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Old 12-06-2001, 05:44 PM
Red Ram 318 Red Ram 318 is offline
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Exclamation Emergency Brake HELP Please

I posted a couple of weeks ago that my e-brake stopped working (of course right after the truck was at the dealer for recall work).

Now I want to fix it, myself, since the dealer wants 2 hours of labor at $75/hour.

I had the dealer look at the e-brake when it broke, and they said that the whole mechanism needs to be replaced, that there is no "ratcheting action." That means that the mechanism attached to the e-brake cable along the frame in front of the driver's side rear wheel is not working, right? That is where the "ratcheting action" is supposed to take place, yes?

The part for the fix will cost about $65-$70. Has anybody done this work? How is it done?

My main concern is that I am replacing the correct part in replacing the mechanism (with a bolt, and a piece of metal around it) in the location I described. I don't need to replace anything in the cab, do I? I pulled the kick panel off just now and took a look, and everything in the cab seems just fine.

Any help is GREATLY appreciated. Techs would be particularly helpful.
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Old 12-06-2001, 07:46 PM
Jerry Shipman Jerry Shipman is offline
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No, all the "ratcheting" is done by the mechanism inside the cab. Where the actual pedal and release handle are. Push down on the e-brake pedal. You should feel it ratchet as its pulling in the cable. I've seen them sludge up from non use, where they just need a good dose of W-D 40 followed by some spray grease. Or you could have a broken mechanism, which will cost you, because if i remember right, it is all or nothing when replacing those.
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Old 12-06-2001, 07:52 PM
BillyBob BillyBob is offline
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The part that you are talking about is seldom in need of replacement that I know of. Of course yours could be the exception to this. It might be worth your while to spend some time looking at it while you operate it to see if anything has fallen in the mechanism preventing it from proper operation. Just my opinion.
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Old 12-06-2001, 08:45 PM
Red Ram 318 Red Ram 318 is offline
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Thanks guys. I took another look after I started the thread. I pulled off the kick panel and the part of the dash below the steering wheel. It must be the actual part in the cab - that is what usually makes the loud ratcheting noise when engaged. You know, it's possible that it is dead from non-use - my truck was sitting at home while I was at school from beginning of Sept to end of October. I will shoot from WD40 in there. I hope that works.

If not, I am willing to buy a new mechanism for the $65-$70 that the dealer wants for it. I just don't want to put down another $150 for the dealer to put it in. Has anyone done the install? If not, does anyone know how? It looks pretty easy, but I would need to get a whole bunch of wires out of my way before starting.

Thanks.
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Old 12-07-2001, 05:55 PM
Red Ram 318 Red Ram 318 is offline
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I FIXED IT! I FIXED IT!

Damn I'm excited. And I didn't even know what was wrong with it exactly until after I had fixed it. There was too much slack in the cable from the ratcheting mechanism to the brake release. That is, not enough cable was actually available to the ratcheting mechanism to engage the brake.

I was going to take the mechanism off (held on to the kick panel by one 1/2" bolt) and spray it down with WD40.

I noticed that there was a lot of cable hanging down off the release. So I slowly fed it back up into the ratcheting mechanism, real close to the kick panel. All of a sudden, the release pulled tight, like how it is supposed to be. I depressed the e-brake, and it worked!! I'm happy.

The dealership tried to screw me over on this, I see. They wanted $225 to replace the mechanism. All it needed was the cable to be re-fed. I will give them the benefit of the doubt and say that they probably did not look hard enough at what was wrong to realize that's all that was needed.

Now the $225 can go toward mods...
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Old 12-07-2001, 06:56 PM
BillyBob BillyBob is offline
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I told you so didn't I! CONGRATS on your fix.
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