Installation of Vette Essentials' Custom Emergency Brake Handle and Boot

	Sales@VetteEssentials.com 248-852-9030 (Office) 248-396-4173 (Cell) 1810 Star Batt Dr Rochester Hills, MI 48309 www.vetteessentials.com

We are pleased to provide for you our installation instructions for Vette Essentials' custom emergency brake handle and boot. We also invite you to review the many other products offered by Vette Essentials, including other custom leather products, as shown on our website: www.vetteessentials.com. Enjoy!

Disclaimers, etc.

The following are one set of steps that you may use to install the Vette Essentials' emergency brake boot and/or handle on a C5 Corvette. Alternatives may exist.
Use these instructions at your own risk and be careful not to damage your new or existing parts.
This entire emergency brake boot and/or handle install will likely take on the order of an hour and a half.
Neither Vette Essentials nor anyone affiliated with it or the formation of these instructions takes any responsibility for the results or effects achieved by following these instructions.

Specific core information for this project

Many Vette Essentials items require the return of a core item (i.e., the original factory part), so be careful not to damage the part you are replacing because if it is damaged so that it cannot be used by Vette Essentials then you may also owe to Vette Essentials the value of the core. Unless arrangements have been made to the contrary, you are required to return your stock emergency brake handle and boot to Vette Essentials (unless, of course, you are only replacing one of those parts, in which case the part being replaced must be returned as a core to Vette Essentials). On the emergency brake boot, the wire rim along its bottom must be in re-usable condition. On the emergency brake handle, the plastic portion must be fully intact with no structural weaknesses. If your stock parts do not comply with these requirements, please call Vette Essentials to discuss your options.

Printing these instructions

You might find it might helpful to print these instructions so that you can take them out to work on your 'Vette. For most folks, these instructions should print out in a readable form simply by choosing "File" and then "Print" on your web browser. Alternatively, you may save some office supplies and some stress if you print these directions in landscape orientation. For those not familiar with that, at the top of your browser choose "File", then choose "Print." A window opens up with print options, and one option should say "Properties." Choose that "Properties" option, and there now will be several tabs to choose from -- select the one that says "Paper." This will bring up several options about the paper, one of which that is "Orientation." Click on "landscape," click "okay" once which will take you back to the print window, and then hit "okay" again. This should start the printing process.

Viewing larger pictures

If you want to see any of the pictures below in enlarged form, then just single click on the picture. When you're finished looking at an enlarged picture, hit the "Back" button on your browser.

Let's get started

Here's our tools, from left to right: socket wrench for use with 10mm and 8mm socket socket extension for convenience of use with 10mm and 8mm socket 10mm socket -- shallow or deep (also shown with 1/4 to 3/8" inch converter which is only necessary if you are using a socket wrench with a different size drive than the 10mm or 8mm socket) 8mm socket size 15 torx screwdriver medium flat blade screwdriver tiny flat blade screwdriver
Step 1: The basic stock emergency brake boot and handle. Say goodbye, as soon they will be much nicer looking!
Convertible owners only. PRIOR TO removing the console, you will have to remove your "waterfall." To do this, there are a total of four size 15 torx screws holding the waterfall in place. Two of these are along the top, and there is one screw on each of the two sides. Due to the perspective of the photo, only three screws can be seen, but as indicated there is a fourth on the side of the waterfall that is not shown. Using the size 15 torx screwdriver, remove the four screws; next, pull directly upward on the waterfall and it will lift out of the car.
Step 2a: Console removal. Open the console and toward the rear end there are two plastic oval-shaped covers; these each cover a 10mm nut below the cover. Using the tiny screwdriver, gently pry the covers off to reveal the 10mm nuts that are shown in step 2b, below.
Step 2b: Using the 10mm socket and wrench, remove the two 10mm nuts that were exposed in step 2a and that are shown here.
Step 2c: The trim plate that includes the Active Handling (A/H) button (and depending on year and options, it also may include the passenger air bag indicator and/or the suspension setting knob) is force fitted down. The car illustrated is a 2001 model so the photo also shows the passenger air bag indicator on the A/H trim panel. Using the tiny or medium flat blade screwdriver, gently pry the A/H trim plate upward. You can protect the bottom pry surface with a cloth to avoid scratches. Also, after you pry slightly in one spot, you can move the screwdriver to other indicated pry spots and pry upward so as to distribute the force along the entire panel. Once the panel unclips, however, be aware that there is one or more electrical plugs still connected to its underside so do not pull it too abruptly away from the console.
Step 2d: Disconnect the one or more electrical plugs underneath the A/H trim plate that was lifted upward in step 2c. This photo shows a Vette with both the A/H plug and the passenger air bag indicator plug. With respect to the A/H plug, disconnect it by pressing down on the tab that faces the pink label in the photo and pulling the plug away from the A/H trim plate. See the next step regarding removal of the passenger air bag indicator plug.
Step 2e: Disconnect the passenger air bag indicator plug. To do so, first grab the metal clip shown in the photo and pull it away from the A/H trim plate until the metal clip releases from the plate. Continue now to step 2f.
Step 2f: Continuing with the passenger air bag indicator plug, the photo demonstrates that the plug is held in place by a tab that surrounds a retainer. Lift the tab with the tiny screwdriver so that it clears the height of the retainer, while at the same time pulling the male and female portions of the plug apart. Store the A/H trim plate in a safe place.
Step 2g: With the A/H trim plate from steps 2c through 2f removed, you now see two additional 10mm nuts. Using the 10mm socket and socket wrench, remove these two additional 10mm nuts. Also shown is the plug for the accessory power outlet. Use the tiny screwdriver to press down on the indicated retainer, and at the same time pull the electrical plug away from the back of the accessory power outlet. Finally, just for illustration, note that the photo also shows the A/H and air bag plugs that were disconnected above in steps 2d through 2f.
Step 2h: The console should now be free from any mechanical attachment, but there is still an electrical plug for the button inside the console that releases the fuel cap door; this connection is on the underside and toward the front of the console. So, gently lift the console upward and toward the rear of the car so that you can access the electrical plug for the fuel door release. The photo illustrates this electrical plug. Lift the indicated tab (with a fingernail or the tiny flat blade screwdriver) and at the same time pull the female plug away from the console.
Step 2i: The console should now be free from any physical attachment. So, lift the console upward and toward the rear of the car and store it in a safe place. The photo illustrates the area from where the console has been removed.
Step 3a: Instrument trim panel partial removal. The instrument trim panel is the piece that runs from the console toward and around the air conditioning and radio controls, as also labeled below in the photo for step 3d. There are three size 15 torx screws that retain the instrument trim panel in place. Two are behind the ash tray/cigarette lighter door, as shown in the photo. You will see the first one as soon as you open the ash tray/cigarette lighter door. To access the second one, simply pull the plastic ash tray out from the right side of the area next to the cigarette lighter. Note that the ash tray has its own separate door, and you may have to close it slightly while removing the ash tray so that its door clears the larger door that covers both the ash tray and the cigarette lighter. Using the size 15 torx screwdriver, remove these two size 15 torx screws.
Step 3b: The third size 15 torx screw is behind the little grill that is next to the ignition switch. Using the tiny flat blade screwdriver, and the cloth for scratch protection, gently pull the screwdriver away from the dash which will also pull the grill away. As shown in the photo, use only the tip of the flat blade screwdriver and pry from the bottom of the grill as shown -- this way you do not risk touching the element behind the grill with the screwdriver tip.
Step 3c: The photo illustrates the third size 15 torx screw that is visible once the grill from step 3b is removed, and this third torx screw is all that is left retaining the instrument trim panel in place. Using the size 15 torx screwdriver, remove this size 15 torx screw.
Step 3d: It is time to move the instrument trim panel several inches, but not all the way, toward the back of the car. To make this step easier in a 6-speed car, you'll want to take the following various steps. (1) engage the emergency brake, if you haven't already done so; and (2) put the car in neutral -- alternatively, you might still have reasonable working room if you put the car in 2nd, 4th, or 6th gear. *Also, if you choose to go with neutral, then for safety reasons block your four tires so the car cannot roll.* To make this step easier in an automatic transmission car, you'll want to take the following various steps. (1) take your ignition key off any key chain you have so you end up with the ignition key alone; (2) engage the parking brake; (3) put the ignition key in the ignition and turn it to the on, NOT START, position; (4) step on the brake; (5) put the car in low gear; and (6) turn the key back as far as it will go toward the off position. The photo shows the engaged emergency brake and the gear shift in its neutral position, and it also labels the instrument trim panel in various locations. Once you have performed all of the suggestions in this step, the trim panel should pull toward the rear of the car. If you are performing this step on an automatic transmission Vette, then because you should only have a single key in the ignition, the portion of the trim panel that surrounds the ignition should easily clear the single key, and the remainder of the instrument trim panel should lift toward the rear of the car. Finally, however, note that the cigarette lighter still has an electrical plug connected to the back of it, so only pull the panel back about 6 to 12 inches so you have access to the electrical connection. Removal of this connection is described in step 3e, below.
Step 3e: The photo illustrates one of the two tabs that hold the gray electrical connector to the chrome back of the cigarette lighter, with it understood and also indicated by a second white line that there is also a second of the same kind of tab on the opposite side of the lighter that is not viewable from the perspective shown. Using your fingers or the tiny screwdriver, pry upward on each tab and at the same time pull the gray connector toward the front of the car and away from the back of the cigarette lighter. See also the photo in the next step 3f to further illustrate your goal.
Step 3f: The photo illustrates the gray electrical connector after it is removed from the chrome back of the cigarette lighter.
Step 3g: You now have freedom to move the instrument trim panel farther. In a 6-speed car, the shifter and its boot will restrain you from completely removing the instrument panel, but that is okay because you can proceed without entirely removing the panel. As shown in the photo, simply maneuver the panel until the two 10mm nuts to the left side of the emergency brake handle are accessible. As you do this, however, be careful not to scratch your dashboard with any edges of the instrument trim panel. In an automatic transmission car, you can remove the entire instrument panel if you desire.
Step 4a: Emergency brake boot and/or handle removal. Once the two 10mm nuts illustrated in step 3g are visible, remove them with the 10mm socket and socket wrench. Next, the boot remains attached only by a strip of velcro on the bottom and passenger side of the boot as shown in the present photo. Once that velcro is free, if you are just changing the boot, you can remove it by pulling it upward and off the brake handle. Step 4b, below, illustrates the boot lifted partially upward in this manner.
Step 4b: If you are replacing the emergency brake handle, then lift the boot upward at least enough to reveal the 8mm bolt shown in the photo. Using the 8mm socket, remove the 8mm bolt. The 8mm bolt also has a flat blade recess cut into it, so if you prefer you can use a flat blade screwdriver to remove the bolt. Once the 8mm bolt is removed, lift the entire handle (and boot if you did not already remove it) upward and it will detach from the brake mechanism.
Step 5a: New boot and/or handle installation onto brake mechanism. Place the handle through the bottom large opening of the boot and gently force it upward through the small opening at the top of the boot, creating the orientation shown in the photo.
Step 5b: Lift the bottom of the boot upward to reveal the hole in the bottom of the handle that will accommodate the 8mm bolt removed above in step 4b. Push the handle downward on the metal brake mechanism until the hole in the handle aligns with the hole in the mechanism, and then re-insert and tighten the 8mm bolt into the aligned holes. *Be careful not to over tighten this bolt* because you do not want to crack the bottom of the plastic brake handle.
Step 5c: Pull the bottom of the boot down and align the wire, that is on the driver side of the boot, around the threaded studs that support the 10mm nuts that were removed above in step 4a. Re-install the 10mm nuts, and also attach the passenger-side velcro (see step 4a) back to an appropriate position. Note in the photo for the present step 5c that the top of the boot is not pulled completely down to the bottom of the handle, but instead it overlaps approximately the bottom 1/2 to 3/4 inch of the handle. Also, the seam in the boot aligns with the seam in the handle.
Steps 6 and 7: Now in reverse order perform steps 3 and 2, thereby first re-installing the instrument trim panel followed by the console and A/H trim plate. Once everything is in place, be sure to re-check all your electrical devices to ensure you properly re-connected any electrical plugs.	See the previous photos from steps 3 and 2.
Step 8: Stop and admire your work. Next, ask yourself what else you need from Vette Essentials to further enhance your Vette!!

That's all folks. Peace.

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