How to unstick "frozen" parking brake
#1
How to unstick "frozen" parking brake
Well, it happened to my wife at the library, which is where the Expy is now. The parking brake won't release. The pedal pops up, but the shoes are still engaged. I know that this is common and I will have to probably replace the rear cable assembly. But for the immediate problem, how to drive the Expy home. How can I get the parking brake shoes to release? I don't want to have to do a disassembly in the parking lot.....it's about 38 degrees here today. Besides, it's paked on a hill
2000 Expedition
39,000 miles, 37 months (just out of warranty, of course)
2000 Expedition
39,000 miles, 37 months (just out of warranty, of course)
#2
The first thing you've got to do is determine where something is bound up. If the pedal bonces back up (which it sound like it does), look under the truck. What you're looking for is slack in the cable(s) at some point. I have trouble believing that a truck with that low of mileage has a frozen (due to rust) cable. I could believe its frozen from ice though.
Once you find where the slack is, go to the downstream cable section and try wiggling it back and forth. Many times, that's all you'll need to free it up. In really severe cases, you might have to actually cut a cable, but that's meatball surgery. You can actually drive the truck for a short distance with the brakes locked up because the truck will have enough power. I don't recommend that because of the damage it could do, but sometimes the heat it generates will thaw a cable. Be careful!
Once you find where the slack is, go to the downstream cable section and try wiggling it back and forth. Many times, that's all you'll need to free it up. In really severe cases, you might have to actually cut a cable, but that's meatball surgery. You can actually drive the truck for a short distance with the brakes locked up because the truck will have enough power. I don't recommend that because of the damage it could do, but sometimes the heat it generates will thaw a cable. Be careful!
#4
#5
STUCK ALSO
I HAVE A 99 F150 S CAB AND RIGHT NOW SITTING OUTSIDE IN THR RAIN IS MY TRUCK WITH 31,000 MILES WITH THE EBRAKE STUCK ALSO. I WAS ABLE TO PULL THE CABLE OFF AND IT IS FREE TO MOVE BACK AND FORTH. I REMOVED THE CALIPER AND TRIED TO REMOBVE THE DISC BUT IT WOULD NOTE MOVE. AFTER SEVERAL ATEMPS WITH A HITTING DIVICE I WAS ABLE TO REMOVE THE ROTOR HALF WAY OFF. I GOT A LITTLE SCARED SO I INSTALLED EVERYTHING BACK TOGETHER AND IM WAITING UNYIL I GET SOME NEW PADS AND PARTS...