I first noticed the issue when I was driving in a tunnel, in between buildings, or when passing another car. The sound would reflect off and come back to me. It took me awhile to figure out what part of the car it was coming from. It sounded like metal rattling within a pop can. The slower I went, the slower the sound went, but I could hear it more clearly. My local shop I always visit took a look at the brakes they just replaced. When they removed the driver's side tire and brake, the parking brake pieces just fell to the ground. They were no longer connected and were rattling as I drove. They removed them and now the parking brake is no longer available to use.

parking brake rivets fail

The parking brake assembly is held together by aluminum rivets that eventually fail after years of driving on salted roads. Once this happens, the parking brake is no longer functional. I was able to hear the parking brake rattling around when I was driving. A new parking brake assembly is about a $300 part from the dealer without any labor. I chose to remove the rivets and install bolts to remount the parking brake assembly. Labor is a real pain because the axle must be removed. I wish they used 10 cent bolts on the parking system instead of 2 cent rivets. Eventually I will need to do the other side as well.