Emergency brake problems

I changed my leaf springs out about a month ago. During installation i noticed i put a bolt on the shackle backwards and it was rubbing the frame so i lifted the truck back up with a not so ideal piece of cribbing on a floor jack to fix it. While getting everything back together the cribbing slipped and the left side of the rear axle fell. Nothing looked broken or out of place but a couple days after that i tried my emergency brake when parking and noticed it was nowhere near as clicky or tight as before. I engaged the brake about halfway and put the truck in neutral and it doesn’t keep the truck from rolling. Only at full engagement does it keep the truck from rolling.. how do i fix this

 

Well, this one is kind of hard to internet-determine given all you have done to the vehicle. I think you can adjust the parking brake indent, but I could be wrong. But your issue is clearly tied to what you were working on, so I would recommend you get back under there and trace the parking brake cable and see if you can find a brace or cable connector for the brake system that popped loose when you were under there screwing around.

I'm sure one or more of our Taco-Guru's will chime in soon enough. Good luck!

 

I did but i didn’t see anything wrong

 

If you haven’t already, inspect cable, cable connects, and take the drum off and inspect the brake. Basic troubleshooting is your friend.

BTW, what is “cribbing” and what does “nowhere near as clicky” mean?

 

right. I just didn’t know if there was something specific i could check

 

Sounds like the emergency brake cable broke or stretched..pick it up and engage the PB...and see if that wheel will spin

 

Also check your hydraulic brakes lines and any wiring, since the axle dropped free (or so it sounds).

 

Could this cause the brake to not work?

 

I don't totally understand what happened. Were the leaf springs installed when the axle fell? Im trying to get a better idea what happened and what might have stretched

Cable you pictured above is the parking brake cable yes. Check where it interfaces with the back of the drum, those can get loose over time or get pulled out.

If you can find a small dirt road / parking lot you can try a low speed test. See if one side locks up better than the other. If both sides are about the same you probably just need to adjust the brake shoes (inside the drum). If this side doesn't do anything while the other side locks up then you've narrowed it down. Tacoma drum brakes are not know to be the best by themselves

 

The broken bracket allows the emergency brake cable to run a shorter radius, i.e more slack. I can’t imagine it not being a large part of your problem.

 

Yes, that could be your issue. From the "truck's perspective", the cable is now longer if that makes sense.

 

I was halfway done re installing the driver side leaf spring and the jack slipped and the driver side hit the ground. I moved that bracket so it wasn’t in a bind and it’s still not working.

 

Sorry to go back to this, and that I can’t offer help.but this is getting to me.

What is “cribbing”?


*Edit

Found the answer on google, guess the term has 2 meaning.

A horse that sucks on a fence like a crib. Or a temporary wooden structure meant to hold heavy loads.

Obviously only one of them makes sense on this context so I guess we all learned.. don’t use a horse to jack up your truck.

 

It’s just a 4x4 piece of wood. I had it sitting on the floor jack to eliminate the amount of jacking i have to do and it gives a more flat surface vs the ridges on that certain jack

 

Did you pull the wheel and check for cable operation ?

 

??

 

Just a guess, since I've not taken the Ebrake apart before, but that thicker area around the brake cable sheath is probably supposed to go into that bracket. I don't think your problem was the bind, I think it is that the brake cable is not positioned where it needs to be to make it the correct length.

 

Post #4..have you visually inspected cable operation from inside the Drum

 

I’m no mechanic but it looks okay to me

 

So if you have someone in the truck,with the drum off..and they apply the EB (while you watch it)does the cable move at the rear drums?