The parking brake works fine, except the pedal doesn't come up all the way by itself. It needs to be pulled up the last few inches so the light turns off.
Has anyone experienced this problem? Is there an adjustment or possibly a return spring that might be broken?
Yes common problem spring on the parking break assembly snaps apart and needs replaced. I get mine from the junkyard when it happpens as MB wants like 20 bucks for the POS.
Parking brake problems are difficult to diagnose and time consuming. There are so many parts to consider and all of them are difficult to access. There is the pedal assembly, release cable, two operating cables, slack adjuster, etc.
Yes it is, but the problem you are experiencing is usually caused by rusty cables or any other item which appears in the two diagrams. If they don't retract it gives one the impression that the pedal is the problem, but it is not.
I had the same problem due to my leaking roof draining tube which I have to periodically reattach. I figured that the parts had rusted, saturated the area with lubricant and problem was solved.
I never got around to doing anything about the parking brake. However, the parking brake stopped working completely so I finally had no choice. The parking brake release stuck in the pulled out position so the brake would not hold at all. I removed the parking brake pedal and found that the end of the clock spring popped out of the hole it's supposed to be in. No idea why or how that happened. I put it back into place, replaced the parking brake pedal and it's working again, at least sort of working. The pedal is still slow to return.
Does anyone know why MB changed the design of the parking brake pedal? My ML has the old design. See image below to tell the difference.
Also, it was relatively easy to remove the cable from the pedal, but it was a b*tch to replace it. It's not obvious at all how to use the "slack adjuster". I did notice that there is a spring at the back end of the slack adjuster that is somewhat rusty. Does it have anything to do with the pedal not returning?
I never got around to doing anything about the parking brake. However, the parking brake stopped working completely so I finally had no choice. The parking brake release stuck in the pulled out position so the brake would not hold at all. I removed the parking brake pedal and found that the end of the clock spring popped out of the hole it's supposed to be in. No idea why or how that happened. I put it back into place, replaced the parking brake pedal and it's working again, at least sort of working. The pedal is still slow to return.
Does anyone know why MB changed the design of the parking brake pedal? My ML has the old design.
Also, it was relatively easy to remove the cable from the pedal, but it was a b*tch to replace it. It's not obvious at all how to use the "slack adjuster". I did notice that there is a spring at the back end of the slack adjuster that is somewhat rusty. Does it have anything to do with the pedal not returning?
I had the exact same issue in my 2004 SL500 , attached is a picture of the problem. Perhaps someone yanked it out so hard that they popped out the brake drum spring arm? Either way in photo you can see the worn spot on the swinging release cam and the return spring extended. The emergency brake will stop car fine, but it will not latch into place and release handle can fall out off the cable. After popping the thick spring arm back into the cam brake pedal clicks and holds . The teeth on the brake pedal do nothing but make the clicking noise, they do not hold anything. The big spring closes on a brake drum and holds the pedal down. Mercedes engineering!
Re the slack adjuster - you could try to take it up a couple of notches, it is under the exhaust pipes in my car and the exhaust system has to be removed to adjust the cable!!! I find that if I set the brake firmly it has plenty of "pop" on the release.
Correct, you don't see the spring on this diagram just the location of where you will find it. Look at the picture on my post with the arrow.
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