Nightcrawler

I think someone brought this up before, but nobody really responded.

Anybody else notice you cannot lock the rear wheels by pulling on the e-brake/parking brake(on the SS at least)? That seems very strange to me. How is the car regulating this? I've never heard of nor seen this in a car before.

Maven

iTrader: (1)

The park brake system consists of the following:

Park Brake Lever Assembly
Receives, multiplies, and transfers park brake system apply input force from driver to park brake cable system.

Releases applied park brake system when lever release button is depressed and lever is returned to the at-rest position.

Park Brake Cables
Transfers input force received from park brake lever, through park brake cable equalizer, to park brake apply levers.

Park Brake Cable Equalizer
Evenly distributes input force to both the left and right park brake units.

Threaded front park brake cable adjuster is also used to remove slack in park brake cables.

Park Brake Apply Lever
Multiplies and transfers input force to park brake actuator/adjuster.

Disc Brake Caliper Actuator
Uses multiplied input force from park brake apply lever to apply disc brake caliper piston which compresses the brake pads against friction surface of brake rotor.

Drum Brake Actuator/Adjuster
Uses multiplied input force from park brake apply lever to expand drum brake shoes toward the friction surface of the brake drum.

Threaded drum brake actuators/adjusters are also used to control clearance between the drum brake shoes and the friction surface of the brake drum.

System Operation - Disc Brakes
Park brake apply input force is received by the park brake lever assembly being applied. The input force is multiplied by the lever assembly, transferred and evenly distributed, through the park brake cables and the park brake cable equalizer, to the left and right park brake apply levers. The park brake apply levers multiply and transfer the apply input force to in turn apply the disc brake caliper pistons which compress the brake pads against the friction surface of the brake rotors in order to prevent the rotation of the rear tire and wheel assemblies. The park brake lever assembly releases an applied park brake system when it is released and returned to the at-rest position.

System Operation - Drum Brakes
Park brake apply input force is received by the park brake lever assembly being applied. The input force is multiplied by the lever assembly, transferred and evenly distributed, through the park brake cables and the park brake cable equalizer, to the left and right park brake apply levers. The park brake apply levers multiply and transfer the apply input force to the drum brake actuators/adjusters which expand the drum brake shoes toward the friction surface of the brake drum in order to prevent the rotation of the rear tire and wheel assemblies. The park brake lever assembly releases an applied park brake system when it is released and returned to the at-rest position.


It is just a PRAKING brake so it doesnt exert as much force as many would expect..to determine if it is adjusted properly jack up the rear wheels....lift up on the handle, until it clicks 3 times...attempt to rotate the wheel/tire assembly, there should be a significant amount of drag but most people should be able to turn wheel.....lift up on lever two more clicks....there should be even more drag and most people will not be able to turn the wheel by hand. If you can still rotate wheel fairly easily by hand see your dealer.

The brake is not designed to allow you to do "E-brake turns"

rallyracer

On my 03' Cavalier I can pull the e-break up all the way while moving and lock up the back tires, it’s always a good time.

Nightcrawler

It doesn't even lock up at 15mph. Under no conditions does it lock up. Every car I've ever drive with a hand brake can lock the wheels up if you pull it at 15mph.

It could possibly be that the Pirelli tries offer so much traction(therefore resistance to lockup), the hand brake cannot lock them up. I wonder if you put crappier tires on them, if it would lockup then. I haven't driven any other cars with such high traction tires. This makes sense if you can lock it up on the base model or LS.

Maven

iTrader: (1)

Will the tire selection is an obvious factor if you feel your brake is out of adjustment you should go to the service dept.

wikkymaster

on my base they dont lock up either unless im on real slippery surface

tiny

try em out in snow

anyone in canada wanna help us out?

Nightcrawler

I don't feel it's out of adjustment. It keeps the car rock solid parked on a hill after just a few clicks and it does slow down the car if you pull it while driving.

I am just curious as to why it won't lock up even at low speed if you pull it. At this point, it seems it is the tires. If that's true, that's perfectly fine. I was just curious.

Those damn Pirellis are like glue. I punched it today in fairly heavy rain.. a small bit of wheel hop and it just up and took off. I've never driven a car with such good traction in the rain before. I'll surely miss that when I switch to a more economical tire down the road. I can't afford to keep putting poor tread life Pirelli's on there.

tiny

i went out in the rain, and the ebrake barely slowed the car down from 30-40mph

i dont think the tires are the factor, i think there might be a sensor involved

Maven

iTrader: (1)

There are no sensors. Its strictly cables, as delineated in my long post, thats stright from the 2005 Cobalt Factory Service Manual....its a parking brake....its just supposed to hold the car still while parked.

tiny

well thanks, i know that
but parking brakes are supposed to lock the back brakes, hence locking the back tires
so it should lock up while driving, unless the rear drums suck that much

ive never seen a car that had such a weak parking break

Shermen

have you been going stright when you were pulling the ebrake or going around a corner? because i was doing 180s in my school parking lot and my wheels were locking up totaly. did you try pulling it as hard as you can?

tiny

i did it straight
i dont wanna try it on dry pavement cuz its terrible for the tires
i might try it in some rain

b-spot

LOL Nice one!!

wikkymaster

yea i used to pull it on dry blacktop in my cav and just spin out it was so fun lol, its much easier with a lowered car because it slides better and is more stable too i would never try it in my cobalt at least not until its lowered

RACIN_RANDY

Can Anyone Say Abs Standerd On All Ss/sc, This Mean That The Brakes Will Not Lock Up Under Any Cercomstance, The Only Time It Will Is When The Tire Is Not Rotating Meaning Stopped, Like Parking The Car.

Shermen

ABS only works the foot brake not the e/hand brake. i fricken learned that in drivers training


lol

Maven

iTrader: (1)

Yes I can say ABS......but that doesnt change the fact that the park brake is not hydraulically actuated and it is therefore not possible for ABS to effect it.

PenguinPIE

iTrader: (5)

on level ground, i put the car in drive and pulled the parking brake all the way up and the car still rolls............i think the parking brake its kinda weak.........

alleycat58

Kinda? Mine won't even hold the car on hills. I'm talking small hills...like the slight slope in my driveway. I always chock my wheels for fear of my car rolling into the street. This is going to be my first warranty work I believe. There's no reason that a parking brake should not be able to hold a car which is in gear on a slight incline.

tiny

i tried mine out in the rain yesterday, the ebrake will lock up the tires, try doing a decent speed, turning, and the pulling the ebrake kinda hard

i only could do 1 or 2 spins, bc the pirelli's grip so damn much

but itll be fun in winter!