Drove With Parking Brake On

[MaureenK]

1994 Fleetwood Southwind

I drove with the parking brake on yesterday. I think I went about 30 miles. There was no smoke that I saw out the back window or through the side mirrors and I didn't feel any particular drag that would make me double-check. I continued on my trip for another four hours or so stopping for gas and rest stops as needed.

When I arrived at my campground check-in and turned off the engine, I was on a slight incline and the coach would not hold in Park with the Parking Brake on. It does hold when the engine is on.

Discussion with a mechanical friend suggests there is now a glaze on the pads and maybe the drums. He tells me that a light sanding should take care of it and that it's unlikely I'll need a full brake job. I do get the brakes checked regularly and they've been deemed fine. He also suggests that the Parking Brake wire (?) may need adjustment as it doesn't engage at the halfway point. (This is not a new thing, but it has been working up until last night.)

I'm in Advance, NC and will be checking reviews on the three or four mobile mechanics that have ads in the park flyer. I don't want to be taken for a ride, as they say.

Is there anything else I should be aware of or take into consideration? Aside, that is, from remembering to disengage that brake before driving.

[wolfe10]

MaureenK,

Welcome to the FMCA Forum.

Please tell us what chassis you have. That will help with identifying the parking brake you have.

[wayne77590]

I'm thinking out loud here, but doesn't the '94 Southwind use a drive shaft parking brake? (Gasser maybe) Clamp goes around the drive shaft and the clamp has it's own brake pad.

Yep, chassis make would help.

[MaureenK]

Per the manual that came with the vehicle, it's a Chevy 454 Forward Control Chassis.

[wayne77590]

Look under it and see if there is a big clamp looking thing around the drive shaft. Have someone engage and disengage the parking brake. If that clamp moves, that is the parking brake and it either needs adjustment or the pad needs to be replaced.  If not, other help will be along.

[wolfe10]

Maureen,

What you have is called "AutoPark".

Roger Haag is pretty widely known at the AutoPark guru, and has gladly donated his time and expertise to helping fellow FMCA members with issues with this system.

I would suggest contacting Roger after reading the posts here on the system.

Just use the search box in the upper right and put in AutoPark

 

[abyrd]

I have owner 3 Class A motorhomes with the P30 Chassis and 454 engine. I will attempt to provide a brief explanation on the operation of the Parking Brake and the Transmission Park Position.

Both of these functions depend on single drum brake positioned one the drive shaft immediately behind the transmission.  The brake is released when the transmission in any position other than PARK unless the PARKING BRAKE is engaged.  The transmission PARK function is controlled by a self-contained hydraulic system, when in a position other than PARK the electric motor run drives a small hydraulic pump which produces pressure to a hydraulic cylinder to release the drum brake.  When hydraulic pressure the drum brake is set the stores energy of large spring.  The foot petal overrides the hydraulic system and holds the drum brake set.

 

My experience is that the brake shoes will not tolerates overheating without damage.

The Transmission PARK POSITION does not have a pawl that engages in the park position.

 

Jim

 

 

 

 

 

[MaureenK]

Thank you!

Taking notes and following suggestions.

I'll let you know how this turns out for edification.

[MaureenK]

I've sent a detailed email to Roger and have a reply saying they'll be in touch within 24 hours. I'm going to check to see if I can extend my stay here but I might need to jump on this today. I'm en route to a workkamping job in Colorado.

[wolfe10]

Until then, assume you have NO parking/emergency brake.

If you don't already have them, stop at a truck stop and buy some HD wheel chocks.

[MaureenK]

Thanks. Here's an update. After calling several RV Repair places and hearing they don't do chassis work, I was referred to a gentleman named Reggie. He doesn't do that work but was in the park and came over to look. He said everything he can see looks fine i.e. no cracking, etc. He also said he could not smell anything, stating that there would be a smell if things were burnt. He also said I would have smelled it  and would have seen smoke.

Since I know the regular brakes work when I'm driving, I think I'll move on and make sure to get everything checked out SOON. I'm looking for a place to do that now. And I'll buy chocks.
I'll also update again once I've had things checked out.

 

[wayne77590]

Maureen,

If you are traveling alone think about the chocks.  Someone needs to keep their foot on the brake and someone needs to go out and put chocks under the front and back of the rear wheels - both sides.  Be careful and stay safe.

[MaureenK]

Thank you, Wayne77590. That makes a lot of sense. I do travel alone.

At this point I know I can't park on an incline at all. But if I'm on level ground I could chock it just to be a bit more secure.

I have been calling all over to find someone to check out the brake system and finally had some luck. I'll be heading in to a Chevrolet dealership in Winston-Salem tomorrow. They can handle my 31' rig and will do a complete inspection. They can also do an oil change and chassis lube, which I'm due for anyway.

And I'll update this thread afterwards.

Thanks very much everyone!

[MaureenK]

Well, here's the update:
I got to the Chevy dealer early this morning and was told they could not help me. They were nice and several tried to find someone nearby who would but heard the same thing I heard. One young man called his uncle in Mt. Airy, another 30 minutes up the road from Winston-Salem. He works on big trucks and said he could help me do up the road I went.

He found that something was touching the drum (?) so he disengaged the parking brake and adjusted it. We tested it on an incline in his yard and it held!

Being as Mt. Airy is aka Mayberry, I had to go into town to check it out. I parked in the lot of a funeral home and set the brake. It held! Had it not held, it would have coasted backward into a grassy area.

When I got back to the coach and got back on the road, it felt funny. It felt like there was a governor on it or something like that. I found an incline and tested the Park function and sure enough, it rolled forward several feet until I stopped it with the regular brake.
So I called the shop back and they had me drive back in. I explained that it seemed fine until I set the parking brake so he looked again and determined that the parking brake wasn't releasing. So he got it to release and we decided that I won't use it until I can get it in to someone who will look at the whole issue. I'll be buying chocks as soon as I can get to a store and I'll be parking on level ground.

But, I just got back to my campground in Advance and it is not holding. So there goes $75. The people at the shop were very, very nice and he really tried hard to help, which was nice to find.

So, I think Dutch_12078 has stated the issue correctly and that there is something wrong with the hydraulic system bc it's not releasing the brake.

I'm going to be workkamping near Pueblo CO in early May. I would like to steer toward a shop anywhere between NC and CO that will actually fix this problem. Can anyone recommend such a place?

[abyrd]

I purchased a 99 Cruse Master and the parking brake didn't work properly on the test drive, The dealer agreed to fix it before I took delivery (dealer was also the local Chev dealer) .  After several attempts and three round trips of 120 miles I decided to investigate and make my own repairs.  Found the short actuator cable (it's a steel cable in a housing approx. 14" long with yoke on one end) was not moving freely.  I disconnected the  actuator and lubricated with WD40 and worked it until it moved freely, reinstalled and adjusted brake.  I owned the RV for at least 10 years after my repairs and never had  another problem.  I purchase a replacement cable, but never installed it,  I believe I still have the new cable if I can find it.

 

Jim

[MaureenK]

Thanks abyrd! I'm almost thinking I'm going to have to do this myself but even so I'd need an expert to tell me it was okay.
I have several lines in the water so to speak to find a place that will do chassis work so I'm hopeful something will turn up.
In the meantime, I can drive with no problem. I just have to be careful where I stop.

[MaureenK]

I'll update this when I have more info but won't have access to computer for the next few days. Still looking for a mechanic who will take this on. Suggestions coming in but nothing booked just yet. But I need to move toward CO for a job and dodge the dicey weather.
Be safe out there!

[wayne77590]

You be safe, and be very careful when parking.  Put on the tennis shoes so you can run fast to put the chocks in place, or hand them out the window to a neighbor and ask them to chock the wheels.  Hope you get it fixed soon and please so keep us informed.

 

[campcop]

Hydraulics was mentioned....have you checked to see if the system still has sufficient fluid? If the system was heated, the fluid could have boiled and is now NG...

[MaureenK]

Here's the latest.
I can drive this thing just fine and I'm still getting the same gas mileage and can use all the gears except Park so I continued my trip. I was headed to Wheaton IL and was routed through IN so I thought maybe someone in the Elkhart area might be up to the task. I also recalled a mechanic friend who lived near Indy and called him. He's an instructor in auto mechanics now but he did some legwork and set up an appointment for me with a Ford dealership that works on fleet trucks and cars. They put it up on the lift but decided that they were hesitant to do the work because they'd have to figure it out, find parts, and couldn't even start it until Monday. They suggested I take it to an RV place and thought going to Elkhart was a good idea. I did have them do an oil change and chassis lube as both were on my list.

So, back to the phone. I didn't find a place in Elkhart but someone I spoke with suggested Kelley Chevrolet and RV in Ft. Wayne. I called and spoke to Ken who said he's seen and repaired this before and likely has all the parts! I have an appointment there on Monday morning. Fingers crossed I'll be on my way to CO by Tuesday morning!

I did hear back from Roger who said he wanted to talk to the person who will be doing the work. I've kept him updated as to who that might be but haven't heard any more from him.

rvrev2, I'll keep your offer in mind as well. Thank you so much. As suggestions are made here, I add them to my list to discuss with the person who will actually do this.

BTW, the Ford place seemed to think I had two issues: the PB and the Transmission. He asked me if putting it in Park held before this issue cropped up. Welll....in years and years of driving a stick shift, I would automatically use the PB when stopped and I do the same thing with the rig when I'm on any kind of a slope. It sure seems to hold fine when I'm flat or if the rig is nose up. In other words, it only rolls forward, not backward. Anyway Ford thinks there is a pawl in the Transmission. But wouldn't it work for backward motion, too?

What an adventure! And, into the bargain, I get to drive all over these wonderful Indiana roads. They look like they've been hit with meteors.

[wolfe10]

Glad you and Roger connected.

He is a retired machinist and is probably the most knowledgeable on this system. 

The fact that he offers free advice to Forum members is a real asset.

[campcop]

According to Jim who has a similar setup, that transmission does not have a parking pawl....

[wayne77590]

I just can't understand why any mechanic cannot look at the drum brake shoe that clamps the drive shaft when the vehicle is placed in park and determine if the shoes need to be replaced.  That part should not be rocket science.  Granted, if something is wrong with the system that makes the clamp engage, well that requires someone with a different knowledge base. That may well be a deeper problem if the system is AutoPark.

Doesn't AutoPark only engage when the transmission is placed in park causing the drive shaft drum brake to engage? If it was driven 30 miles in park I would be really surprised.

Maureen, how do you set the brake when you stop?

Thanks.

 

[abyrd]

The AUTO Park System depends on a self-contained hydraulic system to keep the drive shaft drum brake released.

The system includes several components including: 12 electric motor, pump, reservoir, pressure switches, hydraulic cylinder, stored energy spring and associated linkages.

When the Transmission is in the PARK  position a signal is given to the hydraulic unit to relieve the hydraulic pressure, which allows stored energy spring to engage drive shaft drum brake.

The PEDAL operated EMERGENCY BRAKE overrides the hydraulic bower unit and sets the drum brake shoes in the engaged position and will maintain this position until released by the driver.

I agree with the previous post that any mechanic worth his salt should be able to determine if problem is in the hydraulic unit or just a damaged or misadjusted brake shoe. 

The drive shaft drum brake unit on my previous owned RV had a old fashion style brake shoes, the pads were riveted to the brake shoe.

 

Jim

 

 

 

 

[wayne77590]

Jim,

With Maureen's statement that it only rolls forward and not backward sure sounds like the drum brake mechanism. Hey, what do I know, the only experience I have with that system is that my FIL had one back in the 70's and it sure brought the coach to a halt one time when throwing it into park. Neither of us thought at the time that there was no pawl to engage the transmission and that only the drive shaft drum brake was engaged.  It sure worked when he had to use it.  I'm still leaning towards that mechanism or the pads.  I'm just thinking out loud - if it is AutoPark where it is put into the park position on the gear shift then it most likely is in the system and not the drum brake. If, in 1994, they had a separate engagement lever then it could be the drum mechanism or pads. My FIL's coach did not have a manual lever. It had to be thrown into park to engage the "emergency" brake on the drum.

Also thinking out loud - with the forward momentum of the vehicle for 30 miles there could be an uneven wear on the pads causing the vehicle to roll forwards, but when rolling backwards there is enough reverse torque on the pads to let it engage.  I wish I were an expert on this instead of just thinking out loud.   I'll sit back and wait for Maureen's follow-up.