Parking Brake Issue

[ExpeditionAndy]

I have been having trouble with my parking brake not holding the vehicle on a steep hill.

I've had the cables replaced because we thought they might be stretched. Since the Ford Dealership replaced the cables on Wednesday, the parking brake pedal has been hard to push. Normally it was easy to push until it got halfway down.

Today I had new rear rotors, brake pads, and a parking brake kit installed with new shoes at a different shop. I watched the technician adjust them and they still don't hold the vehicle on the driveway regardless of whether it is nose up or down. (They verified that the shoes were moving visually with the rotors off the rear.)

The only thing left to replace is the pedal mechanism itself.

Does anybody have any idea what is going on?

Thanks,

 

[Ed_Strong]

Take a look at this video...


2004 F150 but system is basically the same for yours!

Now, there's a parking cable lever/cam actuator (forgot specific name) that freezes with rust over time not allowing the operation and retracting of the parking brake cables. If the mechanic didn't clean and lubricate this part, it was as if the brake job was not performed at all...!

 

[Hamfisted]

Since you already paid to have the parking brake kit installed I would just take it back to that shop and tell 'em the brake doesn't hold the truck. They can take the tire and rotor back off and have someone step on the parking brake and verify the parts are moving correctly. The proper way to adjust the parking brake is with a big caliper and set them to a .015 clearance with the rotor's parking drum.


-Mike

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

Since you already paid to have the parking brake kit installed I would just take it back to that shop and tell 'em the brake doesn't hold the truck. They can take the tire and rotor back off and have someone step on the parking brake and verify the parts are moving correctly. The proper way to adjust the parking brake is with a big caliper and set them to a .015 clearance with the rotor's parking drum.

-Mike

Mike we have been through that. I watched the tech use the inside/outside calipers and set the distance I also watched them push the parking brake and saw the shoes move but they don't engage until the pedal is almost to the floor. We are thinking the only thing left to change is the pedal assembly. It appears to be binding.

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

I think I located the problem and I am hoping that somebody can give me a confirmation or put me in the right direction. It looks like they put the cable over this little metal tab which is binding and scraping the coating off my new cable. I think it is preventing the brake from engaging.

 

[Hamfisted]

Who did this work? Some discount tire shop ? If you don't want to fix it yourself I'd take it to a Ford dealer and get it fixed right. But yes, that's F'd up right there. May have thrown the other adjustments out of whack as well.


-Mike

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

Who did this work? Some discount tire shop ? If you don't want to fix it yourself I'd take it to a Ford dealer and get it fixed right. But yes, that's F'd up right there. May have thrown the other adjustments out of whack as well.

-Mike

Thanks Mike,

Believe it or not, my Ford dealership Bob Thomas Ford (west) in Fort Wayne, Indiana, did the work. And it looks like they screwed up the new cable too.

I was concerned that all of the work my buddy's shop did here in Lemoyne PA in adjusting the shoes is going to have to be done again back home. Now I am not sure I trust my Ford dealer to do the work because they lied about adjusting the parking brake shoes in the two times that I had it in previously for the complaint that the parking brake didn't hold.

 

[Hamfisted]

Wow, that makes it pretty tough to trust your local Ford dealer. If you point it out to your buddy he can fix it I'm sure. It's pretty easy. But to be honest the cable should probably be replaced on Ford's dime since they dorked it up in the first place. Can you pop it off there and reroute it yourself? Just take it off that shield piece and lay it along the actuator cam groove.


-Mike

 

[ExpeditionAndy]

Wow, that makes it pretty tough to trust your local Ford dealer. If you point it out to your buddy he can fix it I'm sure. It's pretty easy. But to be honest the cable should probably be replaced on Ford's dime since they dorked it up in the first place. Can you pop it off there and reroute it yourself? Just take it off that shield piece and lay it along the actuator cam groove.

-Mike

The dealer ordered a new cable and they are installing it Monday morning. I'm hope the parking brake works after all of this.

 

[tinkering]

Take a look at this video...


2004 F150 but system is basically the same for yours!

Now, there's a parking cable lever/cam actuator (forgot specific name) that freezes with rust over time not allowing the operation and retracting of the parking brake cables. If the mechanic didn't clean and lubricate this part, it was as if the brake job was not performed at all...!

This helped a lot.
Thanks.
tinkering