E-Brake / Parking Brake Advice

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north42g

Member
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Mazda Protege5
Just did the rear pads & rotors on my PR5, now my E-Brake doesntgrab...not even a littl.
Being a five speed, I need the E- Brake to work.
Does it just come out of adjustment when replaceing Pads & Rotors? Or did I overlook something?
OR Did I do something wrong?
Please note: the Right rear Caliper was frozen. I couldn't rotate the manual adjuster, so I replaced the caliper.
$95.00! OUCH. Seems like a lot of coin for a Caliper. But I had to do it.
Anyways, I have no working E-Brake.

Any body have some input?
 
Did you tighten up the adjuster after installation ?? You're supposed to turn the allen adjuster till it hits, then back it off 1/3 of a turn.
I'm pretty sure you can just apply and release the p-brake about 50 times and the self adjuster will turn itself in but they don't mention that in the manual.
 
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^This.

Ensure the arm is moving on the back of the caliper, Have a friend (you DO have friends doncha'?) pull and release the handbrake lever.
 
Friend(s).....? I suppose I could pay someone....(wink)
Yeah, well, I did use the adjuster as described. The whole 1/3 turn thing and all. Was just wondering if after a caliper replacement, the E-brake would normally have to be adjusted. OR if the E-Brake should remain in good working order(the way it was before I replaced the Pads, Rotors & Calipers).
I tell ya this, when I raise and lower the E-brake handle, the lever on the Caliper moves, only not enough to hold the car in place at 1500 RPM(which is the Massachusetts State Safety Requirement when getting my yearly inspection sticker).
I will ALSO say this: The Right Rear Caliper Adjusted perfectly. It felt good, everything went smoothly. The Left Rear Caliper, not so much. I didn't really like how the adjuster felt. Being it is brand new, I figured maybe it was just a little stiff or something. The Caliper Piston was pressing in when the adjuster was turned. And in pulled out when I backed it off a third turn. It just didn't feel "nice", like the other side.
Maybe I oughta just return it as faulty under warranty and have it replaced, then go from there. I dunno.
I gotta remove the center console to adjust the E-Brake Lever right?(PITA)
 
if the calipers are NOT seized, and you adjusted the calipers correctly, it should grab after 2-3 clicks on the handle. if it doesn't, one of the calipers is frozen, or the adjustment wasn't performed correctly. when adjusting, spin the wheel to make sure the caliper is grabbing the rotor, then back it off 1/4-1/3 turn.
 
Perhaps the new pads and rotors are a bit "soft" because they haven't seated themselves yet so the caliper has to move further to provide proper braking force. Perhaps in a few days they will seat further and the self adjusters will click another notch and tighten things up. The lever free play is easy to adjust,... just grab the rubber grommet thing around the lever handle and lift. It will rotate forward and out then give easy access to the adjuster nut (you may need a deep socket to fit over the threaded stud or just a wrench at an angle). Make sure your brakes aren't dragging after the adjustment. The three P-brake cables stretch over time and need some adjustment at the handle to take up the slack.

PARKING BRAKE (LEVER TYPE) INSPECTION

1. Pull the parking brake lever a few times.
2. Depress the brake pedal a few times.
3. Inspect the parking brake stroke by pulling the parking brake lever with a force of 98 N {10 kgf, 22 lbf}.
Stroke 5—7 notches

PARKING BRAKE (LEVER TYPE) ADJUSTMENT

1. Start the engine and depress the brake pedal several times.
2. Stop the engine.
3. Turn the adjusting nut at the front of the parking cable.
4. After adjustment, inspect the following points:

(1) Turn the ignition switch to ON, pull the parking
brake lever one notch, and verify that the
parking brake warning light illuminates.
(2) Verify that the rear brakes do not drag.
 
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Please note: the Right rear Caliper was frozen. I couldn't rotate the manual adjuster, so I replaced the caliper.

I will ALSO say this: The Right Rear Caliper Adjusted perfectly. It felt good, everything went smoothly. The Left Rear Caliper, not so much. I didn't really like how the adjuster felt. Being it is brand new, I figured maybe it was just a little stiff or something. The Caliper Piston was pressing in when the adjuster was turned. And in pulled out when I backed it off a third turn. It just didn't feel "nice", like the other side.
Maybe I oughta just return it as faulty under warranty and have it replaced, then go from there. I dunno.

So was the passenger side rear or the driver side rear replaced ??
 
Passenger side(right)
Drivers side(left)

The right side Caliper was replaced -During pads & rotor replacement, the right rear caliper discovered to be completely frozen, so it was replaced with a remaned unit.
The left side Caliper was replaced- During pads & rotor replacement, the left caliper discovered to be completely frozen, it was replaced with a remaned unit.

During install of Right side: every thing went smoothly. adjuster was adjusted properly and backed off 1/3 turn etc.
During install of left side: Everything installed ok, during adjustment of adjuster, using the 5/32nd size allen wrench/key, it didn't feel "smooth". It didn't feel like it was grabbing the way the other side did. Granted, the piston was able to be pushed up against the rotor and then backed off 1/3rd of a turn. it felt like I dunno, maybe the adjuster screw was stripped or not grabbing the way it should. The Caliper just didnt feel well put together I guess.

I am hearing from other spources that the E-brake might need slight adjustment after a complete rear brake service but not the kind of adjustment I am talking about. It shouold grab at 3 or 4 clicks maybe 5 or 6 but not any more than that!
Mine isn't grabbing at 8 to 9 clicks! I going to remove the left side caliper and bring it back for the warranty. Final answer.
 
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Yea,... replacing it seems like a good idea,... if it's that rough new it's not gonna be long before it seizes or leaks.
 
You can just adjust the ebrake, pull the cover that it sticks through and there's a 10 mm bolt in there
 
^^

I did the adjustment with the brake lever down, tightened both until they stopped then backed off initially a turn complete, pulled the lever and adjusted more or less based on how much tension was on the lever pull.
 
the proper procedure is to make the adjustments at the calipers. adjusting the handle is a band-aid for bad calipers.
 
My calipers are fine but my cables had stretched a bit and had slack in them,... they're kinda two separate adjustments for two different things. The calipers are supposed to self adjust after being set.
 
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^Yea you definitely want your P-brake off when you adjust your allen adjuster.
 
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