Whisper

New rear pads and rotors, rebuilt calipers. Swapped the e-brake brackets over, bled the brakes, and now I can't get the parking brake cables into the brackets.

I can get one side on, but the other side is too tight. Do I need to loosen or adjust something?

Jeff20B

iTrader: (13)

The handle inside the car.

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

loosen the adjusting nut on the parking brake handle inside of the car. you will need to remove the mechanism cover and then remove the locking "clip" by sliding it upward and off of the long adjusting nut.

Whisper

Ok, thanks. Will try that. Is this normal, though? I'm guessing maybe someone tightend the cable once the pads started to wear down... Possible?

food7373

iTrader: (2)

That's a key part. haha

Whisper

Do you mean I need to release the parking brake? WAT WAT WAT!?

DivinDriver

iTrader: (15)

Yes, you must release the handle, and yes, if you're going to new pads, it's likely that the cable was previously tightened up to compensate for stretch while the car was equipped with pads & disks that were partially worn, and so will now be too tight.

This gets even worse on drum brakes; I'd convinced myself once that the new shoes I'd bought were over-sized... because I forgot to loosen the handbrake cable before installing them.

Whisper

The handle is released, bro. I don't think with the tension it puts on, I'd be even able to take the cable off the calipers in the first palce.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

One cable is slightly longer than the other. If you had the cables off, you may have switched them. If the one side hooked up easily and the other side not even close, swap them. You will need to take out all of the adjustment in the parking brake to slip the cables back into the hooks.

Siraniko

iTrader: (13)

your suppose to slide the ends to the caliper's e-brake hook, then secure the cable to the e-brake cable bracket. not the other way around.

trochoid

iTrader: (6)

Really? Maybe that's why I've had so much trouble attaching them.

Siraniko

iTrader: (13)

you need to drink more heines my friend. heines make me very creative. it brings out the boy scout in me lol

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

apparently you missed my first post.. loosen the adjusting nut on the parking brake handle inside of the car. you will need to remove the mechanism cover and then remove the locking "clip" by sliding it upward and off of the long adjusting nut.

Whisper

Yeah, I already got it sorted. No worries.

mazdaverx713b

iTrader: (91)

good deal. just wanted to make sure you had some extra info to go by.