My E brake asdlfkjweiorj

[SocialStealth]

Two things I'm having trouble with.

#1, the brake light just recently turned on, it says:
(!)
Brake

Its the light that comes on when the E brake is engaged.

#2 My E brake hasn't worked in almost a year now.
I was taking a look at it and I noticed the left one works fine, however the right one does not. The right thing that attaches the E brake cable to the caliper was wet...? anything that could be leaking around there?

The right cable pulls taunt perfectly fine. This leads me to believe there must be something wrong with something between the caliper and the piece connecting the e brake cable to the caliper. What is that thing called? And wtf is wrong with it :mad: I looked at it and i don't even see how its attached to the brakes

 

[bgibb68]

well that light comes on when brake fluid is low.....or problems with the brakes....and yes...you could have a problem with the caliper....i know i have been...replacing them now and my brakes have been mushy for awhile

 

[sethro_GT]

Sounds like it could be one or multiple of theses:
your out of brake fluid
the proportioning valve is off center (possibly from low fluid)(do these have one, can't remember if rear disc's need one)
Rear pads need replaced
rear caliper auto adjust is seized
brake lever needs adjusted.

Do a full rear brake job with fluid flush, may need to get reman calipers too.

--
I did the front calipers on my brothers 98 Tacoma and it took forever (like a full pint of fluid) to get all the air out. Now that they have ran for a while try bleeding them again, or have someone do a pressurized flush.

 

[SocialStealth]

What can cause brake fluid to be low?

Is it bad to be driving my car when one of these problems could be present?
My brakes seem to work fine as far as driving goes

 

[pasadena_commut]

What can cause brake fluid to be low?

A leak anywhere in the brake system. You said the caliper was wet, hint hint.

Is it bad to be driving my car when one of these problems could be present?

Only if you need to slow down or stop.

 

[pro5turbo]

I had this problem, and my caliper was leaking fluid slowly, but surely. I could fill up the brake fluid reservoir, but it would eventually leak out over time. I would say this happened around 85k miles - so instead of just replacing 1 caliper, I replaced all 4. They're fairly priced...and while your at it...you might as well get some new rotors.

I HIGHLY recommend replacing all your calipers for some peace of mind.

 

[SocialStealth]

the calipers have brake fluid in them?
So it might be the caliper that needs to be replaced and not the brake line? The fluid is on the thing that connects the E brake to the caliper.
Do you think the reason my E brake doesn't work is because the caliper is seized? Or do you think it could be the cable as well?

Should I be concerned with getting MY caliper remanufactured , or is it OK to just buy a generic refurbed one? (like should I have someone fix MINE and send it back to me, instead of having them send me one and me sending mine to them)
Mines nothing specially, just the plain stock calipers.

 

[P-Funk!]

Replace the caliper.

And the pads if they got fluid-soaked.

Properly bleed the system.

Rig the parking brake cable system first at the caliper and then at the bolt at the handle so that BOTH wheels are locked with the parking brake ON. (Jack the whole rear end)

 

[slavrenz]

the calipers have brake fluid in them?
So it might be the caliper that needs to be replaced and not the brake line? The fluid is on the thing that connects the E brake to the caliper.
Do you think the reason my E brake doesn't work is because the caliper is seized? Or do you think it could be the cable as well?

Should I be concerned with getting MY caliper remanufactured , or is it OK to just buy a generic refurbed one? (like should I have someone fix MINE and send it back to me, instead of having them send me one and me sending mine to them)
Mines nothing specially, just the plain stock calipers.

Where else would the brake fluid go, besides the calipers? They're probably what's leaking and seizing your parking brake, but technically, low fluid could be anything from a bad caliper to a master cylinder leak.

Remanufactured calipers are fine - just make sure you buy a reputable brand.

 

[SocialStealth]

Where else would the brake fluid go, besides the calipers? They're probably what's leaking and seizing your parking brake, but technically, low fluid could be anything from a bad caliper to a master cylinder leak.

Remanufactured calipers are fine - just make sure you buy a reputable brand.

What brand would you recommend?

 

[slavrenz]

What brand would you recommend?

Raybestos. You can find them on RockAuto.com Otherwise, go with Napa calipers, but you'll likely pay twice the price for the same quality.

 

[sethro_GT]

Considering your avatar statement of mechanic newb I don't know if overhauling your brake system is the best thing to cut your teeth on. If you do try it and you crack into the fluid you will need a second person to help bleed the system. Try to find someone that has done brakes before to help you out as well as get a chilton's (at worst, a FSM at best). Also your questions lead me to believe you need some educationing, I would recommend some net research. Here's one to get you started:

http://www.familycar.com/brakes.htm


Best of luck and don't be ashamed if you take it to a shop. If you do ask them if you can watch.

 

[ganzhimself]

You don't necessairly need two people to do a brake job... I used a vacuum pump to get the air out of the brake system on my own. Was pretty simple, but I only replaced one caliper too... Good luck, and if you're in doubt, take it somewhere to have them do it, because the brakes are one thing you don't want to fail on you when you need them.

 

[i12drivemyMP5]

I know this isn't the reason for your issue but pads wearing down also causes the fluid to get lower.

 

[pro5turbo]

the calipers have brake fluid in them?
So it might be the caliper that needs to be replaced and not the brake line? The fluid is on the thing that connects the E brake to the caliper.
Do you think the reason my E brake doesn't work is because the caliper is seized? Or do you think it could be the cable as well?

Should I be concerned with getting MY caliper remanufactured , or is it OK to just buy a generic refurbed one? (like should I have someone fix MINE and send it back to me, instead of having them send me one and me sending mine to them)
Mines nothing specially, just the plain stock calipers.

Yes, the calipers have brake fluid within them. when you press the brake pedal, it is the brake fluid that pushes the caliper piston to the brake pad, and which moves the brake pad to the rotor and pushes the rotor to the other brake pad behind the rotor. If it were your brake lines, you would highly likely see brake fluid on the ground as well as on your rotors and calipers.

The reason why your ebrake doesn't work COULD be because your calipers have seized, or that you need to have your ebrake cable adjusted for the wear of your rear pads.....it's quite normal. DON'T waste your money having your calipers rebuilt - it may cost just as much if not more to rebuild them than to just buy new ones.

 

[slavrenz]

Considering your avatar statement of mechanic newb I don't know if overhauling your brake system is the best thing to cut your teeth on. If you do try it and you crack into the fluid you will need a second person to help bleed the system. Try to find someone that has done brakes before to help you out as well as get a chilton's (at worst, a FSM at best). Also your questions lead me to believe you need some educationing, I would recommend some net research. Here's one to get you started:

http://www.familycar.com/brakes.htm


Best of luck and don't be ashamed if you take it to a shop. If you do ask them if you can watch.

I wish they made a Hayne's or a Chilton's manual for our cars but they don't. Your best bets are to either download the FSM on here, or else go to AllDataDIY.com and purchase an online subscription.

 

[slavrenz]

You don't necessairly need two people to do a brake job... I used a vacuum pump to get the air out of the brake system on my own. Was pretty simple, but I only replaced one caliper too... Good luck, and if you're in doubt, take it somewhere to have them do it, because the brakes are one thing you don't want to fail on you when you need them.

But it's much cheaper to just find a buddy with a free hour to lend you a hend. Anyways, I always bleed all four corners of the brake system, regardless of what gets replaced.

Whatever you do, don't get one of those little $6 plastic bottles/hoses with the magnets on the back that claim they let you bleed your own brakes. Those things are crap, and you're likely to let more air into your system than you're going to bleed out.

 

[SocialStealth]

Any idea what may have caused my caliper to have developed a hole in it?

I'd like to keep costs down, so if theres not a 100% chance that the rest of the calipers are about to have the same problem, I'd rather not replace them just yet.

And BTW the brake light went away when I topped off the brake fluid.
Theres not a puddle under the leaking area, it seems to just be coating the piece that connects the spring where the E brake cable connects to the caliper.

I'm probably going to bring it to pepboys to have it done.
The guy I bought the car from (a year ago) had a brake job done, so the pads are all still good.

so 1 remanufactured caliper, anything else I'll need?