Handbrake and other irritations

[sanjay]

okay guys

noticed more little niggles in my car that really detract from my enjoyment of it. :(

first issue is the handbrake - i know its an auto but i really want my handbrake to be working 100% when im sitting at the lights on a hill or parked on a hill and dont want to rely on the gearbox to hold me there.

took it to jarvis ford (dumb idea but they had a service special on) and they charged me $70 to 'adjust' the handbrake. now it works on small gradients but anything more than say 30 degrees and its useless again.

they reckon theyve adjusted the shoes to the absolute maximum - and the next step is new cable and shoes. ive decided im never going back to them for anything but is it reasonable for me to take it to my trusted mech and get them to diagnose what i ACTUALLY need to get the handbrake working A-OK again? can anyone tell me what they did to get their handbrake 100%? ive heard that falcon handbrakes in general are pretty but this is unacceptable to me. so is the $500 quote for new shoes and cable for my 1997 magna a year ago, id really rather not.

second issue is the interior lighting. theres two rear lights above the doors - the left hand side one stays on no matter what i do. if i fiddle with the switch it will go off till i go over a bump then it comes back on. REALLY ANNOYING when night driving. my question is this - how do i get the light cover off so i can remove the bulb or try to clean the contacts in the switch to get it working properly?

lastly - the big interior light in the middle of the ceiling doesnt turn on when i open a car door. and theres no switches on the big light to determine whether its always on, only on when a door is open, or off all the time. simple case of dead bulb? and how the hell do i get under the cover of that one to replace it if so? dont want to break anything :(