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Can't get 240 rotors off

Hello,

I've got a 1992 240 sedan and I'm trying to change the rear brakes.

Initially they were rusted to the hub (the rotor wouldn't even wiggle when I tried to pull it off). I let them soak in PB Blaster and hit them with a hammer, and now they'll slide back and forth about .5 mm

I think they're getting stuck on the parking brake shoes now. How can I get the shoes to retract?

There's a small hole in the rotor where I can put in a screwdriver. But I can't see anything through the hole (even with a flashlight shining in), and I'm not sure where the adjuster might be. My repair manual mentions it, but doesn't mention if the hole should be at 10 o'clock, 3 o'clock, etc. for it to be located above the adjuster.

Also, is there another way to make the shoes retract? Maybe an adjustment at the parking brake lever?

Since the rotors are coming off to get replaced with some Brembos I got from FCP, I was thinking about just drilling some holes in the old rotors and poking a stick in there to hold the shoes down while I pull the rotor off. Would this work, or is it just a dumb idea?

And this last question is a dumb one, but - with the car in neutral with one rear wheel on and one off the ground, will it be possible to rotate the off-the-ground wheel? Or do they turn in tandem? Asking because I don't have anything handy to block the wheels right now so I've been aprehensive about puting the car in neutral with a wheel raised.

TIA,

Sean C.

Reply to
sean.m.cunningham
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Silly question, but did you disengage the parking brake?

Yes with it in neutral you should be able to turn one wheel by hand, the car has an open differential.

Reply to
James Sweet

Yes, I did. But your questions has me thinking of something I didn't consider before...

My parking brakes don't work. The car is an automatic, so I suspect that the previous owner just never used the parking brake. I think everything is probably rusted in place. So even if I can figure out the adjuster, it may not work

Reply to
sean.m.cunningham

IIRC (I could be wrong - it's a while since!) the adjuster, if there is one, will be located at centre bottom (6-o'clock).

However, AFAIK, from about 1979 on, there was no adjuster. The early models had an adjuster on each side but they later changed to a fixed length flat plate link.

The other place to adjust is at the back of the handbrake lever. There is a bolt in the centre rear of the handbrake lever which adjusts the rocker that pulls both rear cables, and there are nuts on the ends of both cables in front of that rocker. IIRC, the centre bolt can be adjusted just by pulling the rear ashtray out of the console and using a socket and long extension (I might be wrong here, too!).

Adjust the brakes up so that you can work the lever several times and hopefully loosen the shoes, then back the adjuster off.

Reply to
athol

However, be aware that there is a great risk that the wire is corroded stuck in the hose so it might not help loosing the aforementioned bolt...

/ Johan

Reply to
Johan Plane

That's part of the reason for recommending that the adjuster be tightened, the handbrake operated, then the adjuster backed off. If things are stuck, hopefully operating the brakes will loosen things up enough that the return springs on the brake shoes will be able to retract the shoes in spite of the resistance of linkages, cables, etc..

Reply to
athol

When you look at the rotor you will see one large hole through the rotor that lets you see the axle flange. Find a tool like this:

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the poited end in your right hand and place the chisel tip end in the bottom of the hole. Strike the heel of the tool sharply with a 20 oz ball pein hammer. The rotor will leap off the axle. If it sticks part way just pry against the axle flange with the tool. If it's still stuck then grab the rotor on either side and give a healthy jerk. The worst one I've ever encountered took maybe 20 secs. to remove. Bob

Reply to
User

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