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Some friends of ours have left their VW Campervan on our drive whilst they go travelling. It's been there since mid December. It's a 30 year old van. I'm not sure what model except it's 1994 manufacture and 1896cc, see pic below. They already knew the vehicle battery was on it's last legs so I've been trickle charging it with a battery optimiser and occasionally starting it up. Today I thought I would move it a little to avoid any tyre flat spots and realised they'd left the handbrake on when they parked it up - unsurprisingly it's siezed on!
I knew this would be an issue as we live in an exposed spot out in the sticks and have had this happen before on our cars. We now know to leave them parked in gear and never leave the handbrake on, but I forgot to mention this to our friends!
Are there any easy DIY ways to free it? I've tried applying and releasing it and gently rocking it in forward and reverse but no joy. It's only seized on one wheel, the rear left. I haven't had chance to look underneath it yet to see if I can access the cable.
Tap the rear wheel nuts with a hammer (enthusiastically) can give rhe drum brake the jolt it needs to release
More aggression! Big hammer and hit it bit. Try and drive it and it should break free. Mid December is not that long so its unlikely to be very stuck.
Had this exact issue with a friend's car the other day.
gently rocking it in forward and reverse but no joy
I tried this, and got increasingly un-gentle until it popped free.
Try and drive it and it should break free
The problem with being on the gravel is the stuck wheel will just slide and plow a furrow in your drive
The problem with being on the gravel is the stuck wheel will just slide and plow a furrow in your drive
Yep! Now going back out with a big tapometer
Tap the rear wheel nuts with a hammer (enthusiastically) can give rhe drum brake the jolt it needs to release
Thank you. Big **** off hammer, lots of enthusiasm. It worked like a charm. Now parked up in gear and hand brake OFF!
and got increasingly un-gentle until it popped free.
👆
Wish I'd known I could have used a hammer when this happened to my partners Seat. Ended up taking the bloody wheel and drum brake apart in the road. Although my hammer wielding skills and the alloy wheel could have been a show stopper there.
Tap the rear wheel nuts with a hammer (enthusiastically) can give rhe drum brake the jolt it needs to release
Just make sure you haven't parked it on a hill... Ask me ho I know...
I’ve been trickle charging it with a battery optimiser and occasionally starting it up.
I'm not sure the advice these days is to start vehicles up occasionally?
Happy to be wrong but I think that because it'll not get hot enough it can do more harm than good?
I’m not sure the advice these days is to start vehicles up occasionally?
Happy to be wrong but I think that because it’ll not get hot enough it can do more harm than good?
Interesting. When I do, I let it warm gradually on idle for a good while, then gently rev it for a bit and repeat every few minutes increasing the revs a little each time. While I'm doing this the engine is running for about 30 minutes and everything is pretty warm by then. I know that ideally I'd take it for a drive every now and then, but it's SORN so that's not an option. If I am doing more harm than good I'll stop? They are going to be away for at least a year - maybe two!
Running them upto temp every few months isn't an issue I'd also use it as an opportunity to get the cab heaters on with a window down a smidge help keep it dry.
Ps its a T4.
And they're pretty damn good.
Ive one.
Would parking it nose away from the garage make it easier for the tow truck to take it away when your pals return and the old van predictably doesn't work?
Would parking it nose away from the garage make it easier for the tow truck to take it away when your pals return and the old van predictably doesn’t work?
😆 Maybe! It's handy for an external plug socket where it is though for the battery charger.
Ps its a T4.
And they’re pretty damn good.
Ive one.
Thanks, it's a lovely thing for sure. I'm van curious myself, so it's been interesting to mooch around it.
Thanks also for the reassurance about running it up to temp. I will the advice about heaters and windows onboard 👍
I rent a workshop at a friends house and they went away on holiday - they're farmers so its a bit of a big deal to go anywhere so lots of friends and neighbours had all mucked in various ways - feeding the cattle and so on but also checking on the house, funny little routines like turning the lights on in the evening then coming back and turning them off again at bed time.
One guy they know had taken it upon himself to come each day, start their car and run it for a while, and drive it backwards and forwards a few feet, you know to make sure things didn't seize up and so on.
The car is only 4 months old and John and Sally were only away for 4 days 🙂
Big **** off hammer, lots of enthusiasm
Now make sure that the wheelnuts will come off that wheel 🙂
For reference, this is the video that led me to make the comment up the page.
It's about motorcycles but essentially it's the same principle.
Makes sense to me although he seems to be suggesting that if you run it for a long time until the engine is really hot (like you say you're doing) then it's all good.
Taking it a drive would be better though I'd think.