I repaired my parkign brake shoes and also replaced all of the hardware today on my 2000 F150 4X4. I took them off and forgot how to put them back on, I shoudl have paid closer attention before I removed both sides. My Haynes manual had pictures but nothing that helped. I found this thread and your pictures were great! I was able to immediately figure out how the cam, etc went back together. THANKS - I love this site!

 

this is actually a known concern, at least at my last 2 ford garages (one in CT, and one in PA). The shoe ends up sticking slightly engaged due to the rust. Providing it's under warranty I replace the expanders, if not I clean and grease with anti-seize.

The rust on those pieces can happen anywhere. When you have your rear rotors resurfaced make sure that they (if it hasn't been done before or has been a good amount of time/miles) clean and grease and check your e-brake operation.

 

i also had the parking brake problem. what i noticed and brought up to the forum was a weird noise coming from the rear of the truck just starting out from a dead stop. it would make the noise and stop as the wheels were turning...kinda off on offf on till you got over 30 mph or so. didn't happen all the time and finally took to 2nd dealer who did indeed check the e brake and it was partially seized also. they fixed the problem and for the last year or so not been back. i was also told to use the ebrake more often to keep it from happening again. i rarely used it before...but while unhooking the travel trailer i like to add the extra brake to make sure nothing moves on me. i did have normal movement of the parking brake pedal, it was more solid though like it would only go so far in movement....this because the part was seized on the wheel i would guess, now it moves much more linear in feel and slowly gets to the point of being tight. mine is an 04 so this has been happening for awhile. i have an inspection coming up on monday and will ask them to relook at the brakes closely since next month the warranty is out. great writeup and pics.
jim

ps. was not allowed to view the hurricane via a prompt i got when clicking on your link.

 

Great, I was concerned about the cables seizing up, now I have to get in there and check this too?

 

I went this morning for my parking brakes, dealer wants $625 freaking dollars (parts+labor) to replace both sides brake shoes, and then the parking cable itself. I'm going to price the parts myself, and then try it on my own. That cost is more than what it cost for pads, rotor resurfacing the rears, and new rotors up front when I had my brakes done last May. Highway robbery, I tell ya!

 

I can't believe there has not been a recall for this problem! $625 is a freaking rip-off when it was a poor design and a well known problem. FIGHT IT!!!

 

for 625 he is talking new e-brake pads/shoes and also the entire cable too.

Those parts don't need replaced unless they are truely worn out. The hanging parking brake is from those levers that sieze up as shown on page 1 of this thread. You just need to take the rear brakes apart in order to get to those levers. Then you just break apart those siezed levers, clean them off with a grinder, apply some decent grease to them, and put everything back together. I just did this to my truck last month after I found that the rear passenger side ebrake lever was siezed.

If you want to take it to the dealer (out of warranty), someone on another forum said it cost $195 in labor and $25 for a set of new levers.

 

I bet the put the same crappy zinc levers right back in. I'd hope they'd of learned and used a more rust resistant metal but I doubt it.

 

OK. I'm new to this forum, but find it very useful. I have a few questions for someone willing to take the time to answer for me. 2004 Lariat w/ 39000 miles. First, I use my e-brake all of the time while in my driveway. The vibration started about 3 months ago and only happens on occasion. My mechanic has tried a few things, and the problem still exists. First, they put in some sort of weight that Ford recommends in a TSB. Then, they replaced rear rotors and pads. I still experience that occasional vibration. After having read this post, I tried pushing on e-brake while the truck is vibrating, and the vibration gets worse. After releasing, vibration goes away. The other consideration is last summer I used truck to pull a boat in and out of water about 20-30 times. The boat was stored at a marina on a trailer, so I wasn't pulling it very far. The back end did, however, get "wet" with salt water. I'm convinced that the problem I have is related to the e-brake. Am I on the right track?

 

Sure sounds like it to me. Did you ever smell any burning odors from the back wheel in question? Mine smelled horrible and the vibration so severe I couldn't drive on. Haven't used the e-brake in over two years!

 

No, I haven't smelled any odors. The next time I'm in vibe mode, I'll stop to have a sniff. Thanks.

 

you need to check out those parking brake levers as shown in page 1. See if they are seized up or not.

 

Is there a chance the cable is the culprit? Or is this issue strictly the levers?

 

There's a TSB on this. I had it done, and the brake has been fine since. My dealer knew what it was as soon as I told them the symptoms. They replaced the levers with new and improved levers (according to what I was told) and anti seized accordingly. This was last year. No problems.

I use my parking brake everyday, but only when parked in my driveway, or on any slope. If you don't ever use it, then prepare to be getting a new cable a few years down the road when it's completely seized.

 

That was exactly what I did, after stopping the truck on some country road to see wtf the problem was. I didn't see anything, but there was a strong brake smell at the back. That was what tipped me off that it had something to do with brakes, so I tried applying and releasing them while traveling down the road when the vibration occured. Once released, the vibration was gone.

It was a quick and easy fix.