the ebrake on my 96 max wont release. i left it parked for about while it was storming but when i drove 2day it slowing down and then i realized my right rear wheel is locked up. my ebrake lever is really loose now...can use my finger tip to pull it up. it really cold out here in SD and i drove the car on slushy roads b4 i parked it for the storm. so im thinking maybe its frozen. what do u guys think? how do i fix my ebrake? thnx

 

It may be that. You'll have to lift the back of the car and remove the rear wheels to be sure that the mechanism is moving ok.

Another thing that can happen is if the brake cable gets cut or torn, water gets in and it will freeze up inside. I've had garages ruin 3 e-brake cable that way in the past 5 years. That one really pisses me off.

Dave

 

My 96 e-brake freezes slightly in cold weather. Yours might freeze a little more severely such that it doesn't release at all.

 

mine used to stick also i would crawl under the car with a pair of pliers (or just with my hands) and pull the cable to release it from the rotor (when you look underneath youll see where the cable connects just pull that toward the rear of the car

i eventually changed out the cables ... when i did i found that part of the cables was rubbing on the suspension and pretty much cut the cable letting water in and rusting it

GL

 

well i played around with the ebrake lever and i think i got it loose. my driveway is on an incline and i kept moving the car back and forth and felt the car roll back when i take my foot off the brake. but when i tried to take it for a run i got stuck in the snow in my driveway so now i need a push. i had the ebrake checked last year and the mechanic said the cables at the wheels are fine and i may have to remove the console and check the lever cable. its gonna be hard 2 work on that in this weather.

 

do this ....


with the ebrake down, your car in gear and something to keep the car from rolling back pull that piece toward the rear of the car you might be able to use your hand if it moves your cable is getting stuck if it doesnt then you probably have a stuck pin

if you were able to get it loose by playing with the ebrake lever in its probably a stuck line if it was a pin you wouldnt get it loose by playing with the lever

 

During the first big snowstorm my ebrake froze up on the driver side, so as i was going down the road i was putting slight pressure on it on and off to get it to release.
Dont do this, youll do some cool spins though.

when ever it is below freezing i always leave my ebrake off, prevents this problem untill i can replace my rear caliper with my 5.5 gens. good thing my driveway is flat.

 

@smai555....thanks man that pic will help me out big time....now i'll know exactly what to look for. in the mean time my car is still stuck...tried to get it pushed out but it wouldn't budge... the snow's so high its touching the bottom of the car at the engine crossmember.

 

NP

get a shovel and some sand/kitty litter and rock the car back and fourth or get some tow straps hook it up to another car from the TOW hooks or wood sheet or 2x4s (without nails in them) stick them under the wheels

 

well good news finally got my car out thanks to the mail man...he just happened to be around dropping off mail while i was putting smai555's idea to practice and he came and pulled me right out with no problems. anyway my max is running great...no more ebrake lockup...will check my cable in the summer cuz its 2 freekin cold out. also gotta get a set of tires cuz dey just about done.