Yes, very common in the rust belt. Both issues are frequent. You'll need to disconnect the cable at the caliper & see which item is sticking. Pull the hand brake hard & then release. Pull rear wheels & see which side (or both) are stuck. Pull cable rearward by grasping the "ball" on the end. Either the cable wont move or the caliper lever will remain in position even after releasing the cable.

Replace cable or caliper as needed. There is no way to easily fix a sticking caliper. Grease the lever shaft annually with a small brush to prevent problems.

 

I just drive around the parking lot for about 5 minutes until it pops free.

If it pops free like that it's almost definitely the actuator on the top of the caliper. Try soaking the whole area with penetrating oil, being careful to NOT hit the pads and rotor. Work the handbrake when it's still wet. If it sticks again later, you'll probably have to pull the pads, clean and wind the pistons back in.

BTW it's not an emergency brake, it's a parking brake. Use it every time you park and it won't give you a problem. Good thing to do with the M66 in any case.

 

Yea I use it every single time. For now I'm just going to remember not to use it.

 

Check it out anyway. Is this the 2010? Pretty early for that to occur. Perhaps it's just your pads sticking in the frame like tmtalpey suggested. Not using the brake will just make things worse. You might save yourself some cash down the road by looking at it now.

 

It did this to me last winter too, only when it got below freezing

 

Look at the cable closely then. I've seen the outer housing crack. Water gets inside & sits in the low areas.

 

I really need a lift for this...

 

For me it was the spring on the top of the rear caliper was binding up, put some grease on it and boom no more issues.

 

I had this, and mine was the cable. The housing was pulled back a bit, so I disconnected the cable from the lever, greased the crap out of the exposed cable section, got my wife to repeatedly pull the ebrake handle up to pull the cable in, then release the handle, and I pulled the cable back out with a set of pliers, repeat about 50 times, and this fix has lasted a year.

One symptom that says cable is if you can pull the ebrake lever up a little bit before you feel it actually have any resistance. When the cable is moving smoothly, you should have immediate resistance. Just grease everything up when winter tires go on every year.

 

Revamping this thread I know but it happened again. I can set the brake no problem, literally 5 minutes later it's frozen. Can't push the handle back down. Drag it back into the heated garage luckily this time I was at work, 15 minutes later I'm freed up.


The only s40 m66 in Wyoming

 

Replace the cable/s. Not worth your time messing with this every Winter.

 

So when it does this, I can always pull 1 click harder on the handle. No problem applying more force, it just won't release. And it happens within 5 minutes of setting the brake. So if the cable froze that fast, I wouldn't be able to apply more pressure either. Leads me to think that it's the spring on top of the caliper.


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So when it does this, I can always pull 1 click harder on the handle. No problem applying more force, it just won't release. And it happens within 5 minutes of setting the brake. So if the cable froze that fast, I wouldn't be able to apply more pressure either. Leads me to think that it's the spring on top of the caliper.


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I've never seen a caliper lever freeze & then thaw with temperature. It's generally a corrosion issue.
I have seen water in the cable housing.

Re-reading your post you say "Can't push the handle back down." If this means you literally can't move the handle back to the floor then it's the cable for sure. A frozen caliper lever will allow you to return the handle to the floor, the brake just won't release. Being able to pull it somewhat tighter makes sense. You are stretching the cable. Any possibility of an issue at or near the handle? I've never seen it but...

This not too tough to check out. If you can do without the brakes for a few days just disconnect the cables from the calipers. Pull your lever up to the normal spot & see if it freezes there.
You could also look at your rear calipers when this freezing occurs. If you can't pull the cable (grab the "ball' with vice grips) at the caliper toward the rear of the car with the handle released the cable is frozen. If the cable pulls easily but the caliper lever stays put that's your issue.

 

The cable on mine rusted and stopped working properly. I just replaced the cable. Not an expensive job and easy to fix.

 

Mine has done this twice. It's been the actuator on the caliper that was the issue. Luckily lifetime guarantees have paid off!

 

My car is in the garage. I used the brake for 5 minutes to keep the car running in neutral. Came out and it was frozen. I only pulled it 2 clicks. It easily pulled up a few more, but would not loosen at all. Could not force the handle down. 5 miles later at 30mph it thawed and released. I just doesn't make sense that the cable is freezing. I'm never in a place where I can get to the disconnect or actually see he caliper.


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So I just called pederson Volvo in Colorado, he said there's a separate set of brake shoes for the ebrake, inside the caliper? Am I missing something? Our ebrake on the s40 just applies pressure manually on the piston right?


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So I just called pederson Volvo in Colorado, he said there's a separate set of brake shoes for the ebrake, inside the caliper? Am I missing something? Our ebrake on the s40 just applies pressure manually on the piston right?

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He's smoking something - there aren't any internal shoes. I think the XC70s worked that way as well as older models, but not ours!

 

There aren't internal shoes. If you take the rotor off, it's just a naked metal hub. The e brake applies pressure to the caliper assembly which applies pressure onto the inner brake pad, which then goes to the outer and then the rotor.

 

I'm still looking at something in the caliper being the issue. The cables freezing inside just doesn't make sense. Either the lever on the top or the spring itself.


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Did you look at the cable? If you take off the screws for the heat shield and peel it back, you can see the E brake assembly and have someone pull on it. Then you'll see if the cables move or not.

 

separate brake shoes for e-brake i believe is for s60's.
this certainly sounds weird, I dont get why you cant push the handle down... i use mine all the time--albeit with the auto-box-- because i park on a hill.

 

It sounds like a center rotation pin issue. I noticed on my old cobalt when I pulled it up and to the left like I always did, after about 4 years, if I tried to put it down straight the round pin in the middle (which for me was a round grommet or solid pin made from a small piece of rolled steel) was catching on the bracket in between the two halves of the of the handbrake where the cable rolls, and it was bonded to the other part of the assembly, so it would catch, and get stuck. I am assuming your button will physically go inward if you press it without any issue, but the assembly won't roll downward towards the console like it should. Also something that can happen is with temperature, the wheel the wire presses on in the handle can get warped a couple thousandths of an inch with time and heat/repeated angled usages and go in front of the bracket that bolts to the body and prevent it front going downward as well.

Check to make sure the wheel with the wire on it isn't getting stuck on anything and the center pin that allows the handle to rotate from the body bolted assembly is lubed.

It is probably not your cable, as it would just push out and curl out the end of the cable near the calipers without much excess force. I would try removing the center console around the handbrake, remove the plastic cover, throw some spray lithium lube in there around that center pin and see if that fixes it. If it helps but still resists, you'll know it's the handbrake assembly itself that needs to be replaced.