Tom M'Guinn

Has anyone sucessfully replaced both of the perpendicular parking brake spings with new factory springs. I got of where there was access to the back side to pry the hook in place, but the other side is a challenge because I can't get at the hook from the little access port available. Any home brew tricks?

On a side note, the new spring appears to be a tad shorter than the originals, making it harder still to get them in. (Of course, the old one's may bea tad longer than designed after the present owner pulled the rotor off with the parking brake engaged...)

Crackership

I just replaced one a couple of weeks ago when the original broke... I just used a flat-tip screw driver that fit inside the spring.. Push in and turn. Worked great for me.

Tom M'Guinn

Thanks, that's promising. I notched a flat blade screwdriver today with that in mind but didn't get a chance to try it...

CurtP

Make sure you get that hook of the spring in the proper position when you put it back together. The PO of my car did not and when that spring came loose, the brake shoe wedged itself into the rotor. It broke the parking brake cable, trashed most of the hardware and locked up my rear wheel going 60mph. Not a fun experience. When I inspected the other side, it wasn't in the correct position either.

lee101315

Yea, basically a flat head screwdriver and a good set of needle nose pliers.
You stretch the spring with the flat head, and make minute corrections with the pliers.

Its not fun for anyone. Ive been a technician for 15 years, and I still dread emergency brake repairs.

Tom M'Guinn

Thanks for all the input gents. It turned out not as bad as I thought it was going to be. I took the cheapest big flat blade screwdriver I had and whittled it down on the grinder to fit in the access hole in the hub, and slotted the end so it would clip onto the center hook of the spring. Key is to get the hook latched on the back side (see arrow). Just posting in case it helps someone down the road...

nofalls

Tom - et all,
how did you know you needed to replace these springs or that one had broken? I have a clunk/ping from the left rear and was thinking it was related to the e-brake.

TIA

Tom M'Guinn

In my case, I pried the rotor off with the parking brake engaged and physically distorted the spring. Pretty smart huh? If you pull the rotor off, it will be pretty obvious is the spring is still installed and engaged on the hook.

nofalls

Thanks Tom. I've never damaged something by forgetting that I had just clamped it in place before taking a hammer to set it free again. Total lie. I suspect the expander is flopping around in the hub or something is broken. Just need to finish my latest project. Then I will have room in the garage to pull the car in off the steep driveway and check this all out. Thank you for the pics.