As you all know we have an electric parking brake instead of the old school hand or foot e-brake. The old system relied on a cable to mechanically engage the emergency/parking brake while the new systems are electric and uses servos to engage the brakes.
The Trailblazer is unique in that it locks the front wheels instead of the rear wheels when the parking brake is engaged. Almost all vehicles lock the rear brakes, so for safety reasons I wanted to point this out to anyone who might be working on their own Trailblazer.
If you are ever lifting the vehicle on any surface that isn't perfectly flat be aware that if you lift the front first you may end up rolling because the rear wheels spin freely. To stay safe always chock your wheels even on a flat surface. If you have a set of ramps you can drive up on them first, then engage the parking brake which will allow you to lift the rear without the front rolling.
If you are using a floor jack to raise your vehicle, keep in mind the factory jack locations are small pinch weld style. You'll need adapters to protect the pinch welds or you could even use the factory scissor jack (only the metal one though).
In this picture you can see the electric servo actuator bolted to the backside of the front brake calipers. When the parking brake is engaged the servos push the caliper pistons in which clamps down on the front rotors.
Here's a picture of the rear brakes and torsion beam suspension.
The Trailblazer is unique in that it locks the front wheels instead of the rear wheels when the parking brake is engaged. Almost all vehicles lock the rear brakes, so for safety reasons I wanted to point this out to anyone who might be working on their own Trailblazer.
If you are ever lifting the vehicle on any surface that isn't perfectly flat be aware that if you lift the front first you may end up rolling because the rear wheels spin freely. To stay safe always chock your wheels even on a flat surface. If you have a set of ramps you can drive up on them first, then engage the parking brake which will allow you to lift the rear without the front rolling.
If you are using a floor jack to raise your vehicle, keep in mind the factory jack locations are small pinch weld style. You'll need adapters to protect the pinch welds or you could even use the factory scissor jack (only the metal one though).
In this picture you can see the electric servo actuator bolted to the backside of the front brake calipers. When the parking brake is engaged the servos push the caliper pistons in which clamps down on the front rotors.
Here's a picture of the rear brakes and torsion beam suspension.