By Core Brake Parts Tech Team — Circleville, OH warehouse
The 2009-2021 Lotus Evora does not clamp its rear calipers to hold the car. It uses a separate pair of small drum-brake shoes that expand inside a drum formed into the hat of each rear disc, applied by a traditional cable lever between the seats. When the parking brake feels weak, pulls up too far, or drags, the fix is almost always shoe adjustment through the backplate followed by cable adjustment until Lotus's target of 4 or 5 lever clicks is reached.
How the Evora Parking Brake Works
According to the Lotus Evora service notes (section JL.5), the ratchet lever mounted between the seats pulls a single primary cable. That cable runs to an equalising yoke at the front of the engine bay, which splits the pull evenly between left and right secondary cables. The secondary cables are routed through the lower wishbones to the rear brake backplates.
At each rear wheel, the cable hooks onto a lever mechanism that pushes the lower ends of two parking brake shoes apart. The shoes work inside a drum that is cast integrally with the rear brake disc - often called a drum-in-hat design. The upper ends of the shoes pivot against an adjustable-length abutment, and its toothed adjuster screw is reached through a hole in the brake backplate.
This matters for diagnosis: the AP Racing four-piston rear calipers play no part in holding the car when parked. A car with perfect rear pads can still have a poor parking brake, and a car with a strong parking brake can still have worn rear pads.
| Item | Evora detail |
|---|---|
| Service brakes | AP Racing four-piston calipers, front and rear |
| Parking brake type | Cable-operated shoes inside a drum in the rear disc hat |
| Lever adjustment target | 4 or 5 ratchet clicks, fully applied |
| Rear disc (original Evora/Evora S) | 332 mm diameter, 26 mm thick new, 24 mm service minimum |
| Front disc (original Evora/Evora S) | 350 mm diameter, 32 mm thick new, 30 mm service minimum |
| Evora 400/410/430/GT discs | Larger: 370 mm front, 350 mm rear |
Common Parking Brake Problems and Symptoms
- Lever pulls up too many clicks. Lotus checks the parking brake at each service by pulling the lever fully and counting ratchet clicks. More than 5 clicks means the shoes are too far from the drum or the cable has stretched.
- Car rolls on a slope with the lever up. Usually the same cause as above: shoes out of adjustment. Less often, a contaminated or glazed shoe lining, or a seized actuating lever at the backplate.
- Rear brake drag or heat with the lever down. The shoes or cable are adjusted too tight. The service notes specifically require that there is no drag with the lever fully released after any adjustment.
- Brakes warning lamp stays on. The lever's ratchet pawl operates a microswitch that lights the brakes tell-tale whenever the ignition is on and the parking brake is applied. The Evora owner's handbook says to confirm the lamp goes out before driving off. If it stays lit with the lever fully down, check the switch and lever travel, and check the brake fluid level before driving.
- Lever will not release or will not stay up. The release is a button in the end of the handgrip. Lotus's instruction is to pull the lever up, press and hold the button, and lower it fully. A lever that will not latch or release points to the ratchet and pawl in the lever assembly rather than the rear brakes.
Why the Shoes Go Out of Adjustment
The Lotus service notes point out that unless the parking brake shoes are mal-adjusted, the shoe material should suffer little wear. On a car that is driven normally, the shoes only touch the drum when the car is already stopped. So a gradual increase in lever travel on an Evora is more often cable stretch and settling than worn linings.
The exception is a car that has been driven with the parking brake partly applied, or that was adjusted too tight. Then the shoes rub the drum at speed, overheat and glaze. The other common trigger is rotor replacement: the drum is part of the rear disc, so fitting new rear rotors changes the drum surface the shoes see, and the adjuster needs resetting afterward.
Parking Brake Adjustment, Step by Step
This is the sequence from the Lotus service notes. Work on level ground with the front wheels chocked and the car safely supported on stands.
- Release the parking brake lever fully and slacken the adjuster on the left-hand secondary cable completely. Shoe adjustment must be done with no cable tension.
- Remove both rear wheels.
- Rotate the disc until the access hole lines up with the toothed adjuster screw behind it.
- With a brake adjusting tool or flat screwdriver, turn the adjuster downward to expand the shoes until the disc cannot be turned by hand.
- Back the adjuster off by the minimum amount needed for the disc to turn freely without rubbing.
- Repeat on the other side.
- Tighten the cable adjuster to take up slack until the lever reaches 4 or 5 clicks when fully applied.
- Release the lever and spin each rear disc to confirm there is no drag. Refit the wheels and torque the wheel bolts to the value in the factory service manual.
If you can reach 4 or 5 clicks but the car still will not hold on a slope, the problem is the friction surfaces, not the adjustment. That means removing the rear disc to inspect the shoes and drum.
Replacing Parking Brake Shoes or Rear Rotors
To get to the shoes, the service notes call for fully slackening the shoe adjuster and removing the rear disc. Mark each shoe's position before removal, turn each steady pin a quarter turn to free the shoe, let the shoes fold outward, release them from the adjuster, then remove the upper retraction spring and lever the shoes out of the adjuster mechanism slots. Clean the backplate, check that the actuating lever moves freely, and lightly lubricate the pivot and adjuster threads with brake grease - never the lining.
Because the disc comes off for this job anyway, it is the right time to measure it. On the original Evora and Evora S, Lotus lists a rear disc thickness of 26 mm new and 24 mm as the service minimum, with runout no more than 0.10 mm in service. Check the drum surface inside the hat as well: scoring or a lip means new rotors, and new rotors give the shoes a fresh drum surface. Our DBA 4000 Series T3 slotted rear rotor for the Lotus Evora is a direct replacement for the 332 mm rear disc; check your model generation before ordering, because the Evora 400, 410, 430 and GT use a larger 350 mm rear disc.
If the rear pads are near the end while the discs are off, replace them now rather than pulling the calipers twice. See our brake pads and brake rotors ranges, and brake hardware kits for springs and clips. Front service parts include the DBA T3 slotted front rotor for the 2009-2017 Evora.
After new shoes or rotors, adjust as described above. Lotus advises avoiding needless heavy braking for the first few hundred miles so new friction surfaces bed in fully.
How Hard Is the Job?
Adjustment alone is an easy job for anyone who can safely lift the car: two wheels off, two adjuster screws, one cable adjuster. Shoe replacement is moderate. Removing the rear disc means removing the rear caliper, which must be supported and never left hanging on its hose, and the shoe springs and steady pins take patience. If the lever itself is faulty, the lever assembly is mounted in a steel bracket alongside the gearchange lever and held by 12 setscrews, which means interior trim removal.
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Shop Brake Pads & Kits →Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Lotus Evora use the rear calipers as the parking brake?
No. The Evora uses separate parking brake shoes inside a drum formed into the hat of each rear disc, applied by a cable from the lever between the seats. The rear AP Racing calipers are service brakes only.
How many clicks should the Evora handbrake have?
Lotus specifies that adjustment is correct when the lever reaches 4 or 5 ratchet clicks when fully applied.
Why does my Evora parking brake feel weak after new rear rotors?
The drum the shoes work against is part of the rear rotor, so a new rotor changes the clearance. Reset the shoe adjusters through the access hole, then take up cable slack to 4 or 5 clicks.
Do Evora parking brake shoes wear out?
Rarely. Lotus notes that unless the shoes are mal-adjusted, the lining should see little wear. Glazed or contaminated shoes usually trace back to driving with the brake dragging.
Why is the brakes warning light on with the handbrake released?
The lamp is triggered by a microswitch at the lever. If it stays on with the lever fully down, check the lever travel and switch, and check the brake fluid level before driving.
Do I adjust the cable or the shoes first?
Shoes first. Slacken the cable fully, set both shoe adjusters, then take up cable slack. Adjusting only the cable leaves the shoes far from the drum and uses up lever travel.
Sources
- Lotus Evora Service Notes, section JL.5 (page 189) - parking brake layout, equalising yoke, drum integral with rear disc, adjuster, 4-5 click target, bedding advice
- Lotus Evora Service Notes, sections JL.5-JL.6 (page 190) - cable adjustment, shoe removal, lever assembly, warning lamp switch, disc thickness and runout limits
- Lotus Evora 400 Owner's Handbook - parking brake apply and release procedure, warning lamp check
- SELOC TechWiki, Brakes - V6 - AP Racing four-piston calipers front and rear, 350 mm front and 332 mm rear discs
- Paragon Brakes, Evora 400/410/430/GT rotors - 370 mm front and 350 mm rear disc sizes on later Evoras
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