I have a question about adjusting the ebrake on a 1987 Camaro IROC-Z, 4 wheel disc.

How the hell do you know how much to tighten the nut at the T line of the parking brake cables?? I just got my car done

Transmission filter/fluid change, rear differential oil changed, brake fluid flushed out w/ new fluid, rear disc brake pads changed (and right rear caliper rebuilt). front pads were replaced months earlier.


All that was done without test driving inbetween, and such.. it's been about a month.. I've been driving a different car, and so I'm not used to the feeling of the 87 camaro anymore, so I can't tell how different it feels. Anyways, a short test drive.. feels like a loss of power (this might just me being used to driving a faster car)... Coasting at maybe 30mph, i pull the ebrake ... it feels extremely tight, and is sort of hard to pull up even a little bit, at first.. after pulling, letting go, pulling, it moves up further. It SEEMS like the ebrake is engaged constantly (by the feel of pulling up the handle)... But, coasting I can pull up the ebrake, and it doesn't seem to slow the car, or stop it, or anything.

Coasting maybe 20mph, if i floor it, there's a delay or so, then the tires chirp. Braking seems the same, before I changed the pads... possibly a little worse. with my foot on the brake, going from PARK to REVERSE isn't as big of a jerk as it was before, it's smooth, now. I want to say it seems like it's shifting slower, but right now I'm not very sure.


I'll be taking the car on a longer drive tomorrow, to get a better feel of how everything is responding.. I really need to know how to figure out how far to tighten the ebrake adjuster nut, the ebrake should be a lot looser, until maybe 45degrees, but it's just really hard to pull up.. But, like i said again, pulling the ebrake really doesn't slow the car down, so i'm confused as to whether or not the ebrake is constantly on or not..

Any advice appreciated.

 

 

Heh, Token. I don't know if you realize, but it's impossibly difficult to search for a thread based on how the car feels. Everyone uses different words to describe things.

A search for adjusting the ebrake REALLY DOES NOT help. Only so many topics refer to adjusting DISC brakes. only a few of those refer to the style rear disc that I have (they changed the setup later on)... and the ones that talk about the adjuster nut simply do NOT state any way to know how much is too much. People simply say, "Here's the nut, it's above the driveshaft".. that's it.

I'm asking for a bit of help that relates to my problem in particular. Not everyone changes the diff. fluid, tranny fluid, and brake fluid/pads at the same time, so there may be some leeway there for conflicts and such.


What i'm trying to say is, everyone needs to stop telling people to "SEARCH!" I did search. I found hardly anything.

 

it sounds like a cable problem not an adjustment.....if you pull the handle and nothing happens and the handel is hard it sound to me like a fronze e barke cable. try to spray some lube in the cable ends and keep working it on and off and maybe it will loosen up. if you pull the handle and it feels fine but did nothing then i would say adjustment but with the tight feel you explained it sounds like a cable.it could be any of them the main or the two going to each brake caliper.

jeff

 

Well, the reason i suspect maybe the cable was too tight, in the down position was the before I adjusted it, the ebrake handle would go almost vertical (of course it didn't work, though)

after doing everything and adjusting the nut, so it pulls tighter, the ebrake handle is really stiff, like I described above. The ebrake still doesn't seem to work, though. I suppose there could be something definitely wrong with the cable, maybe after it branches off... I'll check it out

 

oh ok maybe it was a bit out of adjustment you may be bottoming out the arm on the caliper now. the ebrake works by turning out the piston in the rear caliper. so if you have new brakes installed it may just need to be worked in to get them to self adjust. using the e brake is said to adjust the rear brakes but it never really seems to work all that well.

jeff

 

Search does indeed get you a lot of results but you have to know who has posted a lot of threads on how to do it:

Search "adjustment" and user (Me) ebmiller88 and this forum:

https://www.thirdgen.org/techbb2/sea...der=descending

Have you rebuilt both the calipers with the recall kit? If not, this is most likely your problem as those disc calipers are notorious for failing and not working right. Short of replacing the rear brakes with the much better 1LE/Lt1 style PBR rear brakes, installing the recall kit in BOTH calipers will probably cure the problem. The thing is that the adjusting screw rusts and won't operate proberly and so the rear calipers don't work. Recall kit takes care of this. As for the adjustment, it's really just an issue of where you like the lever to stop....when it's tight, it's tight no matter where the lever is. I like mine to be at about 10 O'clock when looking at it from the driver's seat, just personal preference.

Hope this helps.


Ed

 

recall kit wasn't used...

I rebuilt one caliper, cleaned it throughly.. wasn't in bad condition at all..

I can move the parking brake lever by hand, and it pushes the piston outwards like it's supposed to, and letting go, it retracts a bit... but pulling the ebrake lever doesn't seem to do anything

 

so i have an 87 iroc, 4 wheel disc
recently i had the two rear calipers changed, everything was fine, went on a 5000 km round trip drive with the car no problems.. when i got back home i had an issue with my muffler clamp breaking so i brought it to the shop to fix (they also did my calipers). when i go back to pick up the car the mechanic tells me he tightened up my E-brake because i had to pull it all the way up to catch a tiny bit.. so i drive out of his shop and my drivers side rear tire is smoking like crazy, white smoke, smelled like burning brakes.. after a couple mins of driving it went away.. but now it feels like the ebrake is engaged all the time, loss of power very choppy, delay in acceleration etc. so i got under to the ebrake T and loosened it back off.... however it has not changed anything... when im driving if i go WOT it will vibrate and then kind of break loose and ill get my true power for a second then it bogs, also driving in 4th or 5th gear is virtually impossible on city streets, almost as if it doesn't have enough juice to push the car....
What could this mechanic have screwed up?? any ideas? could it be something else entirely and coincidental??

PLS HELP!!!