1.3 with rear discs handbake issue

[bumpety bump]

I have just bought a 94' 1.3 auto with extremely low milage that has rear discs.
i put it through an mot test to guage what work i need to do, the only thing it failed on was the handbrake, the emmisions were extremely good considering it's age.
anyhoo, the handbrake has as much stopping power as teflon brake pads, it is the biggest pile of dump ever.
i adjusted the internal screw to bring it back from around 11 clicks to a more modest 6.
still the handbrake is not playing ball.
i have taken off the wheel for a quick look and decided i am going to be changing the discs and pads as a matter of course as i usually do with older cars. they would probably be okay but i don't like taking risks with brakes.
I am looking for some guidance as to where one might look for faulty action in the handbrake.
the brakes themselves went through the mot fine with no issues, so the pads and discs are doing their job as is, i just can't get it to hold on the handbrake.
is there anything in particular that tends to sieze on these cars? bearing in mind it has done an average yearly milage of less than 1500 miles per year, it's spent most of it's life just sitting and quietly setting, like old bones do when they are not used.
i have almost a month left of mot before it really needs one, so i have a little time to work with if there is anything major to address.
my gut feeling would be rear self adjusters if it has them? the haynes manual seems a little sparse on info with regard to the braking system and it appears most people have rear drums.... lucky me... not.

 

[bumpety bump]

okay, so i took the caliper off to take a closer look myself.
there are no "self adjusters" as such.
the centre of the piston is on a screw and the screw is the adjuster, as it is for normal pad wear.
that can be screwed in and out using the tips of a 20mm spanner.
the handbrake operates from what looks to be an internal cam that pushes directly onto the piston. this gives total handbrake movement of a few mm in order to engage the braking system.
there is what looks to be quite a heafty return spring for the handbrake mechanism which is connected at one end to the bracket which operates the cam and the other end to a bolt which operates as a stop point either way for the handbrake.
i took off the sping, took off the bolt then kept worrying the handbrake operation back and forth until i could move it with just hand pressure.
with the bolt out i was able to go just a little either side of the stop points in order that the full available area for normal usage was clean and working.
i opted for this rather than taking the piston out to avoid damaging any seals, which would have been the only other alternative, as there were no external fixings fot the handbrake mechanism. my guess is that it's held in place by circlips on the inside of the caliper.
so this was my cure in case anyone else experiences something similar, although i doubt it as most appear to have drums rather than discs.
no, i didn't take any pictures in case anyone was about to ask.

 

[Daz1985]

Could be a stretched handbrake cable, mine had gone like a rubber band, I’m on drums but it would cause same issue, other than that a good dab of copper grease on the moving parts ( not the disc or face of pads )

 

[bumpety bump]

Could be a stretched handbrake cable, mine had gone like a rubber band, I’m on drums but it would cause same issue, other than that a good dab of copper grease on the moving parts ( not the disc or face of pads )

thank you for responding! it would take a serious numpty to grease the face of the brake pads..... which i did on my motorbike when i was 16....
i will certainly be eyeing the cables on monday, i will be off to collect some discs and new pads then, however the handbrake piston was seriously stiff initially when i first took the caliper off. tomorrow i plan to replicate what i did on the passenger rear over on the driver side rear. i can't be sitting outside in the nasty storm we are having today. hopefully the weather will be a tad softer tomorrow.
i tend to use cv grease rather than copper slip. i find the copper stuff gets sticky, whereas cv grease is designed to be used on things that are constantly in motion for long periods. that suggests to me that the oils don't tend to break down so quickly, and to be fair it has always served me very well.

 

[MattInARedMicra]

I was going to suggest the stretched handbrake cable also, I can't think of any other reason someone would have their handbrake at 12 clicks otherwise, it would make no sense to set it like that even if they had done work on it it would be quickly obvious it was wrong. Perhaps in a car set up for drifting but then the spring would have removed and they'd have bought something that wasn't a FWD micra lol

Other than that no suggestions really, sounds like you know your stuff better than I do with regards to the brakes components themselves

 

[bumpety bump]

I was going to suggest the stretched handbrake cable also, I can't think of any other reason someone would have their handbrake at 12 clicks otherwise, it would make no sense to set it like that even if they had done work on it it would be quickly obvious it was wrong. Perhaps in a car set up for drifting but then the spring would have removed and they'd have bought something that wasn't a FWD micra lol

Other than that no suggestions really, sounds like you know your stuff better than I do with regards to the brakes components themselves

thank you also for responding. i believe that it probably has stretched somewhat, especially given how high it was. initially.
however it is down to a sensible click count now, so i guess that i'll find out tomorrow after having released the other side whether the click count goes beyond serviceable. my gut feeling is that it may well do; if i am on 6 clicks now without the brakes operating then it's bound to increase, the question will be whether there is any adjustment thread left to adjust....
a drifting auto micra would indeed be a sight to see... i'm sure it would inspire the blue rinse pensioners that just use them to pop to the store for milk and bread once per week. i can just picture them squealing in delight as they take roundabouts driving sideways whilst waving to the local skateboard gangs looking on in utter disbelief. that would be some entertaining viewing i'd pay to watch.