Seriously looking at picking up that '97 OBW that I've been considering... gonna drop off the paperwork to the bank tomorrow, in hopes that I can get the check Friday morning and drop it off to the dealership, and start the process of getting the engine swapped out.

 

The only other issue that I've found with the car regards the parking brake handle. If I pull up on it, there's tension, so I imagine the cable itself is ok. It doesn't ratchet, though, and the button is missing. It acts/feels the same on my wife's OBW, if I depress the button and pull the handle up, and let the handle return without releasing the button.

 

Just from my quick three minute inspection, it looks like the button screws onto a bolt within the handle's housing. Beyond that, I imagine there's some sort of spring rump roast'y that pushes the button out, and keeps some sort of tension on the ratchet mechanism, ensuring that it engages.

 

Does that sound right? Anybody ever taken one apart and looked at its guts?

Just a shameless bump... I suppose I could just pay the dealer to fix it, but I'd like to save as much money as I can.

 

Then there's the bit about telling the dealer I want to fix it myself, before getting it inspected, but after the engine swap. That might get kinda hairy.