I just bought my ranger, but No parking / e-brake... Yikes!!

[mach2race]

Help! My E-brake pedal wont latch in. When i try to engage it, I feel resistance like its pulling on the cable, but once I remove my foot, the e-brake pedal releases. I dont know if my e-brake pedal assembly is bad, or maybe the release is staying engaged. I just bought my 1982 Ranger today, (4 cylinder 5 speed) but a manual trans without a parking / e-brake... is not a good thing. Has anyone else had this issue? How do i remove the parking brake assembly to inspect it? I would appreciate any helpful ideas or suggestions!
Thanks fellow Ranger fans!

 

[RobbieD]

Welcome to TRS. Sounds like your issue is probably in the parking brake pedal assembly. Best thing to do is to get under there with a good light and look closely while pushing the pedal by hand.

First thing I'd check- find the pawl which engages the teeth on the gear. Make sure that its spring hasn't broken, and that the parts that should move, can move. It can be broken or worn parts, or something as simple as hitting stuck parts with a shot of white spray lube.

It'll be kind of hard to see everything, in place, and removing the assembly ain't the easiest thing. But, you're absolutely right in needing a good parking brake with a manual. Worst case, find a good pedal assembly in a junker, and swap it out.

Diagram is '93-'94; your '92 will be similar.

 

[Curious Hound]

Just keep driving. A parked Ranger is Not a fun Ranger.

Sounds like a broken spring on the pedal assembly. Those drawings above should be helpful.

 

[Dirtman]

Have you tried cursing at it?

If you're junk yard savvy it's not hard to just replace the whole dang pedal assembly instead of trying to find the correct springs to fix your current one. It's only held on by 3 bolts, 10 minute job at most.

 

[helpme]

I have a friend with an Excursion (automatic, diesel). One night at about 2AM it decided to jump out of park, roll down his driveway into the highway and come to rest against the curb. Another vehicle barely missed it but careened into a pole. The driver sued and won $14K. Not sure if Ford payed or my friend. But I bet he wished he had a manual after that.

 

[Blmpkn]

I have a friend with an Excursion (automatic, diesel). One night at about 2AM it decided to jump out of park, roll down his driveway into the highway and come to rest against the curb. Another vehicle barely missed it but careened into a pole. The driver sued and won $14K. Not sure if Ford payed or my friend. But I bet he wished he had a manual after that.

Yeesh. Hopefully ford paid.. or the company who manufactured the parking pawl.. or the garage that did its safety inspection.. that's just crazy. Were so G.D sue happy here it boggles my mind.. sht happens.

My father was killed in an accident at work. He was a truck driver. Last big snow storm of the year he was on his way home through boxboro mass on i-495, 2 cars got jumbled up with each other in front of him and he jerked his rig to the right to try and avoid bowling them over. He ended up jumping a guardrail with two full trailers and well.. yeah.

Lawyer at the time was really pressing my mother to sue the person who's fault it was. She didn't. It was a blizzard. Shit happens. They already had the guilt I'm sure... they don't need any more on their plate.

Funny thing was, my father always told everyone to STAY ON THE ROAD in situations like that. If you hit a car.. so be it. NEVER do what he did. Over the million+ safe miles he drove, he saw quite a few awful accidents that wouldn't of been nearly as bad if the individual driving wouldn't of tried to avoid whatever they were about to hit.. and just hit it.

Of course... everyone he told that didn't drive a 40 ton rig.. he saved at least two lives doing what he did that morning.

It's been 14 1/2 years since that day.. and while I'm finally to the point where I'm "over" losing him much too soon.. whenever I think of his selfless decision to not obliterate those two cars I get right fat and welled up and start to cry. Like now. Excuse me while I go smoke a thousand cigarettes.

 

[RobbieD]

I've gotten somewhat anal about the parking brake in my old age, especially with mostly manuals in the herd. Sh!tty way to damage or lose a truck, or to even get sued.

A friend just after high school had a 1969 Trans Am. Rare car even back in the day. Didn't use the parking brake on a hill one night, and it rolled backwards into a power pole, pushing the rear valance all the way to the back glass. The car went to the junkyard, and look at they're worth now.

 

[mach2race]

Hey, Thanks for the great information guys. I will give it a look, tomorrow

 

[racsan]

Ive always just parked my manual rangers in 1st or reverse, never had a problem. The only time Ive ever had a truck try to move that way was on a incline with a trailer hooked up, even then it just creeped a few inches over a hour. Im sure a 2x4 in front of the tire would have cured that. Up here in the salt belt the cables have a nasty way of not releasing if you put the brake on, So I just never use it and avoid the headache of a possible siezed cable. If I really wanted a parking brake I would use a line-lock in the hydraulic line like drag racers do.

 

[Blmpkn]

Ive always just parked my manual rangers in 1st or reverse, never had a problem. The only time Ive ever had a truck try to move that way was on a incline with a trailer hooked up, even then it just creeped a few inches over a hour. Im sure a 2x4 in front of the tire would have cured that. Up here in the salt belt the cables have a nasty way of not releasing if you put the brake on, So I just never use it and avoid the headache of a possible siezed cable. If I really wanted a parking brake I would use a line-lock in the hydraulic line like drag racers do.

The only reason I ever used the ebrake in any of my manuals was to initiate some Tokyo drift action. Always left it in gear. Like you said about the salt belt... pulling your ebrake when you park can mean needing AAA to get a ride home.. either frozen from rust or frozen from ice.

 

[Dirtman]

Like you said about the salt belt... pulling your ebrake when you park can mean needing AAA to get a ride home.. either frozen from rust or frozen from ice.

So the logic is, you don't use your parking brake because it's rusty from not using it...

 

[Blmpkn]

So the logic is, you don't use your parking brake because it's rusty from not using it...

View attachment 63840

Now your gettin it!

 

[mach2race]

I always park my manuals in reverse. But once, my bronco II... jumped out of gear and rolled across a parking lot, making impact with a gas pump. No major damage to my Bronco or the gas pump thank goodness... but could have been really bad

 

[mach2race]

I actually have a wheel chock in the cab, I can put behind the tire, which works... as long as some yahoo doesn't kick it free.

 

[Dirtman]

I use my parking brake every time I park whether I'm driving a manual or automatic. With a manual it's for obvious reasons, for an auto it's so you don't have to buy a new transmission because someone bumps into your car in a parking lot. But hey I'm silly and maintain my brakes so my parking brakes always work.