Emergency brake stopped working. Checked all settings and observed movement at the caliper on both rear wheels. the left wheel cable pulls about 1/2" and the wheel stops turning. the Right wheel cable retracts fully and the wheel still turns freely. Can this caliper be repaired or do I need to replace it?

 

I had the same issue at one point, but my caliper was leaking from the e-brake lever area on the caliper. I assumed it was a bad seal because the lever would retract fully but not apply any pressure. Check that neither caliper is leaking. You could always inspect that the piston is not seized.

 

At least if its stuck its stuck in and not out like what usually happens when these usually get stuck.

 

your e-brake cable is seized up...common issue on these cars...

 

Greeny, it's amazing your still around here. What happened to the Caped guy, is he still alive? That guy was nuts LOL!!!!!

Do you still drive your 3rd gen anymore? I rarely see 3rd gens anymore on the road here in Canada.

 

yup, still here

I just moved on from the maxima a long time ago...still around for the people/site

capedcadaver is still here, but has also moved on from the maxima cars..

I no longer have my green maxima, it was parted out and scrapped many years ago...the black maxima(wifey's car) has been handed down to my youngest son...still runs good ...not many 3rd gens on the road here either, the recent jump in local scrap car prices took alot of them out :0/

 

There is no leakage. I assume there is an internal piston that has lost its seal internally. This sounds non repairable. I should probably just buy a new or rebuilt caliper, correct? Is it posible that I actually have no normal braking on that wheel also?

 

No you probably have braking (more than likely). Its leaning more on what Greeny mentioned. You'll need to purchase a new e-brake cable.