Honda accord 97 Parking brake/caliper issue
 

Hi Everyone.

I have a Honda accord 97 2.0 I.LS Manual.
During inspection the right rear parking brake failed. First I tried to adjust the parking brake inside of the car to get it working. Did not work. So I decided to replace the caliper. After replacing the caliper the parking brake worked untill I washed the car at the auto car wash. A metalic noice came from the rear and the barking brake hade no function agian. (this was almost right after the caliper change). The brakes work.

During the caliper installation I hade to push the caliper "lever" to fit the parking brake cable to the caliper and inserting the spring and pin, thus puting tention on the caliper.

When I pull the parking brake the caliper moves but there is no braking on the disc.

I'm thinking that I got a bad caliper, so I will probably need to replace it.
But I want to eliminate all other possibilitys before I do this.

Is there any way to loosen the parking brake cable so I dont need to push the caliper lever to fit the cable? (seem like this is wrong)

EDIT:: Also the parking break equalizer is out of align. ( if that helps describe anything)

Is there anything ells anyone can think of, that might be wrong?

Thanks

Well this is a strange one.....was working until a car wash?

Can you confirm the "travel" of the brake cable on the left to the right?

EDIT2: Accord '97 2.0 MT (F20Z1)

Hi guys,

Sorry for reviving this, but I thought it's better than creating a new topic for (almost) the same subject.

I have a similar problem on my '97 Accord 2.0.
The parking brake lever can travel the entire range without the parking brake kicking in. What's even stranger: When the lever is almost at the end of it's range (pointing forward), you can feel it "skip over". Then, when you try to move it back, the parking brake kicks in! So the lever is in "resting position" pointing forward and starts braking when the lever is pullend towards the rear of the car.
The lever can be forced to "skip back" by forcing it back with a couple of hammer blows, pushing it though the braking action. After it "skips" it can be moved freely over the entire range again by hand (removed spring for testing). But when you push it too far forward (almost to the end of the travel range), you can feel a "click" again and when moved back (just a mm or two) it starts to brake again.

Hope I explained it in a comprehensive way and someone knows whats wrong.

Thanks in advance!

Marko

EDIT: Maybe worth mentioning: I removed the caliper and noticed that the piston can't be pushed (turned) back. It turns a little (maybe 1mm), but thats it. I have to admit I did not use a special tool, but just a set of circlip pliers. This worked perfectly with the other caliper, but this one seems to be stuck.
Normal braking functions perfectly by the way. Brake test was done today at the garage.

If you cannot twist the piston, then the handbrake auto-adjust mechanism inside there is probably broken or seized. There's fiddly little parts inside & you can't always find replacements, so many people would replace the caliper.

The rest of the handbrake issues might be explained by a corroded-stuck cable. You'll have to take apart the console to watch the action of the lever & cable, to see what exactly is sticking & moving in the wrong manner.

Maybe less common is corrosion in the external cable & lever & spring down at the caliper.

Hi,

Thanks for the response. I am on the lookout for another caliper. I already replaced the right one, as it had the same problem. Unfortunately the car is not very common here in the Netherlands, so I'm still looking for the left one. In the meanwhile I was hoping someone would know a (temporary) fix, since the car didn't pass the (obligated) yearly inspection because of it which can get me a €130,- fine when pulled over. =(

About the cables, they are fine. They can move freely. Already been under the console for creating some slack for testing purposes. The problem lies very obviously in the caliper mechanism.

If I remember, the shop manual has instructions for dismantling the caliper. Without new parts, you would clean each little part as best you can, remove rust, etc.

I'm not certain, but I think the process starts with twisting the piston to get it out.

I don't have the shop manual so can't be much more help.

Check DIY forum post "Online Manuals" for a possible download manual. I think I recently saw that it was no longer available, but maybe?

If not available, suggest purchasing a hard copy manual on ebay for your car or one reasonably matching your car.

The rear caliper disassembly/overhaul procedure is in my 1994 Accord shop manual. It doesn't look too bad.

Check youtube videos. This one looked like it should be helpful.

good luck

Thanks for the advice guys. But I tracked down a new caliper. It will be shipped to me today. Problem solved. :)