Parking brakes are worthless

wisconsinz71 · December 10, 2004

I assume this one has been covered but I'm throwing it out there. Has anyone come up with something to get the worthless park brakes to hold with rear discs? I have continually tried to keep the parking shoe inside the rotors adjusted up but they go out of adjustment just as fast. Aside from a chunk of 4x4 behind the tire I haven't come across something that will work.

budhayes3 · December 10, 2004

There's a TSB about the e-brake shoe retaining clip breaking, allowing the e-brake shoes to shift, and rub on the inside of the rotor. Usually you will hear a rubbing or scraping noise coming from one or both of the rear wheels while driving, but you will more than likely end up with a faulty parking brake. More often than not, the shoes will have rubbed on the inside of the rotor so much that the rear rotors will need to be replaced. There's a redesigned clip that comes with the new e-brake shoes.

When it happened to mine, my e-brake would go all of the way to the floor, but some how, it still held. When I pulled the rear rotors off, the clips had snapped and the right rear e-brake shoes and rotors were wiped!

jhm · December 10, 2004

I must be the exception to the parking brake complaints. My '01 4x4 has 41k and the parking brake works perfectly, knock on wood. I use it almost 100% of the time, I dont want the automatic tranny nub holding all that weight back. I know most people I talk with dont use it, maybe that is part of the problem, use it or lose it...

99GMCZ71 · December 10, 2004

I replaced my parking brake shoes with the new style/new clip and they work perfectly. No problem at all, and plenty of holding power.

03GMCinBC · December 10, 2004

no problems here with my parking brake....

hope I didnt say that too soon. Got 30k and use it every day with no problems. I check it whenever I do a wash and it is still holding...

JCedar · December 10, 2004

My 99 Sierra didn't have any parking brake life when I got it, so I decided to put new rotors, pads, and e-brake set up for the rear. The parking brake lasted about 4 months and then crapped out again. Too much of a pain to do it all over again, plus I don't park on hills very often so screw it! I'll get to it when I get to it. Junk design in my eyes. If you tend to go in the mud once and a while like I do it just tears them apart!

The DNR guys around here put new rotors, pads and parking brakes for the rear every 10-15,000 miles. When they complained about them going so soon, the dealer told them that the trucks aren't designed to be on dirt roads as much as they are, and that the gravel was getting thrown at the rotors. Oh well I guess, what can you do??

gnutruk · December 10, 2004

I assume this one has been covered but I'm throwing it out there. Has anyone come up with something to get the worthless park brakes to hold with rear discs? I have continually tried to keep the parking shoe inside the rotors adjusted up but they go out of adjustment just as fast. Aside from a chunk of 4x4 behind the tire I haven't come across something that will work.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The e-brake (or parking brake, as GM prefers to call it) issue has been discussed before, but it's always a good thing to bring these subjects up again. Doing so helps folks get motivated to bring in their vehicles before they leave the warranty period. It's a good idea to get a formal warranty complaint logged into the system, even if the dealer service department does nothing, so that later on you have a stronger hand to play. Paper trail = good.

It's just amazing to consider the fact that designing and constructing a useable parking brake is still extremely far beyond the capabilities of the General Motors Corporation. They have been building vehicles for what? - maybe close to 100 years now? But somehow they simply are not able to grasp the basic principles involved in putting adequate parking brakes on some of their trucks. And yet, making a half-way decent parking brake isn't rocket science. Some of the GM automotive divisions have figured out how to do it. Also, MANY other automobile and truck manufacturers have managed to catch on to the techniques.

But year in and year out the GM Truck Division just throws up their hands, issues yet another TSB, then in standard fashion goes and blames the customer for taking a 4 wheel drive truck out onto dirt roads.

Some of the people who have purchased these trucks work in the construction industry, and actually drive them onto job sites; or if they work in agriculture, out into their fields. How dare they?!?!?

Perhaps there was some fine print in the sales contract that we all overlooked at the time of purchase. Maybe there was a clause that said; "Congratulations on your purchase of a new GM Corp. 4x4 truck. DO NOT EVER, EVER, EVER, TAKE THIS TRUCK OFF OF PAVED, PERFECTLY SMOOTH ROAD SURFACES. Doing so will instantly ruin the Parking Brake."

That, at least, would be truth-in-advertising.

gnutruk

wisconsinz71 · December 10, 2004

I assume this one has been covered but I'm throwing it out there. Has anyone come up with something to get the worthless park brakes to hold with rear discs? I have continually tried to keep the parking shoe inside the rotors adjusted up but they go out of adjustment just as fast. Aside from a chunk of 4x4 behind the tire I haven't come across something that will work.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The e-brake (or parking brake, as GM prefers to call it) issue has been discussed before, but it's always a good thing to bring these subjects up again. Doing so helps folks get motivated to bring in their vehicles before they leave the warranty period. It's a good idea to get a formal warranty complaint logged into the system, even if the dealer service department does nothing, so that later on you have a stronger hand to play. Paper trail = good.

It's just amazing to consider the fact that designing and constructing a useable parking brake is still extremely far beyond the capabilities of the General Motors Corporation. They have been building vehicles for what? - maybe close to 100 years now? But somehow they simply are not able to grasp the basic principles involved in putting adequate parking brakes on some of their trucks. And yet, making a half-way decent parking brake isn't rocket science. Some of the GM automotive divisions have figured out how to do it. Also, MANY other automobile and truck manufacturers have managed to catch on to the techniques.

But year in and year out the GM Truck Division just throws up their hands, issues yet another TSB, then in standard fashion goes and blames the customer for taking a 4 wheel drive truck out onto dirt roads.

Some of the people who have purchased these trucks work in the construction industry, and actually drive them onto job sites; or if they work in agriculture, out into their fields. How dare they?!?!?

Perhaps there was some fine print in the sales contract that we all overlooked at the time of purchase. Maybe there was a clause that said; "Congratulations on your purchase of a new GM Corp. 4x4 truck. DO NOT EVER, EVER, EVER, TAKE THIS TRUCK OFF OF PAVED, PERFECTLY SMOOTH ROAD SURFACES. Doing so will instantly ruin the Parking Brake."

That, at least, would be truth-in-advertising.

gnutruk

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ok, tell me what you really think, ha,ha. I agree with you that something that is, or can be such a critical safety component can be designed so poorly. In addition to the Silverado we also have an '01 Impala with rear discs. The caliper does both the service brake and park brake duty and holds just fine. Things that make us go HUM????? I am a warranty manager for a class 8 truck dealer and if there was an issue like this on them I know it wouldn't be pretty.

JayMan · December 10, 2004

I religiously use the parking brake, that's what they're for. My 2000 went to the dealer every 2-3 months for parking brake adjustments and they still had very poor holding power. With a loaded trailer behind, or a heavy load in back, forget about it.

So far my 2004 LeSabre appears to have good parking brakes. It has rear disks.

PELICAN · December 11, 2004

I replaced the pads on my parking brake this past summer (one side was completely shot) and now I am back to being able to push the brake all the way to the floor and feels like it is barely able to hold the truck.

willfxp · December 11, 2004

When it happened to mine, my e-brake would go all of the way to the floor, but some how, it still held. When I pulled the rear rotors off, the clips had snapped and the right rear e-brake shoes and rotors were wiped!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's supposed to go all the way to the floor. It's a self adjusting brake.

My 01 w/ 100k miles ebrake works just fine. I did replace it at 60k, but that is probably for normal wear and tear.

budhayes3 · December 11, 2004

When it happened to mine, my e-brake would go all of the way to the floor, but some how, it still held. When I pulled the rear rotors off, the clips had snapped and the right rear e-brake shoes and rotors were wiped!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's supposed to go all the way to the floor. It's a self adjusting brake.

My 01 w/ 100k miles ebrake works just fine. I did replace it at 60k, but that is probably for normal wear and tear.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Honestly, that self adjusting brake doesn't self adjust very well, actually I don't know of any self adjuster that has ever worked as it should. If you adjust it according to the service manuals specifications, with a drum to brake shoe clearance guage, you'll find that it only goes about half way to the floor. When I picked up my truck from the dealer when it was brand new, the parking brake only went about half way down. After about 3 years, when I started hearing the scraping noise in the back(when the right side shoe retaining clip broke and the brake shoe shifted), it started going to the floor. When I did my brakes last spring, I actually adjusted the parking brakes a little looser than the manual specified (I left extra clearance), and now the parking brake goes about 2/3 of the way to the floor. I know that GM has other models where the parking brake is supposed to go to the floor, this is just not one of them.

wisconsinz71 · December 11, 2004

When it happened to mine, my e-brake would go all of the way to the floor, but some how, it still held. When I pulled the rear rotors off, the clips had snapped and the right rear e-brake shoes and rotors were wiped!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's supposed to go all the way to the floor. It's a self adjusting brake.

My 01 w/ 100k miles ebrake works just fine. I did replace it at 60k, but that is probably for normal wear and tear.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't believe the park shoe self adjusts. It has an adjuster but nothing around it to adjust itslef up. There should be no wear to a park brake---no friction.