Alright Fiero Gurus, I've got another one for ya. One of the last things keeping my 86 4cyl off the road are the brakes. To be specific, at the moment, I don't really have any :-D. There is obviously air in the lines, and when I went to crack the bleed screw today, I started with the rear passenger caliper and noticed that the bleed screw was stripped. Additionally, the e-brake does not work, and the cable sags almost to the ground in the rear. What steps are necessary to get my brakes and e-brake functional again? Should I just take it to a garage and have them do everything, and what would something like that cost?

I can tell you now you probably need extensive work on the brakes, and unless you are skilled in working on brakes, or have the time to learn you will need the help of a professional. If you take it to the shop it is going to cost you. Maybe another Fierfo owner nearby can help out.

It took me years before I was confident to do my brakes, but you dont want to screw up brakes, and end up killing yourself or another person.

Well, I have worked on brakes before. But last time I did my old fiero I never could get the e-brake to work right after I replaced both rear calipers. Are there any detailed write-ups on replacing a rear caliper, especially the part that ties into the e-brake?

The Cave?

The Ogre gets pretty detailed.

Yes... read cave first.
OE parking brake cables? Replace wheel cables. Main cable too if its bad. Wheel cables take abuse, can rust, break outside jacket, etc....

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Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.
(Jurassic Park)

The Ogre's Fiero Cave (It's also at the top and bottom of every forum page...)

Brake work may not be difficult depending what you need to do. If lines are ok and you buy reman calipers then it is not hard at all to replace 4 calipers and bleed the system. Main issue I always see is when you need to change rubber lines with rusted fittings where they meet the hard pipe. A good vice grip is the trick. Replacing hard lines adds more complication. Rebuilding calipers can be a breeze or painful depending on how bad they are. So it all depends on what yo may need.

Replacing the calipers is actually pretty easy, and Rock Auto has them for pretty cheap. I just replaced all 4 on my 87 GT as well as all of the hard lines and master cylinder. All very easy.
The ebrake can be a little tricky, but yours may just need to be adjusted. Have you tried tightening it, or is one of the cables broken?

quote Originally posted by jasedude: I started with the rear passenger caliper and noticed that the bleed screw was stripped.

Spray the bleeders with PB Blaster and let them soak. Get a good pair of vice grips, latch onto it REAL tight, and remove it that way. Replace with new bleeders or speed bleeders.