W204 C class parking brake not working

[Adam95]

Hi

I apologise if this question has been asked before. It’s my first time here and I’ve tried finding a thread with the same issues but had no luck, I found some that are similar but not the same.

I’ve got a 2012 C220 and this morning I released the parking brake as normal but when I pushed down on the parking brake pedal to engage the parking brake it moved a slight bit further than it normally would and I felt a slight knock/click in my foot. I knew something wasn’t right so I pulled the parking brake release handle and the pedal barely moved back, it would normally fly back and make a loud thump. To get it to come back I pulled the parking brake release handle and kept hold of it whilst pulling the parking brake pedal back up with my hand. I tried engaging the parking brake pedal again and it would ratchet but the pedal was very loose and offered no resistance like it normally would. When pushed to the bottom it stays there and does not come back up unless I keep hold of the release handle and bring it forward with my hand (or get my foot under it and pull it back up).

I’ve got no parking brake at all now and use my gears instead. I’ve removed the plastics above the pedals and the springs seem to be in place but I’m not 100% sure what I’m looking at.

Any help will be appreciated as I can’t afford to fork out at a dealership or merc specialist this time of the year.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Hello and welcome. The problem is rarely the pedal , it has a nice easy life inside the car. The problem will probably be at the part where the cable splits into two (below the rear seat) and/or the adjusters/springs in the rear 'drums' in the rear discs.

Search in my posts you will find details a similar set up.

 

[Adam95]

Hello and welcome. The problem is rarely the pedal , it has a nice easy life inside the car. The problem will probably be at the part where the cable splits into two (below the rear seat) and/or the adjusters/springs in the rear 'drums' in the rear discs.

Search in my posts you will find details a similar set up.

Thanks for the response. Yeah it does seem that way, all the springs seem in place. The only thing I’ve noticed is there is some slack in the parking brake cable. I think the slack might be caused somewhere further up on the cable. I’m going to go back out and remove the rear seats to see if anything has came or apart or snapped. If not then I’ve got an appointment booked with a Merc specialist on Tuesday. Just hoping I can find the fault and repair it myself before then.

I’ll take a look at it now mate.

Thanks

 

[Adam95]

UPDATE: I took my car to a local Mercedes’ specialist and they said I would need a complete rear brake assembly including both brake cables. I’ve been quoted £690 + VAT for parts (£276) and labour (6 hours). Is that reasonable as it seems quite expensive to me?

 

[alecmascot]

UPDATE: I took my car to a local Mercedes’ specialist and they said I would need a complete rear brake assembly including both brake cables. I’ve been quoted £690 + VAT for parts (£276) and labour (6 hours). Is that reasonable as it seems quite expensive to me?

Rip off.
Use your local freindy garage and get it done for a sensible price.

 

[Jaysubi53]

UPDATE: I took my car to a local Mercedes’ specialist and they said I would need a complete rear brake assembly including both brake cables. I’ve been quoted £690 + VAT for parts (£276) and labour (6 hours). Is that reasonable as it seems quite expensive to me?

Hey Adam did you get it sorted?

 

[Petrol Pete]

Thanks for the response. Yeah it does seem that way, all the springs seem in place. The only thing I’ve noticed is there is some slack in the parking brake cable. I think the slack might be caused somewhere further up on the cable. I’m going to go back out and remove the rear seats to see if anything has came or apart or snapped. If not then I’ve got an appointment booked with a Merc specialist on Tuesday. Just hoping I can find the fault and repair it myself before then.

I’ll take a look at it now mate.

Thanks

Did you get it sorted Adam ?

 

[PD9]

Exact same issue with mine (W204 C250 2012). It looks like there was never an update. Did anyone else have any fix to this? Parking in gear at the moment and have an MOT due soon, which I’ll fail as parking brake will not meet requirements.