Mr Bill Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 My wife just brought the car back after leaving for work this morning, saying "it felt funny" and that the emergency brake light was on, and when she put the handbrake down, the light stayed on. She drove it home and when she put the car in park, the emergency brake light went out. She also insists that she had released the handbrake before she set out on her trip to work. My questions are: do the emergency brakes on this car stick on?? Is the idiot light connected to the parking brake Handle (as I would guess), or some other part of the system? i.e. if the light was on, must the handle have been up? My wife has confessed to driving this car with the handbrakes applied before. The car also has bad juddering when applying the foot brake at speed, I can't really tell if its the back brakes or the front brakes causing it, or both. So I guess I need new rotors etc etc. Do you have a replacement set you recommend??? Thanks for any feedback, Mr Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mxl4729 Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 My wife just brought the car back after leaving for work this morning, saying "it felt funny" and that the emergency brake light was on, and when she put the handbrake down, the light stayed on. She drove it home and when she put the car in park, the emergency brake light went out. She also insists that she had released the handbrake before she set out on her trip to work.My questions are: do the emergency brakes on this car stick on?? Is the idiot light connected to the parking brake Handle (as I would guess), or some other part of the system? i.e. if the light was on, must the handle have been up? My wife has confessed to driving this car with the handbrakes applied before. The car also has bad juddering when applying the foot brake at speed, I can't really tell if its the back brakes or the front brakes causing it, or both. So I guess I need new rotors etc etc. Do you have a replacement set you recommend??? Thanks for any feedback, Mr Bill ← :D just replace you wife and you will not have these problems :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 somehow i didn't find that funny. Most brakes will stick if not used. Their is no way to easily see the brake shoes and drum as it is inside the rear rotors hat. Might need to get your brakes checked anyway to remove the pulsating from warped rotors. Many places do it for free. The light is connected to the amount of fluid in the container Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mxl4729 Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 somehow i didn't find that funny.Most brakes will stick if not used. Their is no way to easily see the brake shoes and drum as it is inside the rear rotors hat. Might need to get your brakes checked anyway to remove the pulsating from warped rotors. Many places do it for free. The light is connected to the amount of fluid in the container ← how could u not find that funny? replace the wife everything is good :D and the light on my ebrake is connected to the foot pedal. and that cable directly drives the brake shoes inside the rotor/drum in the rear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bill Posted December 3, 2004 Author Share Posted December 3, 2004 OK, well I guess is am underwhelmed by those responses - anyone got anything helpful or constructive to say?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92Lex Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 OK, well I guess is am underwhelmed by those responses - anyone got anything helpful or constructive to say?? ← SKperformance just gave you some information above. That wasn't helpful? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amf1932 Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 The emergency brake cables probably needs to be changed. They can bind due to not using this brake. I had the same problem on a Honda Prelude I owned, and when I replaced these cables everything was back to normal. P.S. The indicator light indicates low brake fluid level, and also has a switched link which is activated mechanically by the emergency brake lever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUMan Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 It has been my experience that the most common reason for this light being illuminated is low brake fluid. The reservoir may appear to be full or close to full; however, just adding a bit of fluid often turns off the light. The fluid level sensor is apparently overly sensitive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bill Posted December 4, 2004 Author Share Posted December 4, 2004 Aha - now I get it. The light came on due to low brake fluid - I had no idea it had such a feature. So the brake wasn't stuck (we use the brake all the time), its just that the fluiid is low. Thank you - The brakes need major work anyway, and this is just another indicator that I need to get the work done. Does anyone recommend specific rotors and pads?? I am somewhat handy - have replaced disc pads before on other cars - would it be overly complex for me to change out the rotors and pads myself (I don't have a manual).?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
92Lex Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 Does anyone recommend specific rotors and pads?? I am somewhat handy - have replaced disc pads before on other cars - would it be overly complex for me to change out the rotors and pads myself (I don't have a manual).?? ← Your choice of pads and rotors should be based upon your driving style. If you want a factory feel then you should stick with OEM parts...it's hard to go wrong with OEM. It's very much a DIY job. Try this link to the tutorial: http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...10822&hl=brakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKperformance Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 Wow i didn;t realise i made such a long post on changing the brakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steviej Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 Aha - now I get it. The light came on due to low brake fluid - I had no idea it had such a feature. So the brake wasn't stuck (we use the brake all the time), its just that the fluiid is low. ← Toyota/Lexus brake fluid level sensor is very sensitive. Just top it off an it is usually fine. Even though the level is visually above the low mark, addition of fluid usually settles the light illuminaiton saga. Does anyone recommend specific rotors and pads?? I am somewhat handy - have replaced disc pads before on other cars - would it be overly complex for me to change out the rotors and pads myself (I don't have a manual).?? ← if you want quiet and dustless and more of the same of what you are used to, get rotors and pads from online Lexus parts dealers. www.irontoad.com www.lexus-parts.com www.newlexusparts.com as for a manual, if you have a 97-01 ES, the Haynes manual is acceptable and can be had on Amazon for about $20. The procedure is similar to most disc brakes. The tutorial thread is a gem. steviej Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bill Posted December 6, 2004 Author Share Posted December 6, 2004 OK, now I have a lot of info - sounds like I can do this myself. Thanks for all the info Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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