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Parking Brake Issue
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raoul mitgong
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:04 am    Post subject: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

So my 86 Syncro sat for about a week and when I got in yesterday I released the parking brake and as I lowered it, the van rocked back a bit, and the brake pulled down to the floor like someone was pulling on the cable under the van.
The parking brake still feels like it is on even though it is all the way down. The rear brakes are now locked tight. I can only guess that something in the drum popped out of place and have locked the pads against the drum.
If this is the case, how am I going to get the drum off with the brakes locked tight? Perhaps crank down the adjuster as far as it will go?

Anyone else have this happen? I did replace the rear pads about a month or two ago. Not feeling very safe with the rear drums at the moment.

-d

yes I searched
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Terry Kay
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Perhaps the cable is frozen the the cable cover's--lube them up lately?
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tlbranth
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

My '72 bus rear brakes would lock up if it sat for very long unused. I got in the habit of not using the parking brake under those circumstances but I'd just leave it in 1st gear. The shoes seem to stick to the drums because of rust, jerry juice or whatever. I could usually free it up by backing the bus up.
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Love 'em or hate 'em, it's a good idea to check out GoWesty's library from time to time.

http://www.gowesty.com/library_article.php?id=1630
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raoul mitgong
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:47 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks Terry,
I thought the same at first. What makes me think not is that the brakes are locked (can't budge them F or R) AND the lever is pulled to the floor. Wouldn't the lever be loose if the cable was stuck?

SCM,
Good article, not a GW hater. Thought that might be the case, and likely is/was, but the lever now pulled tight to the floor had me scratching my head.
-d
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tlbranth
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 12:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Front brakes are locked too?
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raoul mitgong
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 12:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

No, just the rear brakes are locked.
-d
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tlbranth
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 1:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd be inclined to crawl underneath & see what's up with the cables. If they're tight, there's a problem up front with the lever. If they're slack, something inside the drum(s) is stuck. At that point, I think you're right, adjusting the shoes away from the drum would be a good first attempt.
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djkeev
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 7:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

In the photo below, the parking brake cable system is clearly seen.
The single metal rod that runs towards the front hooks to the parking brake handle via a short cable up front which cannot be seen in this photo.

The spreader bar fastens to the front hand brake rod, the end of the rod is a long threaded shaft where the parking brake adjustments are made using two nuts which ham together to lock in place.

The two cables you see go to each rear wheel and fasten to the brake shoe levers.

Something is stuck, find it and free it up.

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raoul mitgong
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Yesterday 1st and reverse wouldn't budge it. After all the responses and the GW article, I decided to give it another try. The low gear was able to pop it free. Now the parking brake lever pulls all the way up and does not engage the rear brakes. At least I'll be able to get in there now to see what is going on.
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raoul mitgong
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oh, and crawling under there didn't reveal anything out of the ordinary while it was stuck or after with the lever or cable.
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tlbranth
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 17, 2015 9:47 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Something came adrift eh? Well a look inside and an inspection of the handbrake assembly should show you what's wrong. With the drums off, have a helper work the handbrake so you can see what's up. Don't do the hydraulics though - unless you know what you're doing.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 18, 2015 9:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

raoul mitgong wrote:
Oh, and crawling under there didn't reveal anything out of the ordinary while it was stuck or after with the lever or cable.


Same thing happened to me, Raoul, yesterday morning. Released the handbrake but one rear brake was frozen - couldn't move forward or backward.

Crawled underneath - all looked well but backed off the parking brake nut a bit (loosened) because it was tight anyway.

Then what I did was gently rocked the rig forward and then reverse until I heard a slight 'ping' and the brake released. No problems since.
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PostPosted: Mon Jul 25, 2016 10:24 pm    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

Late reply to this old thread, but when you have a brake cable that's stuck you probably just have to flex the cable housing. Make sure it's in gear or can't roll when the brake releases, then go under the van and grab the black cable housing with your hand and flex it one way then the other, like an "S" pattern. This should release the inner cable.

Then you're gonna have to remove the cable and grease it. This is too much effort for most people. Most will just replace it with a new cable.
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 3:25 am    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

Honestly, long term parking with the Parking brake on is poor practice because of the potential for rusting in place.

The same is true for Winter parking. Not rust but slush and water turning ti Ice freezing in the cables and on the shoes to the drum.

The possibility also exists for warping the drum by pressing the brake shoes hard against the drum and allowing the hit drum to cool with this pressure applied.

You've probably guessed by now, I don't use parking brakes often. Wink

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PostPosted: Tue Feb 11, 2020 3:23 pm    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

Reviving an old thread...
I sort of understand what is going on when you leave the parking brake applied for a while - it has happened to me, the pads stick to the drum.

I can't imagine it was this way from the factory 30+ years ago...so what happened? Did they change the formulation of the pads?

Is there anyway to be able to safely apply the parking brake? I am so used to doing that - and just had my passenger side lock up in my garage - which is super tight quarters. It was quite scary getting that to release.
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PostPosted: Tue Feb 11, 2020 8:18 pm    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

kguarnotta wrote:
Reviving an old thread...
I sort of understand what is going on when you leave the parking brake applied for a while - it has happened to me, the pads stick to the drum.

I can't imagine it was this way from the factory 30+ years ago...so what happened? Did they change the formulation of the pads?

Is there anyway to be able to safely apply the parking brake? I am so used to doing that - and just had my passenger side lock up in my garage - which is super tight quarters. It was quite scary getting that to release.


Depends on what the cause is. If the cables are old and their sheaths compromised then yes the problem may be age related. I have run into this on fairly new vehicles so overall it is not necessarily do to age. We certainly had rules about when one should use a parking brake when I worked in a ski area years ago and were certainly religious about replacing cables that were at all questionable. A system that sees frequent moisture and salt is going to give more trouble than one that doesn't.

Chocks work well outdoors or you can leave a parking mat in place in your garage.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Highland-Park-Right-Ve...ti-NA-Feed
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 12, 2020 11:45 am    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

kguarnotta wrote:
Reviving an old thread...
I sort of understand what is going on when you leave the parking brake applied for a while - it has happened to me, the pads stick to the drum.

I can't imagine it was this way from the factory 30+ years ago...so what happened? Did they change the formulation of the pads?

Is there anyway to be able to safely apply the parking brake? I am so used to doing that - and just had my passenger side lock up in my garage - which is super tight quarters. It was quite scary getting that to release.


Most folks I know who grew up in a hard-freeze climate were taught not to use the handbrake routinely for parking. Only when you need to leave the vehicle idling momentarily without parking, or when you have to park on a slope and it's needed to aid the transmission. When you need it for safe parking, you think about whether it might freeze before you drive off again, and if so, find a parking spot where you don't need brake assist.

The sticking referred to in the GW article linked above is something I know has always happened but I haven't experienced personally, for good reason because I learned to drive in a hard-freeze climate and almost never use my handbrake. But one experience having wet drum brakes actually freeze solid will teach you once and for all, because there is no way they will break free by any of the methods GW lays out in their article. No, the only way to free frozen drums is to thaw them.

I've used torches to free others' cars. Once when camping high in the mountains on a very steep rough road I needed the handbrake to ensure the truck wouldn't roll away overnight (in addition to rocks as chocks, etc.; it was really steep!), but forgot we had driven thru a huge puddle minutes before stopping. It was hella stormy and cold overnight. Go to roll away in the AM, rear wheel frozen solid. All we had was our camp stove, so we heated a big pot of water and dumped it over the drum; it broke free with a loud snap as the springs drew the shoes back.

After that kind or treatment you have to be sure to drive and use the brakes enough to dry them out, or, simple, just don't use the handbrake again!
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Last edited by tencentlife on Wed Feb 12, 2020 12:45 pm; edited 2 times in total
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PostPosted: Wed Feb 12, 2020 12:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

djkeev wrote:

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PostPosted: Mon Feb 24, 2020 8:30 pm    Post subject: Re: Parking Brake Issue Reply with quote

Quick question on this parking brake thing - I have always just used my parking brake - it has stuck a couple times in the past, but I generally only drove my aircooled VW's in warmer weather. Now that I have a VW I drive year round, I'm trying to get in the habit of just leaving it in gear.

What does it mean if I park on a hill, and leave it in 2nd gear - if the van still feels like it is slipping a bit - is this indicative of some transmission problem?

On a maybe related note, I do get some chatter/slippage when going into 2nd gear - not all the time, sort of intermittently.
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