stuck parking brake(emergency brake) Help Please!

[meganlouisemarie]

I have an 87 Dodge Ram. I belive the emergency or parking brake is on even though the dash says it's off. How can i release it without having to take it to a mechanic?

[ghosthorse]

couple things you could try, try taking the adjuster plug out of the back plate and then get a brake adjusting tool and adjust the brakes down, however if you have not had the rear brakes serviced in awhile they might be rusty and not adjust down properly, jack the rear end up and always use a jack stand for SAFETY, pull a rear wheel off then try and take the drum of sometimes it's siezed on there from not being removed, so you will probably have to use a small sledge hammer and beat on the drum to help it along. If you can't get it to move then the parking brake may be stuck keep in mind that even though it does not slide off easy does not mean the brake is stuck so work with it a little while and maybe it will come off, another thing you can try if you have determined that the parking brake is stuck, would be to get under the truck and pull on the parking brake it may loosen it up. If all else fails you might have to cut the emergency brake cable from the wheel and then get the drum off and inspect the shoes and replace them as well as the hardware kit. It probably would not hurt to service the rear brakes anyway. The most important thing to do is to get some brake cleaner and some anti-seize and after you have cleaned everything self-adjuster etc. apply some anti-seize to the self-adjuster threads and any other place that needs to move freely and It would not hurt to put some on the outside of the drum/axle so the wheel and drum slide off easy the next time you service them. I almost forgot If you have to cut the E-brake cable make sure you put a new one on. hope this helps maybe someone else will add some more needed info. I am far from pro on brake knowledge.

[rockwood84]

is the e-brake pedal all the way back up? and do you smell any burnt odor around the rear wheels after it has been driven? also could be just as simple as applying e/brake and spraying some lube ,wd-40 or any thing that will lube the e/brake cable where the cable slides into the sheath [outerpart of cable]
if your not sure what i'm talking about have someone apply and release the e/brake and watch where the cable goes in and out of the outer part. spray there real good. but if the e/brake has the rear brake touching the drum then when you apply your foot brakes then the rear are going to be the first ones to grab abs or not

[js305]

A common reason for this is the cable is rusty/dirty in the housing under the truck. You can try and saturate it with something like machine oil or WD-40, anything to loosen the crud. This happens a lot when the parking brake is never used except for the state inspections where they are required.

[troy1]

Jack the back end up and see what brake is stuck. Take some WD40 as mentioned above let it soak for a while and start yanking back on the cable.