Parking brake cable woes...

[AgentDL]

I felt a loud pop when I yanked on my parking brake today, and was fairly certain that the cables disengaged from the mechanism. Using my Google-fu I was able to look up instructions on how to reattach the cables - removed the seat, removed the parking brake cover, and popped the cables back in without having to remove the housing. When I tested it after reattaching the cables, I did have to pull it pretty much all the way up in order for the brake to engage, so I added "adjust parking brake" to my stuff-the-D-needs list for another day. While I had the cover off, I did work the parking brake up and down multiple times to see if the cables were "in there" well enough, and was satisfied that they weren't likely to disengage again. I made a mental note to just be gentle with the lever until I have an opportunity to adjust the brake itself.

Took the car for a quick spin not 15 minutes later, parked it again, made sure to be gentle with the parking brake lever, and POP! The cables came out again. How frustrating!

So, a few (possibly stupid) questions:
1) Will the parking brake adjustment (http://dmctalk.org/showthread.php?3495-How-to-adjust-your-Parking-Brake) tighten/shorten the cables, helping me to avoid them disengaging again?
2) If yes, do I adjust the parking brake at the rear of the car first, or re-connect the cables in the brake itself first? I'm guessing I need to re-connect the cables first, because if they end up being tightened by the adjustment, they'll be harder to reconnect after the fact, right?

Thanks in advance!

[SS Spoiler]

To keep the ends in the slots, strap the cables together with a wire tie.

[dmruschell]

To keep the ends in the slots, strap the cables together with a wire tie.

+1

The lower cable on my car was popping out of the yoke (as DMC's website calls it) as the yoke was worn from only that cable engaging the parking brake (the brake that the upper cable operates wasn't afjusted properly and wasn't engaging). After reinstalling it and having it pop out, Mike at DMCMW told me to zip tie the cables together and said they do that in the shop. I have no problems so far since zip tying the cables together.

[DMCMW Dave]

Put it all together, then adjust it tighter. The zip tie trick helps but I'd the adjustment is correct you don't need it unless one of the cable bracket ends is bent. It won't hurt.

[AgentDL]

I may not be able to do the cable reattachment and the adjustment in the same session, but it sounds like the zip tie trick will at least prevent the cables from disengaging until I get around to the adjustment, so I'll do that first.

Thanks a bunch, guys. :rollin:

[David T]

I may not be able to do the cable reattachment and the adjustment in the same session, but it sounds like the zip tie trick will at least prevent the cables from disengaging until I get around to the adjustment, so I'll do that first.

Thanks a bunch, guys. :rollin:

The fact that a cable pops out is an indicator either one of the calipers is is not working or everything is way out of adjustment. Zip tying it does not fix anything, the emergency brake still isn't working as it should. It is a very important safety system and needs immediate attention.

[AgentDL]

The fact that a cable pops out is an indicator either one of the calipers is is not working or everything is way out of adjustment. Zip tying it does not fix anything, the emergency brake still isn't working as it should. It is a very important safety system and needs immediate attention.

Right now I have a non-functioning e-brake. Reattaching the cables and zip-tying them will give me a functioning one, and adjusting it will give me an ideally functioning one. It's still a two-step process, and I have to start somewhere... but I'm not going to hold off too long on the adjustment because I agree that it's important.

[David T]

Right now I have a non-functioning e-brake. Reattaching the cables and zip-tying them will give me a functioning one, and adjusting it will give me an ideally functioning one. It's still a two-step process, and I have to start somewhere... but I'm not going to hold off too long on the adjustment because I agree that it's important.

Usually when a cable comes loose it means you have only 1 functioning caliper and not even. Because you need both cables on that yoke, when 1 isn't working you can't get full pressure on the other cable. Would you drive the car if you only had 3 good tires? If not then why would you drive the car with malfunctioning brakes?One of the scariest things in the world is driving the car and you step on the brake pedal and nothing happens. And now you don't have a good emergency brake! Even when the E-Brake is working perfectly it's not great but it's a whole lot better than nothing.

[DMCMW Dave]

Usually when a cable comes loose it means you have only 1 functioning caliper and not even. Because you need both cables on that yoke, when 1 isn't working you can't get full pressure on the other cable. Would you drive the car if you only had 3 good tires? If not then why would you drive the car with malfunctioning brakes?One of the scariest things in the world is driving the car and you step on the brake pedal and nothing happens. And now you don't have a good emergency brake! Even when the E-Brake is working perfectly it's not great but it's a whole lot better than nothing.

If one cable breaks or becomes disconnected from the handle, both cables will not work. The zip-tie won't do you any good.

If one cable is frozen, or somewhat loose (or is missing one of the pads), (you should fix that first) the zip tie trick will allow the remaining cable to function, although I'm certainly not wanting to risk parking my car (much less stopping it) with one tiny brake pad.

The cables attach to the handle with a pivoting arm, so if one is gone the pivot goes all the way loose and the other side won't work either. I understand why they did it this way, as it makes the two calipers automatically balanced, but it does seem dumb in that if one cable fails it acts like both cables failed. i.e. the brakes fail completely.

[dmruschell]

After I had adjusted my parking brake calipers and reattached the cable, everything was working as it should. But, then the bottom cable popped off again. The parking brake would still work, it would just require me to pull the cable farther than normal, putting more stress on the one cable.

I don't recommend that, though, as that's similar to what was happening on my car before the cable popped off in the first place. Only the brake attached to the lower cable was engaging. I had to pull the handle farther than I do now, which put more stress on where the cable attaches and wore the yoke out, but the parking brake did work. So, by having only one cable attached or one caliper out of adjustment, you're putting a lot of stress on the one cable and every point in the system that operates the one working brake.

[AgentDL]

Interesting development on this!

Worked on the car again today, intending to reattach the cables (with a zip-tie this time), then lift the car and adjust the cables themselves. The cable reattachment went splendidly - what took me two hours on Sunday only took me about 25 minutes today. Ahh, the wonders of the learning curve.

Next, I lifted the car, removed the passenger-side rear wheel, and adjusted the parking brake cable. Easy, no problem.

Next, I removed the driver-side rear wheel and was about to start adjusting the cable when I noticed something strange... One of the parking brake pads was entirely gone! And not worn-away gone, but detached-from-the-backing gone. So I'll obviously need to replace it. Seeing as how I bought the car from DMC-FL a week ago, I'm going to see if they'll send me one.

Before adjusting the right side, the parking brake would only engage with an almost-complete pull of the lever, about 14 clicks. Now it engages at about 7 clicks. Obviously not ideal, but well on its way to being rectified.

[DMCMW Dave]

... One of the parking brake pads was entirely gone! And not worn-away gone, but detached-from-the-backing gone. .

See my post about 3 posts back:

If one cable is frozen, or somewhat loose (or is missing one of the pads), (you should fix that first) the zip tie trick ....

[David T]

I have tried using Gorilla glue to reattach a loose pad. It seems to work. Of course you do need the missing pad to do it! I have seen where one pad has completely worn away also. Adjusting the e brake is easy just make sure the cables move freely. The automatic adjusters don't. Be sure to use a cotter pin in that big screw. Check that both pads move freely on their pins. If not, take it all apart, clean and lubricate.