Replacing front section of handbrake cable

[rer233]

One tab in jimcrazy's pic.

[jimcrazy]

like I said that handle is from a rav4 I could not find the tercel handle it may have 2 tabs

[stanrob]

Internet glitch surmounted - who knows how?
Now I see your photos, THANK YOU for doing that for me.
Looks like there's just one tab, which is all I can see on my assembly w/o taking it apart.
I have bent that tab out so threaded shaft fits in easily from wrong direction.
Maybe I didn't bend it enough, or something like that.
I still can't get that shaft thru in the right direction.

[stanrob]

Thanks to your beautiful photos, I see now how much easier it would be if I could unmount the lever! Ultimately I may have to break off the other three bolts, do the threading, then remount with new bolts and nuts. That could be what a so-called professional mechanic would do.

If there IS a 2nd tab, I don't see any way to view it without unmounting.

Interesting that several of you have encountered snapped front cables just as I did.

[jimcrazy]

get your cable in?

[stanrob]

Not yet! It's turned cold and rainy, which slows me down.
Your eager helpfulness makes me feel guilty.
I don't have indoor workspace or even a dry place to get under it right now.
I don't like it, but I can drive anywhere without that brake.
My late parents' cars (always manual shift) almost never had working parking brakes!
I'll try some more before the end of the week.

[stanrob]

OK, weather got friendly for a bit. So here's yet another update. This time I repeated all my failures again, and then some! The original broken-off cable end will slide in front-to-rear, but not rear-to-front. If there's a second tab, it's not accessible to bend open.

I had a light underneath which lit the translucent channel enclosure, enabling a view of progress from above. This time I persuaded my loyal S.O. to sit in the driver's seat while I crawled underneath to try more ways to make the new cable thread in. I pushed and wiggled and twisted the lubed threaded shank in till it refused to go farther, then had her raise or lower the lever gradually to try to work it in. It never made it to visibility in the front. We had to give up. How I hate that feeling of defeat!

It appears the next step is removing the three remaining hold-down bolts for the lever assembly (first one already broken off). I had hoped to break those off too, but that got shattered. In each case, the square nut securing the bolt underneath decided to break free of its weld to the body. Those square nuts have proven difficult if not impossible to hold with my wrench or visegrip, reaching around the driveshaft, and I need a strong helper on top to unscrew the bolt or break it off. (My S.O. and I are both seniors and then some.) So I'm seriously considering paying a machine shop to drill those bolts out, enabling jimcrazy's 2-minute method, followed of course by bolt & nut replacement. Your continued comments are invited!

[jimcrazy]

I was trying to remember and I think it is like the rav4 handle, you only have to take the 2 bolts out, front one on the drivers side and back one on the passenger side. if you were going to drill them out start with a 3/16 drill down through the head of the bolt then go to 3/8 drill after drilling through you should be able to twist the heads of the bolts off and then just use nuts and bolts to put it back together

[Petros]

yes, just drill the bolts out from the top. Use a center punch to put a little dent in the top of the bolt head, and drill away. It will come off without harm to the handle. If the other end is not broken free, you might try soaking it in ATF (automatic transmission fluid) from both sides for a day or more, it will almost always allow you to back the bolt out. Of course if the welded nut is broken off than just drill out the head from the top and it will fall free from the under side. Than you can put a new nut and washer (use a stainless locking nut so you can remove it again later).

good luck.

[stanrob]

Petros and Jimcrazy, THANK YOU! I see now that like you said, the lever is held by 2 bolts not 4. Why didn't I notice that before? One I broke off already, so there's only one to drill out. I regret loosening the other two, but maybe it won't matter.
We have ice and snow here, but I'll center punch and try drilling this PM. I'm still worried about a need to hold underneath in the snow while breaking off above, and later to hold underneath while reassembling from above.
This week is when that 4WD really pays off! I could plow right through the snowplow's 8-9 inch furrow to and from the car's uncleared parking space on the lawn. Perhaps the fancy-schmancy new cars do it too, but I've yet to meet a new car owner who understands or cares what they have.

[stanrob]

Snow melted, ground dried out. Job finished today, drilling out bolt, then using Jimcrazy's "2-minute" method! What a blessing to have a parking brake again!

There was only one tab, which is now bent back to normal.

Installing the new bolts and nuts did not proceed well at all, too much is in the way, until I finally realized I could feed the new bolts up from underneath while my significant other applied the washers and nuts on top.

[Petros]

every race car builder and aircraft mechanic knows that all bolts should be installed "down" or "outward", that way if the nut fall out you do not loose the connection.

That is not always possible any more, but in your case I would apply some loc-tight to the bolted end of the nut to make sure it does not find a way to work itself off. Use a lock washer if possible.

[jimcrazy]

next time will be a lot easyer lol

[stanrob]

To Petros: Actually I did use lockwashers under the nuts, and with me under and my other half over, we managed to torque them pretty hard. I'll save that loctite suggestion for better weather when we're both available again, and meanwhile I'll be checking the lever mount for firmness. I salute you and jimcrazy, and MANY THANKS FOR YOUR HELP!

To all contributors on this thread: I believe I found out why the new threaded shank wouldn't feed in blind. When I finally got the lever assembly off to expose the cable channel, there I found a little curled-up deteriorated piece of soft plastic. I suspect it was part of the original cable's sheathing. Apparently it was letting easier things pass through, like the broken cable end, a small wire, and even a small screw driver. But it always caught on the new threaded shank! If we had known this beforehand, I suppose it could have been fished out somehow.