Urgent! Parking brake will not disengage!

This is kind of an urgent issue. My parking brake will not fully disengage anymore, and I have absolutely no idea how to manually disengage it. The parking brake lever applies pressure to the brakes no problem, but even when I slam it into place (I've been getting super frustrated with this) it does not cause the indicator light to go out.

At first I thought the indicator was just stuck on because the brake line had a little play in it. But now that the weather is nice, I've been rolling with the windows down and I hear that metallic breaking noise when I"M NOT APPLYING THE BRAKES.

Any and all help is appreciated!!!

 

bump for you OP

have you checked the brake line?

 

Yeah. It's not super tight or anything, but I don't entirely understand how it's set up, and I don't want to screw up a system that relies on tension because I didn't know what to do. I have pulled on it a bit to see if I could wiggle it loose, but that didn't work.

It's not fully engaged, but I really don't want to have to buy new brake pads right now. I drive 300 miles/week because of work and school, and I've let this sit for too long.

 

Yeah the light's stuck on. Where'd you get your free inspection?

 

It sounds like the e-brake cables are binding up. If you can get the rear drums off, you can "push" the cable ends back into place( extend the cable) but I think you will get the problem again as soon as you put the parking brake on. You need to replace the cables at the rear wheels it sounds like. The cable coming from the cabin usually doesn't bind up, but maybe. Good luck!

 

Look for oil leaking out of a axle seal onto a rear tire and check rear differential for correct fluid level also.

 

That sounds like a gigantic PITA. I will keep this in mind though.

So the current brakes came with the truck when I bought it....16-18k miles ago.... So they might need replacing, but the whole "Making noise while i'm not braking" thing is really weirding me out. Is that normal?

 

have you checked your brake fluid level?! the light will come on when fluid gets low. and if it is low and you dont see any leaks and you hear noise your probably gonna need new brakes but get it checked.

 

If the cables are binding up a bit, the rear brake shoes will actually be "on" a little bit. They usually loosen up after driving a while. I would not use the parking brake until it is fixed. ( I assume you have an automatic) usually the
"squeekers" are up front and change sound while cornering and usually when you are on the brakes a bit. If the sound comes from the rear when not using the brakes,, you probably have binding parking brake cables. If the cable to the cabin is sloppy"loose" then it's probably the cables(2) at the wheels. Try to spay the cables down with WD-40 to get the oil inside the cable housing all the way to the wheels first. let them soak for a while and cross your fingers. Stop using the e-brake. Good luck!

 

This^

 

Not the power steering reservior.... Check the brake master cylinder reservoir.

Ben is right though. As the front brake pads wear, it takes more fluid in the calipers making it seem as though fluid needs to be added. If the level gets too low, the warning light it tripped. That warning light is the same as the e-brake light. It serves a dual purpose.

Also, the squeaking noise you are hearing could be the wear indicators on the front brake pads.

 

Okay, I blasted the brake line with some WD40 and hopefully that'll soak in over night. Brake masters has a coupon for a free brake check. I'll see if I can get away from work for a bit to get that checked out. I'll check the fluid in the morning and keep you guys updated.

Thanks for the quick help, I'm glad we got the ball moving on this.

 

the light went out as I was driving home from work today, but it's still making that noise while I'm driving. My dad and I are gonna take a look at the drums and see if we can fix it. The brake fluid isn't full, but it is above the min line by a bit.

Does anyone know how to get the cover off this beast? I'm going to try the whole "pop it back in" thing.

 

have you checked the parking brake cable bellcrank? its located on the backside of the drum, near the leafsprings. if this gets bent at all to the left or right or is not properly lubed, it will bind up like crazy and not allow the parking brake to disengage properly. this can get bent because of getting hit while driving or forgetting to release parking brake before pulling out. just check for "freeplay" while under the vehicle with parking brake off. actuate it by hand at the bellcrank and if it does not rturn then this is probably the culprit.

 

Actually I just stumbled upon that link before you posted it, and I think I'm going to do that. From the looks of it though, I will be needing to replace my brakes soon.

I think I'm going to clean out the drums since they're off. Is it safe to just blast everything with that CRC brake cleaner?

Is there anything else I should do while the wheel is off?

 

If you fluid level is close to minimum even though it is above the min line if you add a little fluid the light will go off. The light is set to come on before you hit minimum. Ask me how I know this? I do all my own brakes and knew the brakes didn't need to be changed yet. Checked with a friend of mine who has worked on toyota since the early eighties I work with. Sure enough he said add some fluid and the light will go off. Just be aware when you change the front brakes, if you do them yourself, you will need to watch it and possible take some out or it will overflow when pushing the calipers back out. Hell dude, get a manual or watch a video on here. It takes like 10-15 minutes to changes the brakes on these taco's. Plus you get the satisfaction of knowing your learning something and don't have to rely on someone else or spend the money they charge. I promise you, you can change your front brakes.

 

This happens to me every year during inspection. Scince i never use mine when it comes time for inspection the stupid materials in the bell crank fuse together and i have to drill the little pin out every time Because it freeze's up. You would think i would learn to just keep pull it when i park.

 

Hell my truck is a 2000 with 207,000 miles on it and I haven't had to change the rear brakes yet. It's most likely the front squealers sounding and you need front brakes. Different brakes last different amount of times as well as for each driver. Your probably at the bottom of the brakes and the fluid is low because of that and throwing the light. Check your front brakes, you will probably be able to see them with just the wheel off. Either way even if you pull the spring and two pins to pull one out to check it will only take a few min.