E Brake Problem - CEG Archives

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well this morning when i parked, i pulled up on my ebrake and the handle went all the way to the back. now my ebrake doesn't work at all. the brake light in the instrument cluster goes on, but the brake is not engaged. how much will this cost to fix, or is it something i could do?

Sounds like the cable might have came off or snapped... Jack up the rear end of your car, take the back wheels off and check the cables! They aren't that hard to replace, i put the updated ones with the release spring on my SE, took maybe an hour at the most.

where does it connect to the rear wheels? the only jack i have is the one in the trunk. will i be able to reach it with that jack? how much do i expect a new cable to cost and is this a common problem? what tools do i need?
thanks

Originally posted by Hubes914:
where does it connect to the rear wheels. the only jack i have is the one the trunk?
thanks

That isnt safe to do work under the car using that one, the jack plus two stands is like $40 at Sears, works great thats what I use.

I'll take a picture tomorrow for you and show you, that is if it doesnt rain here.
Anyways cables rust overtime and get worn and do sometimes brake. My e-brake hasnt worked in well over a year, if I use it it gets stuck so I just dont use it, then again I have a automatic so no need to.

i remember i got 2 ramps. a jack and stands is only like $30 together? damn i might go buy them. always good to have around the garage. thanks for the pics. i appreciate it.

how come it seems like a few posts went missing in this thread? anyways tonight i took off my console to take a qucik peak around and i noticed a black cable coming from the floor up to where the ebrake lever is. this cable was not attached and frayed at the end. is this cable supposed to be frayed? is this cable supposed to be attached? how easy will this to be replace myself?

i got a jack and jack stands for like $30 at walmart. 3 ton "mack" jackstands and a 2 ton "mack" jack. i will take a few pics of the cable tomorrow.

ok here are some pics of the ebrake cable. tell me what you guys think.

I have not looked at my contour e-brake but most have either a bolt on the end of the cable (so you can tighten it) or the end is molded into a little chunk of lead to allow you to put it in a slot and hole, like bicycle brake cables.

Most likely you need to replace the cable. I would say you definitely need to except I have not looked at a contour setup.

Good luck
Paul

can anyone take a picture of where a working e brake cable would go into, the broken one in my pics above don't give me any clue to where i would havce to insert my new one? i am a visual man and need to see where it goes in order to fix it. anyone know any good place to buy the cable from?
thanks

Originally posted by Hubes914:
ok here are some pics of the ebrake cable. tell me what you guys think.

Not related, I know, but what is that silver box in front of the ebrake?

i think it is some electrical thing. i will give it a look this week. can anyone tell me where that cable goes?

This can be a pain in the arse job if you have never removed a set of rear brakes before.

The cable should run from the handle inside the car back to the driver side drum brake system. You will see a funky end on the brake system that looks like what a bike would use only bigger.

So when you pull on the handle it locks the brake pads down good and tight. The pain in the arse part is feeding this sucker through the system and getting the brakes on or off. If you are lucky you will not need to remove the brakes, but you can never tell until you get that far along. It might not be a bad idea to take pictures so you can work your way back and maybe use the old cable to feed the other one into the same place would be a good idea. Duck tape might work well for that idea, no? Blah... I'm just babbling here.

Originally posted by Hubes914:
i think it is some electrical thing. i will give it a look this week. can anyone tell me where that cable goes?

Just wondering because I don't have whatever the hell that is on my car...Hmm...

Originally posted by FreeShyne:

Originally posted by Hubes914:
i think it is some electrical thing. i will give it a look this week. can anyone tell me where that cable goes?

Just wondering because I don't have whatever the hell that is on my car...Hmm...

A bomb perhaps?

Originally posted by FreeShyne:

Not related, I know, but what is that silver box in front of the ebrake?

It's part of the airbag system. I believe it contains sensors that judge the severity of an impact.

Originally posted by delmar:

Originally posted by FreeShyne:

Not related, I know, but what is that silver box in front of the ebrake?

It's part of the airbag system. I believe it contains sensors that judge the severity of an impact.

Sorry to hijack, but is that bad that I don't have one of those? Why the hell is that?

Originally posted by FreeShyne:

Originally posted by delmar:

Originally posted by FreeShyne:

Not related, I know, but what is that silver box in front of the ebrake?

It's part of the airbag system. I believe it contains sensors that judge the severity of an impact.

Sorry to hijack, but is that bad that I don't have one of those? Why the hell is that?

Maybe it's a post-98 thing? I don't know. I just saw the warnings all over it when I took my console apart.

Originally posted by TronX:
This can be a pain in the arse job if you have never removed a set of rear brakes before.

The cable should run from the handle inside the car back to the driver side drum brake system.

I cant recall how the cable looks under the console, but it exits the car as one and splits into two cables above the heat shield covering the exhaust system, just in front of the fuel tank. From there is splits and goes to the rear wheels. Its a sectional system so you will only have to replace the one cable.

Hopefully this will save you some time trying to find where the cables go.

I have had all kind of problems with the rear brakes and the ebrake on my old 95. I had that cable snap too. The part was the whole handle and the cable for onrly like $40. The e-brake system is three parts. A short cable from th ehandle goes to a bracket that has a cable to each wheel. You all ready did the hard part taking of the console. Next jack up the car and but good jack stands under it and drop the exhaust. Disconnect the cable remove the handle assembly and put it all together. While you are at it you may want to change the cables to the brakes.

Rich S.

thanks for the help guys. i will look at that silver box to see what it says on top of it this weekend. if i were to have this done at a shop, how much would i expect to pay. i have limited space (apartment complex) in which i am not supposed be working on vehicles. will most shops let you bring in the part and have them install it? should i take this to midas or one of those brake places?