Frozen E-Brake!
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 33
From: Minnesota
Frozen E-Brake!
So heres the situation. My emergency brake for my 97' seems to be seized. The previous owner may have never used it. Anyway I'm going to sell the car and I want to e-brake working for the next owner. The cable that runs from the center console and splits into two cables running to each rear brake caliper seems to be fine and working. each brake itself is seized. My plan was to take them apart and get them working again.
I was wondering if anyone has had this problem and can give me some advice on how to fix it, or if theres a tutorial somewhere.
Also do I have to take the brake calipers off? and if so do I have to bleed the brakes?
Thank you all so much you have already helped me with many problems!
I was wondering if anyone has had this problem and can give me some advice on how to fix it, or if theres a tutorial somewhere.
Also do I have to take the brake calipers off? and if so do I have to bleed the brakes?
Thank you all so much you have already helped me with many problems!
Senior Member
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 685
From: Altamonte Springs, FL
So heres the situation. My emergency brake for my 97' seems to be seized. The previous owner may have never used it. Anyway I'm going to sell the car and I want to e-brake working for the next owner. The cable that runs from the center console and splits into two cables running to each rear brake caliper seems to be fine and working. each brake itself is seized. My plan was to take them apart and get them working again.
I was wondering if anyone has had this problem and can give me some advice on how to fix it, or if theres a tutorial somewhere.
Also do I have to take the brake calipers off? and if so do I have to bleed the brakes?
Thank you all so much you have already helped me with many problems!
I was wondering if anyone has had this problem and can give me some advice on how to fix it, or if theres a tutorial somewhere.
Also do I have to take the brake calipers off? and if so do I have to bleed the brakes?
Thank you all so much you have already helped me with many problems!
Can't think of anything else at the moment.
Is the Cable Seized in the line, or are the calipers seized? Rear calipers are notorious on 4th gens for seizing up. Can you pull the Ebrake handle? If Not look under the car where the line runs and see if theres a noticeable crimped spot. BTW what goods having an Ebrake if you dont use it? I wrote a small spiel about this about 8 months ago.
May i Interject? Use of the E-Brake is vital to the survival of your rear calipers... There are so many reasons to use your E-Brake noone thinks about.
A Short List..
1. Prevent Cable From Seizing (How would you like to Need it and it not be there?)
2. Its a Great thing to Use on HILLS...
3. Helps reduce unwanted friction on the transmission when on a slope of ANY kind.
4. Helps to Keep that Piston your having problems with from seizing
5. Its much cheaper to use it than to replace it. Ask Anyone whose had to.. 2XX Bucks from the dealer. And 1XX from the OE Eqiv's... Oh and thats a REBUILT...
Only disclaimer... The E-Brake is a two step Process.. You see guys it goes Up..... And Down... So Make sure when you start using it whenever you park, you remember to put it down, Preferably BEFORE you start moving?
Just trust me you get into the habit pretty quickly of using it.. I Always use it whenever i get out of my car.
A Short List..
1. Prevent Cable From Seizing (How would you like to Need it and it not be there?)
2. Its a Great thing to Use on HILLS...
3. Helps reduce unwanted friction on the transmission when on a slope of ANY kind.
4. Helps to Keep that Piston your having problems with from seizing
5. Its much cheaper to use it than to replace it. Ask Anyone whose had to.. 2XX Bucks from the dealer. And 1XX from the OE Eqiv's... Oh and thats a REBUILT...
Only disclaimer... The E-Brake is a two step Process.. You see guys it goes Up..... And Down... So Make sure when you start using it whenever you park, you remember to put it down, Preferably BEFORE you start moving?
Just trust me you get into the habit pretty quickly of using it.. I Always use it whenever i get out of my car.
Isolate if it's the caliper itself or a sticking cable. Try flexing/banging the spring on each caliper to see if it's indeed frozen. Sometimes I clean & lube up the outer boot of the caliper and press it back in a bit to make sure it moves freely. Unhook the e-brake line at the caliper and pop out a hold-down bracket or two so you've got some room to work. Wedge a med-size flathead screwdriver in the end of the cable and pull it til it comes out an inch or two. Raise it in the air, hit it with a few drops of oil or liqwrench, and pull the e-brake handle, then repeat a dozen times til each cable moves freely.
I know this is an old thread (2 weeks old) but I had the same issue for months until I got around to fixing it and my gas mileage went from about 28 mpg to 18 mpg.
Basically there are 2 pins inside the caliper. They have a rubber boot and are packed with grease. One of the boots had seperated and the grease came out, allowing water in and rusting the pin to the caliper. The result was that the brake was seized most of the time. You can remove the pin, use steel wool to remove the rust, clean out the hole that it slides into and repack the pin and the rubber boot with high temp grease.
This fixed the issues I was having and took about a half hour.
Basically there are 2 pins inside the caliper. They have a rubber boot and are packed with grease. One of the boots had seperated and the grease came out, allowing water in and rusting the pin to the caliper. The result was that the brake was seized most of the time. You can remove the pin, use steel wool to remove the rust, clean out the hole that it slides into and repack the pin and the rubber boot with high temp grease.
This fixed the issues I was having and took about a half hour.
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 242
From: Baltimore, MD
Look guys I've been hearing alot about if calipers seized up, just replace them. my 99 rear brakes were seized and the price on the budget i'm on, I just couldn't afford. So I just rebuild the calipers myself and they are working like brand new or refurb. parts only cost $42 verses $300 or more and I've never rebuilt a caliper in my life.
It's really not that hard if you are mechanically incline.... If you can change a caliper you can rebuild a caliper. It's just rubber boots and seals for parts and grease for lube along with cleaning of the rust and particle that cause them to stop working properly. Once you're done you'll never buy another caliper again
It's really not that hard if you are mechanically incline.... If you can change a caliper you can rebuild a caliper. It's just rubber boots and seals for parts and grease for lube along with cleaning of the rust and particle that cause them to stop working properly. Once you're done you'll never buy another caliper again
Last edited by najee1062; Jul 31, 2010 at 11:39 PM.
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