e-brake cables

79targa · 10-25-2002, 12:33 PM

I went through the process in the 101 book on adjusting my e-brake, hoping that would fix our no e-brake condition. It didn't. The car came out of the shop for some other issues and we asked them to look at it. They said the e-brake cables needed replaced. They didn't do it as they would have to order parts and quoted a price around $300 plus installation. I've gone through the Bently book and it looks like a pretty involved process. PP prices for the cables were only about $50. Are there several other parts I need when replacing e-cables? I'm trying to find why such a large difference in the parts price. I assume these should always be replaced in pairs. How big a DIY job is this?

cary · 10-26-2002, 04:49 AM

Your almost slipping to page #3 with no help.

No way..........they have to be quoting you a COMPLETE e-brake re-build. Shoes, springs....etc.

If you have NO e-brake. My first thought would be the expander came off it's perch.

Here's a diagram off the rear brake.

http://www.pelicanparts.com/911/911_Parts/1978-83/6-3.JPG

#24 is the expander. When you pull up on the e-brake handle. It pushes out the pads to the drums. The cable end goes thru #25 into and thru #24 with a little nut and washer attached to the end. The round cut out on #24 sit on a couple pegs built into the hub/plate. Over time the pegs build up corrsion/rust. So when the cable is really loosened. They could slip off the pegs. Then there is no way the ever tighten the cable.

As for the DIY question. Not real tough, but tedious ( getting the expander back on the pegs, and loaded ). The you need to be patient getting the cables attached to the e-brake handle. Tight space for the hands. When I did mine. I took out the right seat. More space to work.

The only real problem I ran into was removing the drum itself. The holding screws were rusted tight. But Mr. Walker came to the rescue. I used my impact screw driver. It's the $10 deal that you slap with a hammer. I tried to find one to show you on DriverWerks, but couldn't find it.

Just my .02c. for Saturday AM. Could be a bad cable. But I'd open it up first, before I'd part with $500.

Chuck Moreland · 07:22 AM

I'm with Cary on this one. I really doubt the cables are the problem, especially BOTH cables. And at $300 for parts I think someone is trying to take you for a ride.

What happens when you pull the lever? Is there any tension? If no the cables may have come off at the lever end.

If you have tension, remove the rear rotors and have a look see at what is going on. You should be able to see the cable move slightly when the brake is pulled.

Pay special attention to the spreader #24 and spring #25. These things fatigue and break. If one of them breaks, neither side will work properly. I think these are $1.50 parts.

They are so cheap, you might even want to just go ahead and order them so you can replace them while your in there, broken or not.

If the spreader is okay look around and see what is going on. Something is not working right. Compare the operation of both sides if you can't see the problem.

The rotor can be beatch to get off. If the internal drum has a ridge it sometimes hangs on the ebrake shoes. Loosening the ebrake star wheel can ease the tension and make it easier to get off. Be sure to re-adjust the star wheel when you are done.

BTW, you said you adjusted the cables. Did you adjust the star wheels on the ebrakes themselves?

79targa · 10-26-2002, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Chuck Moreland

BTW, you said you adjusted the cables. Did you adjust the star wheels on the ebrakes themselves?

I adjusted both the star wheels. There is enough tension to prevent the me turning the wheel by hand. But the car will roll with its own weight. If the incline is small the car may roll just a bit then stop, but a steeper incline and it will continue to roll. I guess I could try going tighter on the star wheel but I'm concerned about dragging the e-brake shoe if its to tight.

CS

Chuck Moreland · 10-26-2002, 09:27 AM

Sounds like the adjusters are plenty tight, maybe a bit too tight. They shouldn't drag at all when released.

What about tension when you pull the brake?

79targa · 10-26-2002, 11:43 AM

I think I have adjusted the stars correctly. The tension when I can't spin the wheels by hand is when I engage the brake. The wheel spins freely by hand when the e-brake is released. Just not enough hold to hold the weight of the car on a slope. The e-brake handle comes up about 8 clicks and thats as far as it will go.

CS

wckrause · wckrause's Garage

It should only take a couple of clicks for the e-brake to engage. Your symptoms sound exactly like your expanders have come off of the pegs on one of the wheels, as was mentioned earlier.

I just got done fixing this on my car, for the second time. I hadn't realized that there are two sets of expanders on each wheel, and I didnt get the inside ones seated correctly the first time.