Emergency brake not working???!

jpa99acr

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I just noticed last weekend that my E brake is not engaging properly, car still wants to roll. Kinda scary since I use it to keep from rolling when backing up if I'm on a hill. Is it the rear brakes that are bad? I hadn't noticed any issues braking.
 

Emerica4601

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I've noticed that my first 'rip' on the e-brake handle doesn't engage properly. But when I put it back down, and go for the second 'rip' up on the handle, it fully engages. Strange.
 

Steve M

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Check the parking brake pads...the inners tend to wear much faster than the outers, so make sure you still have some pad left. The parking brake mechanism is self-adjusting, so try pulling the handle a few times to see if that helps.
 
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jpa99acr

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thanks guys for the info! I'll check out the pads and try to work with the brake a few times to see if that helps.
 

Steve M

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Never heard of E brake pads wearing out. You having too many emergencies and/or drifting too much :D

VERY common issue with Gen III/IV owners due to the design of the parking brake. I'd assume the Gen V will be the same way unless they figured out how to relieve some of the tension on the assembly when they moved it to the other side.
 

Sonoman

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I am sure Brembo knows how to make a decent parking brake but this one sux. Agree with uvnbit above-- you should never have to change parking brake pads under normal driving conditions. Having 'em drag constantly not only wastes energy but adds -even more- wonderful brake dust to your wheels. I avoid setting the damn thing whenever possible since that just brings the self-adjusting mech in further (and drags 'em more). There are a handful of poorly designed/poorly implemented features on these cars and this is one of them.
 

TowDawg

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Absolutely awful design and the inner pads wear out really quickly. Especially if you use the ebrake very often at all (I don't), or track the car (I do).
That said, when I do have to use it, it does sometimes take me pulling the ebrake up and down a few times for it to build up enough pressure to actually hold the car.
 
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