Rear Disc Brake Caliper

Except for the 66 kW model without ABS, produced before October 1992, the rear axle is fitted with disc brakes instead of drum brakes. As with the front axle brakes, these are floating-caliper disc brake assemblies.

In addition to the hydraulic actuation via the brake pedal, the disc brake assembly can also be actuated by the parking brake cable system. The lever to which the corresponding cable is attached actuates a pushrod, which presses the brake piston against the pads.

Automatic Adjustment
Disc brake assemblies in this vehicle are always self-adjusting: as the brake pads wear, the brake piston simply moves further out of the caliper housing, thereby keeping the brake pads in firm contact with the brake disc. Because the added volume in the cylinder is filled with brake fluid, play cannot develop.

The mechanical parking brake system works differently: here, the actuating pushrod would at some point be unable to reach the piston that moves outward if there were no adjusting device. The device "lengthens" the pushrod as needed. The main part of the adjustment is a thread, onto which part of the pushrod is screwed further forward as the pads wear. The actuating mechanism thus becomes longer. Therefore, when replacing the pads, the brake piston cannot simply be pushed back; it is turned back via the adjusting device.