Re: Stuck in the driveway

[Douglas Henry <dhenry@u.washington.edu>]

On Thu, 2 Jan 1997, Greg Merritt wrote:

> At 1:14 PM -0800 1/2/97, Larry Edson wrote:
> >When I let out the clutch it felt like the front end was tied to the
> >pavement.  In reverse the rear end humped up and in first the rear end
> >hunkered down but the car wouldn't move even though the engine was applying
> >torque to the wheels. So I took public transit anyway.
> >
> >Any ideas where I should look first?
> 
> 	I'm 99.7% certain that it's a stuck parking brake.  It will make a
> big clang! when you break 'em free.  My solution for this is to rev it up,
> take a couple of months' life off of the clutch, and pop 'em.  It's not
> pretty.  It happens here when it's wet/cold/rusty out.  Apparently the
> problem can sometimes be eliminated by fresh, lubed parking brake cables.
> 
> Good luck,
> -Greg

I have this problem as well.  For a kinder, gentler solution, jack up the
rear with it in neutral (*put something in the front/back of the front
tires so it doesn't roll!*).  If the back tire turns, try the other side
to see if that one is stuck (at least one is).  Take a mallet (wooden is
best but even a household hammer is OK in a pinch) and tap the outer rim
of the brake drum until the tire rotates freely.  

Just remember to go
easy and not put any big dings in the metal if you're using a metal
hammer.  You just want to create a vibration that will brake that
temporary bond of rust between the shoe and the drum.

To avoid this problem again (in the short term), I leave it in gear
without using the parking brake if my car is going to sit for more than
24-48 hrs.  As Greg said, lubing the lines and the levers of the e-brake
system, as well as not using semimetallic pads, may help, but the weather
in Seattle has not allowed me to try these fixes!!

Hope this helps.  (Make sure that Ghia won't roll when you're under
there!!)

Doug H.
'71 Squareback