Parking Brake Cable: Service and Repair

For servicing of either the left or right rear parking brake cable, follow the procedure as listed below.

REMOVAL






1. Remove the 2 screws attaching rear of center console assembly to console bracket.






2. If vehicle is equipped with an automatic transmission remove the shift knob from the shifter. The gear shift knob is attached to the shifter using a set screw. Access to the set screw is from the front of the shift knob and is removed using a 2 mm alien wrench.
3. If the vehicle is equipped with a manual transmission remove the gearshift knob and shifter boot using the following procedure.






^ Push shifter boot down to expose clips on gearshift knob and roll pin on shifter handle.
^ Pry the clips on the shifter knob away from the roll pin in the shifter handle using a flat blade pry tool.






^ Remove the shifter knob from the shifter handle, by pulling the shifter knob straight up.






^ Remove the shifter boot from the center console. Shifter boot is removed by squeezing the bezel together at the base of the shifter boot and pulling upward on the boot.











4. Remove the 2 screws attaching the front of the center console to the gear selector or shifter.
5. Raise park brake hand lever to the mid-position of its travel. This will allow for the required clearance to remove center console.
6. Remove center console/arm rest from vehicle.
7. Lower park brake lever handle.






8. Loosen adjusting nut on park brake cable output cable. This will take tension off park brake cables, allowing rear park brake cables to be easily removed from tension equalizer.












9. Remove the rear park brake cable requiring service, from the park brake cable tension equalizer.
10. Remove rear seat cushion from vehicle.
11. Remove scuff plates from right and left rear door sills. Scuff plates are attached to door sills using clips on bottom of scuff plates. Remove by carefully prying scuff plate retaining clips out of door sills.
12. Fold rear carpeting forward to expose park brake cables.
13. Remove the routing clip attaching the rear park brake cables to the floor pan of the vehicle.






14. Install the box end of a 1/2 in. wrench over the park brake cable retainer as indicated. This will compress tabs on park brake cable retainer, allowing cable to be removed from console bracket. From under carpet, grasp park brake cable housing and pull cable straight out of console bracket.
15. Raise vehicle on jack stands or centered on a frame contact type hoist. See Hoisting in Maintenance for the required lifting procedure to be used for this vehicle.
16. Remove rear wheel and tire assembly from the side of the vehicle requiring park brake cable service.






17. Remove the rear brake drum from the rear hub/bearing assembly.






18. Remove dust cap from rear hub/ bearing assembly.






19. Remove the rear hub/bearing assembly retaining nut.
20. Remove the rear hub/bearing assembly from the rear spindle.






21. Remove the park brake cable from the park brake actuating lever on the trailing brake shoe.






22. Remove park brake cable from rear brake support plate. Park brake cable is removed from brake support plate using a 1/2 in. wrench as shown to compress locking tabs on park brake cable retainer.
23. Raise vehicle.

NOTE: The park brake cable routing and routing brackets are different on the right and left side of the vehicle.

24. Remove the fasteners securing the 2 brake cable routing brackets to the frame rail.






25. Remove the park brake cable and sealing grommet from the floor pan of the vehicle.

INSTALLATION
1. Install parking brake cable into floor pan of vehicle making sure sealing grommet is installed in floor pan as far as possible to insure a proper seal.
2. Install park brake cable into the rear brake support plate. Be sure locking tabs on cable retainer are expanded to ensure park brake cable is securely held in the support plate.

NOTE: The park brake cable routing and routing brackets are different on the right and left side of the vehicle. Be sure the correct routing brackets are installed on the correct side of the vehicle. The routing brackets will ensure the correct routing of the park brake cable for the side of the vehicle it is installed on.

3. Attach the 2 park brake cable routing brackets on the right or left side rear frame rail. Install and securely tighten routing bracket attaching bolts.
4. Install the park brake cable on the park brake actuating lever of the trailing brake shoe .
5. Install hub/bearing assembly on rear spindle. Then install a new rear hub/bearing assembly retaining nut. Torque hub/bearing assembly to spindle retaining nut to 250 Nm (186 ft. lbs.).
6. Install hub/bearing assembly dust cap, using a soft faced hammer.
7. Install rear brake drum on hub/bearing assembly.
8. Install rear wheel and tire assembly on vehicle. Tighten all wheel stud nuts in crisscross pattern to one-half specified torque. Then repeat pattern, fully tightening stud nuts to 135 Nm (100 ft. lbs.).
9. Lower vehicle.
10. Grasp park brake cable to floor pan seal grommet by hand, and pull it into floor pan to ensure seal grommet is fully seated into floor pan.







11. Route park brake cable under carpeting and up to park brake cable hole in console bracket on floor pan. Then install park brake cable into console bracket. Be sure tabs on park brake cable retainer, have expanded out to hold park brake cable in console bracket.
12. Install the routing bracket holding park brake cables to the floor pan of the vehicle.

CAUTION: Discard output cable retaining clip and tension equalizer after removing it from the park brake output cable. A new tension equalizer and retaining clip is to be used when installing a new rear park brake cable.






13. Using a screwdriver unlatch the park brake output cable retainer. Then remove cable retainer and park brake cable tension equalizer from park brake lever output cable and discard components.

CAUTION: A new cable tension equalizer must be installed when replacing a rear park brake cable. The new cable tension equalizer is required to correctly adjust park brake cable tension after installing a new rear park brake cable.






14. Install a NEW park brake cable tension equalizer on the park brake lever output cable and rear park brake cables.






CAUTION: A new retainer must be used when installing the park brake mechanism output cable on the cable tension equalizer. Cable retainer usage is required to ensure output cable can not separate from tension equalizer.

15. Install a new park brake lever output cable to tension equalizer retaining clip on tension equalizer. The cable retainer must be closed and securely latched.
16. Adjust cable tension for the parking brake system using the following steps.
^ Position parking brake lever so it is in the fully released position.






^ On vehicles with REAR DRUM BRAKES, tighten the adjusting nut on the parking brake lever output cable until 12 mm of thread is out past top edge of adjustment nut.






^ On vehicles with REAR DISC BRAKES, tighten the adjusting nut on the parking brake lever output cable until 26 mm of thread is out past top edge of adjustment nut.
^ Actuate the parking brake lever to its fully applied position (22 clicks) 1 time and then reposition the lever to its fully released position.

NOTE: Actuating the parking brake lever to its fully applied position one time after tightening the adjustment nut will yield (stretch) the bent nail portion of the tension equalizer approximately 1/4 inch. This process will correctly set the parking brake cable tension.

17. Check the rear wheels of the vehicle with the park brake lever fully released, they should rotate freely without dragging.
18. After the park brake cable tension has been properly adjusted, check for free play in park brake lever. Park brake hand lever should feel firm at all clicks, with a maximum of 21 clicks of lever travel possible.
19. Install the center console back in the vehicle.
20. Install the 2 screws attaching the front of the center console.
21. Install screws attaching rear of center console assembly to console bracket .
22. Install the shifter boot or PRNDL plate back in the center console.
23. Install the shift knob on the shifter.
24. Install rear carpeting.
25. Install both rear door sill plate scuff moldings, by snapping them onto rear door sills.
26. Install lower rear seat cushion. Be sure lower seat cushion is fully installed in retainers on floor pan of vehicle.