How to Ground a Parking Brake

Car stereos have come a long way in the past few years. Now it seems like every car has a monitor, and they even come as standard features on some cars. So what does that have to do with grounding a parking brake? Well in most states, it's illegal to have a monitor forward of the driver's seat that plays moving images, with the exception being GPS systems. As a result, car stereo manufacturers make systems that require the parking brake to be engaged (which it uses a ground signal for) before the monitor activates. If your parking brake isn't grounded, then you're not going to get that aftermarket monitor working, and if your ground is broken, then you won't be able to use your current stock setup either. Grounding your brake pedal is easy, and only takes a few minutes. For this example, we'll be using a 1995 Chevrolet Silverado as our project truck.

Instructions

1

Locate the wire stud coming off the parking brake pedal. It's at the top of the assembly, underneath the dashboard.

2

Strip the end of the wire using a wire stripper.

3

Crimp the female spade terminal onto the stripped end of the wire. Then place that end onto the stud on the parking brake pedal assembly.

4

Find a section of sheetmetal on the kickpanel area which is easily accessible. Sand the metal so that the paint is gone and there is just bare metal to work with. A 1-inch square should do it.

5

Cut the wire to length with the wire cutters and strip the end of the wire. Crimp the ring terminal onto the end of the wire.

6

Insert the self-tapping screw into the hole on the ring terminal. Drill it into the bare metal area that you just cleared with the sandpaper. Make sure the screw is tight. The pedal is now grounded.