Greetings,

I have a problem with my handbrake; It was broken when I bought the car, and last week I tried to fix it. The cables are in good shape but they were disconnected at the caliper, I reconnected them and found out that the mechanism is seized. I used some PB blaster and eventually I was able to get it moving freely enough.

The cables pull the handbrake on fine but it seems like the return spring on the caliper is weak ( I can unhook it with my bare hands) . Do they usually go bad ? metal fatigue ? Or is it that the mechanism is still not loose enough for the spring ?

Also, where can I get a replacement spring; other than the dealer...

I need this fixed before the winter

Thanks !

 

sounds like you need to start with an adjustment of the system first, before throwing parts at it. should be able to find the procedure here on this site, or do a google search.

 

Maybe a combination of a weak spring and excessive friction in that lever. The lever really has to be pretty free-moving.

Try "stretching" that spring backwards. Clamp one end in a bench vise & twist the other end in the opposite direction so it's tighter when you put it back on the caliper. But I suspect that won't work for very long.

If the brakes were dragging, it's possible that spring overheated and now it's just plain weak. You probably have to go to a dealer for that. Shipping from a mail-order place might eliminate any discount in the price.