2017-2021 Subaru BRZ Parking Brake Problems and Adjustment

By Core Brake Parts Tech Team — Circleville, OH warehouse

The Subaru BRZ uses a hand lever and a cable that work a small set of parking brake shoes hidden inside the hat of each rear disc rotor. When the lever pulls up too far, the car rolls on a grade, or a rear wheel drags and gets hot, the fix is almost always the same: set the shoe clearance at each rear wheel first, then set the lever stroke at the cable nut. Doing it in the wrong order is the most common reason a BRZ parking brake never feels right.

How the BRZ Parking Brake Works

The BRZ's service brakes are four-wheel discs, but the parking brake does not use the rear calipers. Instead it is a drum-in-hat design: the inside of the rear rotor's hat is machined as a small drum, and a pair of parking brake shoes sits inside it on the backing plate. Pulling the center console lever tensions a cable that spreads those shoes against the drum surface. A star-wheel style adjuster between the shoes sets how close they rest to the drum, and Subaru gives you access to it through an adjusting hole in the rotor that is covered by a plug.

Subaru's parts catalog lists the same rear parking brake shoe repair kit, part 26694CA001, for the 2013 through 2020 BRZ and again for the 2022-on car, and notes it superseded the original 26694CA000. So the procedure below applies to the whole run of cars this article covers, not just one year.

Because the shoes only work when the car is stopped, they wear very slowly. The problems on a BRZ come from the other direction: cables stretch, shoes and drums rust from sitting, and a rear rotor or pad job disturbs the adjustment and nobody resets it.

Common BRZ Parking Brake Problems and Symptoms

• Lever pulls up too high before it holds. The shoes have too much clearance or the cable has stretched. The car may still hold on flat ground but creep on a hill.
• Car rolls on a slope with the lever fully up. Shoe clearance is excessive, the linings are worn or contaminated with oil or brake fluid, or the drum surface is glazed or rusted.
• One rear wheel drags or gets hot after a drive. The adjuster on that side was set too tight, the cable is sticking, or a shoe return spring is weak. Feel both rear wheels after a short drive; the dragging side is noticeably warmer.
• Grinding or scraping from the rear at low speed. Rust on the drum surface or a loose shoe or spring inside the hat.
• Brake warning light stays on or never comes on. The lever switch is out of position. Subaru's check after adjustment is that the light must come on at the first notch of lever travel.

Factory Specs You Need Before Adjusting

These values are from the first-generation BRZ service manual's parking brake section. Measure the drum and linings whenever the rotors are off.

If the drum inside the rotor hat is past its limit, the rotor needs replacing, not just the shoes. Subaru also says to replace the right and left parking brake shoes as a set.

How to Adjust the BRZ Parking Brake (Factory Order)

The service manual splits this into two jobs and the order matters: shoe clearance first, lever stroke second. If you tighten the cable nut to take up slack that is really in the shoes, the lever will feel fine but the shoes will sit unevenly and one side can drag.

Part 1: Shoe clearance at each rear wheel

1. Chock the front wheels, raise the rear safely on stands, and remove the rear wheels.
2. Release the hand lever completely.
3. Under the lever boot, loosen the cable adjusting nut so the cable is free. This lets the shoes seat against the adjuster instead of against cable tension.
4. Remove the adjusting hole cover from the rear disc rotor and rotate the rotor until the adjuster is visible through the hole.
5. Turn the adjuster with a flat tip screwdriver until the parking brake shoes are in close contact with the rotor drum, meaning the rotor will not turn by hand.
6. Back the adjuster off by 10 notches. The manual warns that if it is not loosened enough, the brake will drag.
7. Reinstall the adjusting hole cover and repeat on the other side.

Brake and Front End makes the same point about drum-in-hat systems generally: never estimate the back-off. Shoes can swell with moisture and expand at different rates, so a clearance set by feel alone can turn into drag and noise later. Counting the notches is what keeps both sides equal.

Part 2: Lever stroke at the cable nut

1. Remove the console boot at the lever.
2. Pull the lever firmly 3 to 5 times to seat the cables and shoes.
3. Turn the adjusting nut until the lever stroke is 7 to 8 notches with a pull of about 200 N (45 lbf), a firm one-hand pull.
4. Release the lever and spin each rear wheel by hand to confirm there is no drag.
5. Confirm the brake warning light comes on at the first notch, then reinstall the boot.

Wilwood's instructions for its own internal drum parking brakes add a sensible warning that applies here too: do not pull the lever while a rotor is off the car. With no drum to stop them, the shoes can overextend and pop out of position.

When Adjustment Is Not Enough

If you have followed both steps and the car still rolls or the lever still travels too far, something is worn, not just out of adjustment:

• Worn or contaminated shoes. Measure the lining. At or near the 1.5 mm limit, or soaked with grease or fluid, replace the pair.
• Worn or rusted rotor drum. A drum past 191 mm or badly pitted inside the hat will never let the shoes hold well. Replacing the rear rotors gives the shoes a fresh drum surface.
• Stretched or seized cable. If the cable nut has run out of thread before the stroke is in spec, the cable is stretched. If the lever releases but a wheel stays locked, the cable is binding in its housing.
• Broken spring or loose hardware inside the hat. This usually shows up as a scrape or rattle from one rear wheel.

What to Replace Together, and How Hard the Job Is

The rear rotors have to come off to reach the parking shoes, so the smart time to service the parking brake is during a rear pad and rotor job. At minimum, reset the shoe clearance and lever stroke every time a rear rotor is removed. If the shoes are worn, replace both sides with new hardware at the same time; you can browse parking brake shoes and drum brake shoes and brake hardware kits for that part of the job.

If the rotors are due, we carry rear rotors for this car, including the EBC 3GD slotted rear rotor pair for the 2017-2021 BRZ 2.0L. Performance Package cars have their own listings, such as the DBA Street Series XGold rear rotor for the 2017 BRZ Performance Package. Check your trim before ordering, since the Performance Package brakes differ from the standard car. More options are in our brake rotors collection.

Difficulty: an adjustment alone is an easy home job with basic hand tools and jack stands. Replacing the shoes is moderate. The springs are small and the shoes must seat correctly in the adjuster and anchor, so take a photo of one side before you disassemble it and use it as a reference. Torque the caliper bracket and wheel fasteners to the values in the factory service manual.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the BRZ have an electronic parking brake?

No. The BRZ covered here uses a manual center console lever with a cable to drum-in-hat shoes inside each rear rotor, so it can be adjusted with hand tools.

How many clicks should a BRZ parking brake pull?

Subaru's specification is 7 to 8 notches with a pull of 200 N (45 lbf). Noticeably more than that means the shoes or cable need adjustment.

Why does my parking brake still feel loose after new rear pads?

Rear pads do not affect the parking brake on this car, but removing the rotor disturbs the shoe adjuster. Set the shoe clearance at each wheel, then the lever stroke.

Can I just tighten the cable nut under the console?

It can make the lever feel better, but it does not correct uneven shoe clearance and can cause one side to drag. Subaru's order is shoes first, cable second.

Do I need to replace parking brake shoes when I replace rotors?

Not automatically. Measure the lining; if it is well above the 1.5 mm service limit and clean, it can be reused. Always readjust after fitting new rotors.

Why does one rear wheel get hot after I adjusted the parking brake?

That adjuster was backed off too little, or the cable is sticking. Back that side off to the full 10 notches from contact and check that the cable returns freely.

Sources

1. Subaru BRZ Service Manual, parking brake inspection and shoe clearance - drum inner diameter and lining specs, replace shoes as a set, 10-notch back-off procedure
2. Subaru BRZ Service Manual, lever stroke adjustment - 7 to 8 notches at 200 N, pull lever 3 to 5 times, warning light at first notch
3. Genuine Subaru BRZ parking brake shoe catalog - rear shoe kit 26694CA001 fitment for 2013-2020 and 2022-on BRZ, supersedes 26694CA000
4. Brake and Front End: Adjusting Parking Brakes - adjust shoes before cable, never estimate back-off, stretched cables
5. Wilwood: Adjusting an Internal Drum Parking Brake - star wheel adjustment method, do not actuate lever with drum off