Any tips on improving the handbrake?

[steve_bmw]

After having e36, e39, e85 and now an e90 with the same handbrake setup non of them have been good, good enough to pass the mot but not confidence inspiring in daily use.

I have fitted new disc and shoes and adjusted properly but they never seem to bite and lock up as I would expect.

Thought about roughing up the inside of the disc so the shoes have something to grip on.

Any ideas or tips?

Cheers

[SouthHamsGaz]

Have you bedded them in?

If not drive along and yank the handbrake on a fair few times, should see some improvement afterwards.

[helix402]

If you do a Google search for poor BMW handbrakes there was a recent thread on here which explains in detail how to get a decent handbrake on a BMW.

Nb: as good as possible on a BMW!

[Triumph Man]

The one on my E39 isn't too bad. What I do, every so often, is get to about 25-30 mph, and pull on the handbrake until I can feel it biting, and drive for about 400 yds or so and release.

[steve_bmw]

I’ll try bedding it in tomorrow. Thanks