Handbrake is stuck on car how do you loosen it?

Answer 1

The most common cause of a stuck handbrake is when the rear brake shoes "rust/stick" onto the drums. This can normally be released using "percussive maintenance" (IE Hitting it).

Hit the drum with a hammer once, sharply, on the stuck side. Experience is require to know how hard is "hard enough," so start gently, and if that does not work, hit harder.

If access to the drum is limited, put a socket over one of the wheel nuts/bolts, and hit the socket. DO not hit the wheel or nuts/bolts directly as this may cause damage.

(Hitting the drum is OK, as cosmetic damage is much less of an issue than it would be if you hit the wheel directly. Hitting the nuts/bolts may prevent a socket fitting so making removal to replace tyres difficult, hence the suggestion to put a socket over the nut/bolt, and hit that.)

This problem could also be caused by a seized brake cable (again possible due to rust) a faulty hand-brake lever, a failure of the components inside the drum (A detached brake lining, or a detached component within the drum.) It should also be noted that some vehicles have a hand-brake that operates through a brake-calliper onto disks (rotors) rather than in a drum. In the above mentioned other causes percussive maintenance is unlikely to be of help, and the assistance of an experienced motor vehicle service engineer should be sought.