samckernan

We had some heavy rain, then that night a deep freeze.

The next morning, I didn't realize it initially, but apparently the right wheel e-brake line was frozen. I would put it in gear and let out the clutch and the wheel (left) would spin. I thought the right was spinning as well and thought my fronts were locked up. For some reason I thought the mustangs had posi.

Anyway, the left would spin, and being on ice, the car wouldn't go. I finally figured it out that the right was locked up. I tried pulling the hand brake lever, it induced drag on the left and forced the right to spin. I was able to go forward somewhat. I then got a tire iron and pried the calipers apart on the right side.

I'm jsut wondering... since I had the left spinning and the right locked up for 10 or 15 minutes, did I do any dammage? I could smell a burning clutch like smell.

I'm assuming there is some sort of clutch pack in the rear end that allows one side to spin when the other is not spinning.

Can anyone shed some light on this for me?


Thanks.



Sam

theedge67

#1. Mustang GT's do have a limited slip differential. You probably did not do any major damage to the rear end, as long as this was all done in 1st gear, and you weren't pulling any RPM's above say 2500-3000 for very long. Then again, if you did that would definitely get the limited slip going and get that other wheel spinning. I'm also assuming that this was not a constant spinning, but rather intermittent bursts, mingling with bouts of cursing and profanity.
#2. There is a TSB out for frozen e-brake cables, I just had mine replaced a week ago at the dealer. Very simple fix, took less than an hour.
#3. The clutch burning smell was probably not the clutch packs in the rear end, it was probably the rear brake pads getting hot or the clutch in the transmission, depending on how much you were slipping it. Hot brakes smell pretty much the same as hot clutch.
#4. As part of the limited slip rear end there are clutches that help distribute power to both wheels when one slips. When one wheel is locked however, as in by a frozen e-brake...it does still allow just one wheel to move slowly (like maybe 4-6mph) without the other one. Not that it is good for it though.

metroplex

There are 6 clutches in the back that are sandwiched with steel discs. The clutches are keyed to rotate with the differential carrier, while the metal discs are designed to turn with the side gears (which are splined to fit onto the axles). So what this means is the clutches tend to limit the amount of slip when one wheel begins to spin faster than the other. Normal clutch wear occurs from turning (one wheel HAS to spin faster than the other in a turn, or else your back starts to swing around). This amount of limited slip isn't too significant. When your clutches are totally fried, burnouts result in only 1 black tire mark on the ground (right rear in forward gear, left rear in reverse).

You can't really smell the clutches burning because it is soaked in gear oil and the only "exhaust vent" is an air tube that sticks out from the top of the axle tube(s). I doubt that is what you smelled. It was probably the brake friction material and adhesive that started to cook.

pville piper

I've owned manual transmission cars since I was 19; I actually took my first car and made it a manual transmission. In my 26 years of driving manual transmissions I have never seen the need to use the e-brake except for when the transmission can’t be left in gear… Like if you were warming up the car. Why do people insist on using the e-brake for parking when they leave the car in gear?
I grew up in northern New Jersey and I have always been aware that you could freeze your e-brake up by using it this way in the winter. Maybe it shouldn't happen on a new car, but as any car ages it is a possibility and therefore a bad habit to get into.

metroplex

I use the e-brake for parking my automatic and I guess the habit transfers over for the manual.

neil07gt

I park on a big hill. see my avatar. the e-break comes in handy.

theedge67

I use the e-brake and leave it in neutral, or 3rd and here is why. On my old mustang, '89, I always left it in 1st and didn't use the e-brake. After 210K miles, the spring assist on the shifter was shot. Normally if you put the shifter in the neutral position, it is spring loaded to go to the middle (between 3 and 4), and you have to push it over to get to the 1-2 or 5-R spot. Springs were shot and it just flopped around, made it a little more difficult to shift from 2-3.

SuperCJ

I use my "E" brake when I'm doin' a 180!

"Yeeeehaaaa! Go git 'em Bo Duke!"

metroplex

theedge67: Nice tip!

2005GTDELUXE

the more you use it and the harder you pull on it the easier it becomes broken in and easier to use IMO. I never use mine so when I need to or want to its too tight and i know there is the possiblility of it freezing up.

Robbieg

For those who park a manual without using the e-brake what is the best gear to leave it in. I always leave mine in revers, is there one gear that is better than the others?

metroplex

I believe the numerically higher gear ratio'd gear is the best to use. For the TR-3650, 1st gear and reverse are both 3.38:1

theedge67 brought up a good point though, he said he used to park his older Stang in first all the time but then the return spring failed and he now parks in 3rd gear to prevent this from happening.

theedge67

Yep, third or neutral for me. Neutral if it's flat, 3rd if it's on a slope. As long as your e-brake works good, no need to worry about your car rolling away. Just make sure you lock your doors all the time so nobody can take the e-brake off and/or take it out of gear. Autos don't have that problem, it takes the key on and brake pedal depressed to take it out of park.