I am changing my brake pads for the first time and I am having trouble removing the parking brake cable. I pulled the U-Clip off, but I cannot get the brake cable off the lever. I been trying to pull the cable out and to the side with my pliers with no luck. I can almost get the passenger side to clear the lever, but the driver side won't budge at all. The parking brake is off by the way. What am I doing wrong? Is there a trick to this?

 

BTW, I found that my axle nut was not even hand tight. Thank God for cotter pins. Now I have an excuse to got to sears and buy a new 1/2 inch drive torque wrench .

Nevermind, I got it. Sometimes it helps to take a 1 hour break, then to pull harder and curse at the same time. I hope it goes back in a lot easier.

Sometimes it helps to take a 1 hour break

It realy, truely does :cool:

You don't need to remove the parking brake cable to change the pads.

ya bud you dont have to remove e-brake cable to do your pads, just remember to screw in the single pot caliper, and not beat the s**t out of it with a screwdriver and mini-sledge like i did the first time, lol. A fresh mind is so helpfull when you cant think and are so pissed off that you see red.

 

 

~Josh~

Check your bearings. If your castle nut was that loose, there was probably more strain on your bearings than usual.

 

-Brian

Of the splines in the hub will probably be chewed-up too.

What did you have the e-brake handle pulled up? Never done that before.....

My factory manual and my haynes said to pull the e-brake cable to install the front brake pads, so I did it without question.

 

BTW, I didn't finish my brake pad install because I needed new shims. I had to special order them from carquest, so I won't get them until Wednesday.

 

Since the castle nut was loose, I pulled the rotor out just for fun. I didn't notice anything wrong, but I will double check the splines tomorrow just in case.

 

How can I check the bearings? How do I know if they are okay or need replacing?

With your rotor off the car, grab the CV stub sticking through, and just wiggle it. If there is ANY free play at all, chances are the bearings are bad.

 

Also, with the car put back together, jack the tire off the ground and wiggle from side to side, top to bottom. You want to check for any free play that might exist inside the steering knuckle.

 

-Brian

Just checked it out and the splines are still in good condition. I am not sure if the bearings are still good. When pulling up and down or left and right I didn't get any slop at all. When I pulled a lot harder on cv stub, I can hear it move slightly. Couldn't really feel it move, but I could hear a very quiet knock or tap. Should I replace them now or should I not worry about it for another 1 year or so? BTW, is the axle supposed to be loose in the in and out direction when the disc is off?

 

BTW, where can I find a 36mm socket? Sears doesn't carry them.

 

Thanks for all the help thus far.