anyone know if you can adjust the handbrake via the cable

 

Yes you can.
Do you have a european style floor mounted lever or a pedal type?
TBH poor handbrake is often due to the self adjusters not working properly on the rear brakes, wip the drums off & check that the shoe to drum clearance isn't excessive first.
I think the cable adjustment is under the left side of the car if memory serves.

Also, if its a lever, the lever is supposed to come a long way up [so I'm told]. Basicly there's a lot of free travel. There's a double pawl & quadrant under the center console. You'll see how it works if you watch it operate as you lift the lever. I've modified mine to take up the free play so when i pull the lever the brake starts to operate after 3-4 clicks, It'll hold the car & caravan on a steep hill now!

 

Yeah the bellcrank is a real stupid arrangement that without the self modification that gareth mentions facilitates NO compensation for strecthing of the actual cable. I wonder how much they paid for some bright spark to come up with that dumb idea.

 

will all depend on the year. 2001 on has no adjustment on the cable. There is a recall on the old GS and the newer RG.

 

More details on my 'modification'. All I did was tape a 10 pence coin [about the size of a quater] to the floor to stop the mechanisum reaching the point where the pall dropped out of the quadrant. I then used a lever to pull up the slack in the cable until it was just starting to tighten but not apply the brakes.

 

Cheers for all that and its a 2003

 

then no cable adjustment just on the shoes.

 

thanks im going to try adjusting the shoes iv replaced the pads , discs and shoes and i may have to replace the handbrake lever to because the ratchet is slipping what a nightmare.

 

has it had the recall done?
did you make sure the pivot was free when you did the shoes?

 

i dont know about the recall. i checked the pivot and no problem there.