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.

 

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.

 

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

 

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.

 

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

 

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..

 

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:

http://tinyurl.com/ovflt

Hold 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