Hey, i have an 88 rx7 and right as i started to leave work i made a hard brake at a stop light and the rear brakes are now locked up now and i can't move the car.

I had a truck pull me back into the parking lot and the front wheels turned fine and i didn't hear any grinding. The rears however didn't move and just skid across the pavement. The left rear would move a little bit but then lock up again

I can press the brake pedal in an inch or 2 till it becomes very stiff. Pulling the e brake feels weird too.

Any ideas on what i can do to unstuck/fix them so i can take the car back home?

 

Seized brake caliper(s), probably. BTW, should have had a tow truck use dollies to raise the rear also. Your tires are prolly flat spotted now.

edit: you asked what to do...if your calipers are seized and you can't replace them in the parking lot, you're basically down to having it towed. You prolly need to have your calipers rebuilt...but it's more cost effective to get rebuilt/reman ones from Rockauto.com IMHO because even if you know how, it takes a bit of work. Plus with rebuilt/reman ones you'll also have a good working parking brake mechanism (part of the caliper assy), which is prolly bad on the ones you have right now.

 

It wasn't a tow truck, just had a pickup truck pull it back. The tires are bald as it is so it wasn't a big deal. But yes there is a flat spot on them now.

Well i got it towed today back to my house. From looking around a little more i think it might be the emergency brake as it feels weird to pull it and it's only the rear wheels. I just don't see how a hard stop could cause it so it still might as well be the calipers.

Thanks you for the info!

 

the e brake mechanically applies the rear calipers, the pedal hydraulically applies the SAME calipers. you need two rear calipers.(10 year ase master tech, 14 rotary cars, trust me.)

 

unthread the bleeder screw. if this relieves the pressure, the rubber brake line has an internal tear. while much less likely than a seized piston or slider, it is still a possibility

 

Okay so they do control the calipers. Sometimes i do end up pulling off with the e brake not fully down. Not on purpose of course, i just don't notice till i feel it being a little higher than usual.

Thanks for the tips, i'll give this a try if it isn't the e brake cable.

 

it's not going to be the e brake. unless you pulled it immediately before this ocurred. he is saying that the e brake is a SEPERATE mechanical connection. that is the whole reason for an e brake. if the hydraulics fail, you have a mechanical means of stopping the vehicle.

only possibilities are seized piston, slider, or internally collapsed hose

 

Not quite. The emergency/parking brake is a mechanical connection, but it works on the caliper. It is not completely separate on cars with rear brake calipers of our type (there are other types). Yes, in terms of moving the piston, if the hydraulic system fails you can still use the parking brake, all else working fine, but problems in one can affect the other.

The e/p brake pulls on a lever at the caliper, which rotates a cam, which pushes a pin, which pushes on the piston.

When a caliper is seized, you can release the tension on the parking brake, but the piston will stay out.

Also, there's a bearing where the lever rotates around a separate bore in the caliper, and a lot of times that gets seized too.

edit: just clarifying the relationship between the mechanical and hydraulic portion of the caliper. In OP's case, it is indeed most likely a seized piston.

 

i understand, yes. i just finshed rebuilding my rears, in fact. they are connected, yes. not like a drum hat or anything. was just stating that the e brake must be an alternative to the hydraulic system in the event of a hydraulic failure.

 

Okay it is the calipers that are seized.

I'm guessing i should just pick some up from rockauto?

 

Do it. They're well worth it.

 

Yes, rockauto is the place to get them from.

Please, do yourself a favor and stay as far away from ******* autozone and orielly reman **** as you can.

 

both of them seized at the same time?

thats pretty rare that both would get stuck at the same moment. id make sure my master was ok.