So before you say go to the tsb's and faqs, I have checked both and both do not illustrate my particular problem . So what I have is a loose handbrake. Thinking that one of my calipers was stuck I went under the car and the spliter bar pointed to the driver side. So I checked the driver side, but it was perfect. Then I went to the passenger side and the caliper was stuck, but it wasn't stuck closed, it was open in a position that should provide stopping power to the wheel. Being worried I have been dragging against this brake the whole time, I jacked it up and spun the wheel with the caliper still stuck and it moved normally. Then I hit the brake pedal and tried to spin the wheel and it wouldn't move. I am extremely confused as to what could be going on right now.

Should I just go buy a new caliper? My thinking is that if the caliper is stuck in a position where it should provide braking and is not, then freeing it up will be pointless because it can't provide stopping power. Thanks in advanced for your help

 

disguay, from the sounds of things, your e-brake has been stuck for some time and what you are experiencing is the pads have worn to the point that there is now that very small air gap. So, yes, what you are seeing is normal for a caliper that has been stuck for say 50+ miles. Replace the caliper and then go from there. At a minimum you know you have a bad caliper. See how things go from there.

 

Glad I could get a second opinion on it. Does the handbrake use a different caliper than the foot brake?

 

disguay. no, both use the piston in the caliper. The difference is the foot brake uses hydraulic pressure to push the piston out where the hand brake has a lever inside that it pushes the piston out.

 

Thanks again and that makes sense. Went down under the car just to make sure I actually understand things. I also just bought a used caliper for $40 shipped to my doorstep. My brake fluid also needs to be flushed so this will be a nice wake up call to force me to do so :P

 

just an update, I changed the caliper and everything is working perfectly now! The old caliper had to be hit with a hammer before it showed any signs of becoming disengaged. Maybe this is a sign that the car was sitting for a very long time before I bought it.

 

Cool beans superb news , thanks for the update