectly adjusted;
wrong size brake linings;
faulty master cylinder.
Brake pedal
binds or fails to return
Master
cylinder or servo unit
mounting bolts loose;
pedal shaft requires
lubrication; weak or
missing pedal return
spring
Poor brakes
Brake
shoes or brake steady
post need adjustment; free
play in master cylinder
push rod needs adjustment;
wet, glazed or fluid
comntaminated brake
linings; wrong brake
linings fitted.
Land
Rover pulls to one side
Incorrect
tyre pressures; Brake
shoes or brake steady
post need adjustment; dirt/water
in the brake drums; restriction
in brake pipe; loose
wheel cylinder; mixed types of shoe
linings; excessively
worn or scored brake
drum.
Brakes:
chatter - Brake
shoes or brake steady
post need adjustment; loose or worn front
wheel bearings; distorted
or uneven brake drum
surface.
grab - Brake
shoes or brake steady
post need adjustment; brake linings incorrect
or contaminated; damaged
brake drums or high
spots on drum surface.
squeal - Brake
steady post needs adjustment
to prevent binding;
incorrect linings, foreign
object embedded or dirt
in the brake drums;
wheel cylinder loose;
loose or bent brake
shoe.
overheat - Brake shoe needs adjusting
away from drum surface;
master cylinder faulty
or push rod has no free
play; dirt
in the brake drums; high
spots on drum surface.
drag - Brake
shoes or brake steady
post need adjustment; master
cylinder push rod has
no free play; rubber boots on wheel
cylinder distorted;
seized brake shoe or
wheel cylinder piston;
weak or broken brake
shoe pull-off spring;
restriction in brake
pipe; loose front wheel
bearings.
lock - fluid soaked brake
linings; swollen rubber
components in wheel
cylinder or master cylinder;
loose wheel cylinder;
loose or damagedbrake
linings;
To see
previous homepages visit
the Series
Land Rover Archives
or 
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