I agree with Veronica. The handle pull should be 3 to 5 notches. You need to adjust at the drums (after inspecting to make sure they are not gone). Pull the handle back 3-5 notches. Adjust at the drums. Release the handle and make sure the e-brake is not dragging on either wheel.

I have a copy of that section of the service manual if you would like it.

 

My procedure:

With handle down, tighten the adjuster (inside the drum) until the wheel starts to drag. Back off one half turn. Repeat on other side. Now the brakes will kick in at or before the second notch, which is where you want the handle for using the brake in an emergency or for making a hand-brake turn. 3-5 notches, IMO, is way too high. Most of all, if you have to pull the handle that far up, your elbow can hit the seat and block you from pulling it enough or can cause you to shift in your seat, upsetting your control of the steering wheel with your left hand.

If you don't use your hand-brake for anything besides parking the car on a hill, please ignore me. But even if you just sometimes use the hand-brake for a hill-start, you'll find it's much easier to do with the brake kicking in earlier than 3-5 notches.

edit: why would anyone be this **** about the hand-brake? Because you cannot add a hydraulic hand-brake to an Evo X without removing the entire ABS system.

 

3-5 is what the manual says. I checked mine at lunch time and it goes past 5 notches. I'm going to have to see about adjusting it next time I have the wheels off. I want to see what it feels like with a short throw like you described. Winter is coming.

 

Yeah, I should stated it clearly that I'm suggesting something that is different from the FSM. But you're going to love having it kick in lower. Plus, if you make a parallel bar (that bolts to the OE handle, holds the button down, and has a spring to pull it back down fast), you can have it angle up slightly as it passes the gear-shift and you will double or triple love it. Quick yank before or after a down-shift becomes seamless this way. (Unfortunately, they aren't allowed in the class I run in, so I gave it up.)

 

I dont always park on a hill but when I do I dont feel safe what so ever and now I have to leave my car in 1st or reverse when on a hill and I literally have to rip my ebrake alllll the way up for it to it... Im gonna try and fix it this weekend

 

Doesn't a statement like that belong on a picture of the most interesting man in the world?

 

Lol I thought the same thing.

 

I just recently bought an EVO and was experiencing this same problem. I flushed all of my brake fluid (part of my routine maintenance when buying a new to me used car) and the problem went away. My e- brake will hold the car just fine on an incline and flushing the fluid is the only thing I have done.

After reading this thread it doesn't appear to me that these two things would be related. Am I right? Am I just experiencing the placebo effect or is flushing brake fluid related to ebrake function?

 

Correct. The hand-brake has nothing in common with the service brakes on an Evo.

ps. the phenomenon you experienced is not the placebo effect ... it's close to superstitious conditioning (if you want a tech term) ... sorry, my day job is teaching psychology

 

Funny thing. I am a Clinical Social Worker with a background in Neuropsychology research. I figured I would just "dumb it down" a bit because I thought nobody on the forum would be familiar with anything other than placebo effect. lol.

 

Hey, if it weren't for the human proclivity to infer causation from mere coinky-dink, we wouldn't have all those entertaining rituals to watch at baseball games, especially those of some well-known great batters. But we digress....

 

..uhmm I too shake it twice, because once is just not being thorough and three times would be excessive.

 

try yanking the ebrake one more notch. It usually works wonders

 

pull the ebrake up higher. what holds my car on flat land doesnt on an incline so i pull it up a few clicks higher as needed... if youre parking you should be in 1st gear anyway so i dont understand the problem.

 

I don't really want to rip this can of worms wide open, but not everyone agrees about this. I, for one, never leave my car in gear. For one thing, there are way too many incompetent tow-truck drivers in the world for me to risk it. After all, the majority of the Great Unwashed thinks I drive a Mazda.

Also, I don't think we need any more posts about pulling the handle up higher. Anyone who didn't think to try this on their own needs to be weeded out by natural selection, anyway. Thanks.