Parking Brake Problem
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Pro
Joined: Feb 2003
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From: Ontario California
Parking Brake Problem
I have a 2001 Z06 that has a little over 100,000 miles on it About a year and a half ago, I had a problem with my parking brake. Normally when you pull back the handle it has a ratchet like mechanism that holds the lever and sets the brakes. However the handle wouldn't stay in the pulled back position..and just felt loose and disconnected.
I took it to a independent garage to a guy who has a lot of Corvette experience, and he fixed it, saying that a piece in the handle mechanism had broken. It worked fine for about 4 months, then broke again. I took it back to the same guy, he repaired it again at no charge.
Its been about a year now, and yesterday after I parked the car, I went to set the brake...and no luck..I have a floppy handle again
My question: Is this a common problem with C5's ? or is my problem just specific to my car? Any information or suggestions would be welcome thanks
Jeff
I took it to a independent garage to a guy who has a lot of Corvette experience, and he fixed it, saying that a piece in the handle mechanism had broken. It worked fine for about 4 months, then broke again. I took it back to the same guy, he repaired it again at no charge.
Its been about a year now, and yesterday after I parked the car, I went to set the brake...and no luck..I have a floppy handle again
My question: Is this a common problem with C5's ? or is my problem just specific to my car? Any information or suggestions would be welcome thanks
Jeff
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St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16
Drifting
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From: Prescott, Arizona
I had the same problem, but bought a used park brake assembly before taking mine out. I put the used one in which works fine.
The problem with mine was that if you push the button hard BEFORE pulling the handle back to relieve pressure on the ratchet mechanism, the heavy wire that is connected to the button will deform down inside the mechanism, preventing the ratchett from engaging until the problem is fixed.
Upon examination of my original park brake lever, I concluded that it could be repaired with some effort, but I put the used one in and kept the original in case I need to repair it in the future and put it in.
The lesson I learned is that when disengaging the park brake, pull the lever back first to relieve pressure on the ratchett before pushing the button and lowering the handle.
The problem with mine was that if you push the button hard BEFORE pulling the handle back to relieve pressure on the ratchet mechanism, the heavy wire that is connected to the button will deform down inside the mechanism, preventing the ratchett from engaging until the problem is fixed.
Upon examination of my original park brake lever, I concluded that it could be repaired with some effort, but I put the used one in and kept the original in case I need to repair it in the future and put it in.
The lesson I learned is that when disengaging the park brake, pull the lever back first to relieve pressure on the ratchett before pushing the button and lowering the handle.
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St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16
ALWAYS put rearward pressure on the handle before pushing the button down to release. 
Same principle applies when parking an automatic transmissioned vehicle on a steep grade. Set parking brake before putting into Park when parking, and shift out of Park before releasing the parking brake when leaving.
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This will relieve some of the pressure on the button and the ratcheting mechanism.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2005
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From: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Take the handle assembly apart and clean out the old grease. Relubricate the release mechanism with a lightweight grease and it should work fine. The problem that is very common seems to be that the grease GM originally used becomes dried out and makes the mechanism stick in an inoperative position. Once regreased it should work fine. Mine works perfectly after doing this. You'll have to remove the passenger seat to get the handbrake out.
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