My e39 is a relatively new properly (whatever...) maintained manual
gearbox, but the handbrake won't hold it on anything more than a
moderate hill.  The handbrake on the much older e30 I have bites like
a bastard, you could do 30 mph handbrake turns with it.

I always plonk it into park if I know I've got a wait before moving off.
Always have done with autos.

Snag with the E39 handbrake is it's the same on a manual. Must make hill
starts fun. ;-) Last manual I had with this system was an E28 and it was
ok. My E34 was an auto, but I remember that handbrake being better.

As you say, with an auto you don't really need a h/brake, but I am aware of
of the irritation to a following driver, at say traffic lights, if you sit
there with your foot on the brake. On a level road I'd often stick it in
neutral. At least now if I use neutral, the h/brake will hold on a slight
slope. Something it wouldn't do before.
By the state of the drums in the old discs, I think it's a question of use
it or lose it. The braking surface was quite heavily rusted, something
that's bound to happen if the h/brake is rarely used. The rusted surface was
quite heavily glazed, as were the shoe linings. The reason they were so
innefective when I bought the car, about 3 months ago.
Mike.

I recently did the ones on my 740 which I would wager has a stronger
pull at idle in gear than yours and it holds it but I often drive 10-20
yards before the computer tells me the parking brake is still on.  On
the 7 the parking brake is foot operated.

If the garage did the work they probably didn't test it or passed it
thinking it will bed in which it will if you follow the correct
procedure but with it being an auto you don;t really need a parking
brake anyway.  I rarely use mine - I think I'm turning american.

All drum-in-disc brakes on BMWs and most other cars are poor compared
to the old style main drum shoe operated ones.  On rally cars the
handbrake is usually upgraded to hydraulically operated to be able to
do handbrake turns but at least in the UK that's not legal for the test.

Have any E39's got good h/brakes?
Auto 528i
Had new rear discs, pads, and shoes fitted today. Handbrake is still very
poor.
I'm nor exactly a weakling, but without using the footbrake I can't pull it
on hard enough to stop the car creeping on tickover, which is only about 750
rpm.
It did pass the MOT though, which was my main concern.
Mike.