i'm at my wits end with my parking brake!!

[Nick]

today i changed my parking brake shoes (92 v6, dual brakes in the rear) and when i went to put the rotors back on, they wouldn't fit, the adjustements for the parking brake are as loose as they go

i even got the drum part of the rotors turned, shaved off about 1/16th of an inch and they barely went on, and now it smells like burning brakes when i'm driving, i know i'm fucking up my brand new shoes, everything looked right but it just won't fit right

and now there's some pretty heavy vibrations and clunking in the rear, does anyone have an idea? do i need new rotors?

[Phi]

corrosion cleared to ensure proper seating?

How old are the rotors?

[Nick]

yeah, getting them turned cleaned up the inside of the drum nicely, they're really old and pretty fucked up, i'd say they're like 6-7 years old

[Phi]

could it be the hub and not the rotor that are not to spec be the cause for poor fitment?

[Nick]

the hub wouldn't have anything to do with fitting the rotor on there, its definetly the shoes striking the rotors

[Redline]

you know more about the Camry than I do, Oldman, but I'll just throw in a possiblilty.....perhaps the spring for retracting the shoes has been stretched? I got bad vibrations and such b/c the spring was fucked in one of my drums.

[Nick]

could be, it is reccomended to change the return springs, and i didn't, there was still a fair bit of pressure on them, but they weren't a total bitch to put on, could be a possibility

i'm gonna have another look in the morning

[Nick]

ok, so everything still looks ok, the shoes are a bit burned but there's still plenty of material

the rotor turns pretty freely in reverse, but it jams in fwd (turning it by hand)

come on, someone has to have an idea, 88LE? other mechanics?

HELP!!! if i don't have this fixed by tonight i'll have to take them out so i can drive to work tomorrow


edit: i think my cable might be stuck in the parking brake set position, i can't see the shoes moving when i apply the brake

also the adjustement in the console is all the way down and its still slack

once again, help!!! anyone had something similar happen?

[badazzlegnd]

this might be a long shot but maybe you put the shoes on the wrong wheel. I havnt seen these shoes with my own eyes but it sounds like you have the right side shoes on the left and left side shoes on the right. I could be totally wrong but have you tried switching sides?

[Nick]

well i know that the rear shoes are on the correct side (the pin for the linkage pointing on the inside), but the 2 front ones are identical, as far as i can see

they were shipped in a box all 4 together with no markings on them

[88 LE]

Originally posted by Oldman
edit: i think my cable might be stuck in the parking brake set position, i can't see the shoes moving when i apply the brake

If that is the case, have you tried messing with the cable?

Maybe unhook it from the lever on the back of the drums.

[amerikim]

You did turn the Adjuster (Toyota's official term) all the way down right? Its supposed to be set at minimum until you get everything back on. It looks like a knurled knob set on the middle of a threaded stud. It hooks up to both shoes. After installation, adjust until it locks, then turn back 8 notches. You should see this knob through the access hole covered with rubber plug.


* edited for accuracy, sorry.

[Nick]

yeah, i tried yanking on the cable, nothing much happened,

and yes, the adjuster is at the minimum setting...

[chronoti]

little more of a long shot parts stores do this ALOT did they give you the right brakes?

[Nick]

yes, they're from the dealership(cuz they were the only ones that had any idea what i was talking about), they're identical to the ones i took off