Flexing locks up rear brakes

[brian2sun]

I’ve had my 3rd gen for 20 years. It’s been lifted for most of that time. I have OME 861s with stock Landcruiser FJZ80 shocks in the rear. Been running this setup for about 10 years and love it for the lift, flex and added payload capacity. But, when I first changed to these coils and shocks, the rear brake drum(s) would get tighter and tighter as I flexed out on the trails, to the point that they’d completely lock up after an hour or 2, and I would have to back off the little gears inside the drum with a screwdriver thru that hole to release them. I tried bending the brake cable brackets for more slack, and later removed the brackets altogether and just let the cable hang freely, but the drums would still lock up after flexing on the trails. I have a good amount of droop in the rear, but I extended my bump stops to limit that, so I don’t think my droop is any more excessive now than most people with 3-4” of lift.

After a couple more times of it happening, I finally just disconnected the rear e brake cable from the driver side drum and no more locking up... but I’ve also not had a functional e brake for 10 years. If I park on a hill, I just put it in 4Lo to give it more resistance to rolling, but it isn’t ideal. After putting in a lot of love into the truck over the past year, I’d really like to have an e brake again.

Are there any cable extensions available now that weren’t around 10 years ago (I couldn’t find any back then)? Or do I need a whole new longer cable? Anyone else had this issue and fixed it? Gracias.

 

[the_welfare_wagon]

I'm sure there are cable extensions but several sites sell e brake cable bracket extensions which would do the same thing.

I believe Sonoran steel has a cheap kit. If your handy with metal you could honestly copy the design and make one yourself for cheap

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[4runnerfiend]

That is weird because I've got 4.5" or more of lift in the rear. I've not done an extension and have not had any issues. If any thing it has gotten a little loose over the past 3 years of having the lift.

What year... can you take a picture of what's going on. I wonder if it is something else causing the issue.

 

[brian2sun]

I'm sure there are cable extensions but several sites sell e brake cable bracket extensions which would do the same thing.

I believe Sonoran steel has a cheap kit. If your handy with metal you could honestly copy the design and make one yourself for cheap

Sent from my SM-G781U using Tapatalk

A bracket extension won’t work for me since the line is already hanging free without the brackets and my brakes still lock up with flexing. I haven’t found an small (like 1”) extension for the e brake cable anywhere, but I think that’s what I need.

 

[Old Blue 4Runner]

I had a similar problem on my RX300. The seals on the ends of the parking brake cable deteriorated and allowed water to get in. The cable and sheath corroded and the cable froze with the parking brake set. I freed it up by spraying WD40 in the sheath where the seals were deteriorated. It worked but the only way to prevent it from happening again is to replace the cables - which I haven't done yet. Just a thought...

 

[T4topher]

A bracket extension won’t work for me since the line is already hanging free without the brackets and my brakes still lock up with flexing. I haven’t found an small (like 1”) extension for the e brake cable anywhere, but I think that’s what I need.

Not 100% sure but I think the ebrake cable bracket that attaches to the axle is a must wether you have the extension or not.. The reason it locks up when your flexing is because that cable is stretching/pulling which is pulling the the ebrake essentially. That’s what it seems like to me at least.

 

[brian2sun]

That is weird because I've got 4.5" or more of lift in the rear. I've not done an extension and have not had any issues. If any thing it has gotten a little loose over the past 3 years of having the lift.

What year... can you take a picture of what's going on. I wonder if it is something else causing the issue.

It is weird. One thing’s for certain... when I disconnect the e brake cable from the D/S drum the brakes no longer lock up. After an hour or so on the trails, I would always start to smell brakes and the truck wouldn’t do the slow roll in “Drive”. So I’d go release the drums manually through the adjuster hole, and then I’d be good again.

I will take a pic tomorrow in the daylight, but it looks the same as everyone’s, just with the end diconnected.

Not 100% sure but I think the ebrake cable bracket that attaches to the axle is a must wether you have the extension or not.. The reason it locks up when your flexing is because that cable is stretching/pulling which is pulling the the ebrake essentially. That’s what it seems like to me at least.

My e brake (when I still had it connected) would still work without the bracket. And I agree, the cable is being stretched/pulled and essentially pulling the e brake like you say... and because it’s doing it at the drum it’s adjusting the drum pads to the point they get so tight they start to lock up after a while, and it can’t be released unless I stick the screwdriver in there and turn the little gear inside to let off the tension.

I’m thinking about maybe trying to get another small clip (from Toyota) like the one on the end that connects the cable to the drum (with the pin/cotter pin), and maybe I can adapt it to be sort of an extension link, if that makes sense... Like drill a hole in it and connect the old one to it, and then it to the drum. It would give me about an extra inch. Wouldn’t we all like an extra inch, haha?

 

[Bad Luck]

Have you tried loosening the parking brake adjustment at the parking brake lever? That might give you the extra slack that you need.

 

[Sparky 97Runner]

Hey Brian, I would recommend pulling your drum and make 100% sure that everything is installed correctly in there by comparing to the service manual. Something may have been accidentally installed backwards or opposite causing the brake adjustment to work improperly. I have a 97 MT with very similar setup as yours and my e-brake works really good. I've never had to extend the bracket or do any other modifications. My bet is that your issue is internal.

 

[brian2sun]

Have you tried loosening the parking brake adjustment at the parking brake lever? That might give you the extra slack that you need.

Wow, if it’s that easy I owe you a 6 pack. I have not tried that, so we’ll see...

Hey Brian, I would recommend pulling your drum and make 100% sure that everything is installed correctly in there by comparing to the service manual. Something may have been accidentally installed backwards or opposite causing the brake adjustment to work improperly. I have a 97 MT with very similar setup as yours and my e-brake works really good. I've never had to extend the bracket or do any other modifications. My bet is that your issue is internal.

The brakes have been functioning normally ever since I disconnected the e brake cable about 10 years ago, so that’s why I’ve been leaning towards a cable tension issue. The brakes locking up only happened when I was off road and flexing. I think it all started after I ditched the rear sway bar and started running landcruiser shocks, and my rear travel increased a lot.

 

[Sparky 97Runner]

The brakes have been functioning normally ever since I disconnected the e brake cable about 10 years ago, so that’s why I’ve been leaning towards a cable tension issue. The brakes locking up only happened when I was off road and flexing. I think it all started after I ditched the rear sway bar and started running landcruiser shocks, and my rear travel increased a lot.

I believe the e-brake will adjust your rear brakes by turning the adjustment bolt as your pads wear down. But it should not be able to over adjust the rear brakes to the point of lock up no matter how many times you pull the e-brake handle or put tension on the cable by flexing your suspension unless something is installed incorrectly in the brakes.

 

[snydmax]

Is it possible that you have an axle seal leak?

I first found out I had a leak when I managed to lock the rears making an emergency stop. The shoes were soaked in gear oil and I that allowed them to stick to the drum.

Are you confident it is only flexing that leads to the problem?


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[brian2sun]

Is it possible that you have an axle seal leak?

I first found out I had a leak when I managed to lock the rears making an emergency stop. The shoes were soaked in gear oil and I that allowed them to stick to the drum.

Are you confident it is only flexing that leads to the problem?


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I’m 100% sure it’s only flexing that causes the issue. I have not had the issue for 10 years - ever since I disconnected the e brake line from the drum (I just haven’t had a functional e brake since, so it would be nice to have one again). I’ve replaced the rear axel seals twice in the 20 years I’ve owned the truck, and since the brakes operate fine without the e brake cable attached (and there is no oil seeping from anywhere), I’m confident the seals are good.