97 Camry Parking Brake

Howdy,

I am having a problem with the parking brake on my 1997 Camry LE (V6). The problem is that the handle will not stay up. When I pull the brake handle up, instead of the usual "ratcheting" and then the brake handle staying in whatever position I stop at, the lifting action is smooth, and the brake handle does not stay engaged. Additionally, the button will press in but will not come back out. After a few days, the button might come out, but if pressed in again, it stays in for a few days again.

The actual brake itself, however, appears to be in working order. If I am idling with the foot brake pedal engaged, and then I lift and hold the parking brake in an "up" position, and release the foot brake pedal, the car brakes remain engaged. I took the car to be inspected a few days ago (forgetting that the parking brake handle was broken - brilliant, huh?), and the mechanic said he couldn't pass the car but that he believed it was an issue with the parking brake handle, not the brakes themselves.

I saw another post that looked similar (http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=927930&highlight=98+camry+parking+brake), but unfortunately, it contained a link to a Gen4 manual on www.camrystuff.com that was dead. :banghead:

Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions? I saw someone suggest removing the center console, but I have no idea how to do this. I have a Haynes manual for the car somewhere, but my house is a disaster and I haven't found it yet. Any ideas (with pictures, please) would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Jeff