HAND BRAKE WILL NOT RELEASES REAR DRUMS - 2005 Hyundai Elantra

Jack up the rear wheels,fit safety jacks,Slask off the hand brake cable, press the foot brake a few times to center the shoes now adjust the shoes through the backing plate till the brakes lock up, then back off till the drums free,do both sides, pull the handbrake on three clicks, adjust the cable till the brakes just start to bind, release the hand brake and make the brake drums turn freely .

I'm assuming you've been replacing the brake shoes in the hand brake. Rear drum brakes are designed to automatically adjust for slack as they wear. You will have to wind back the adjusters in both rear drums and the threaded adjuster on the lever end of the cable. This should give you enough slack to reconnect it.
**Chock the wheels or put the vehicle on axle stands BEFORE you do this.**
Wind the lever end adjuster back to approximately half way. Pull the lever to the correct 'On' position. Rewind BOTH rear drum adjusters back into a position where they grip the drum firmly but spins freely when the hand brake is released. With the hand brake off spin the drum. You should be able to hear a very faint noise as the drum skims the shoes.

Release hand brake. Pull it again. While feeling for the normal tension have an assistant listen at the rear wheels to see if the brakes are moving and releasing when you release the hand brake. Possible causes:
-binding or stuck cable
-broken parking brake handle ratchet mechanism
-seized calipers, or if drum brakes faulty drum brake hardware/springs

If you can feel the thump of the engine when you select gear I would say the trans is working, most likely I would say that your emergency brakes are locked, your rear shoes are binding with the drum. 2 causes, a frayed cable may not be allowing you to release the the brakes, or the springs are soft in the rear brake area and not releasing. Jack up the rear put in neutral, emergency lever off, see if wheel can turn by hand, if not, remove wheel hit brake drum with rubber mallet to see if this releases the shoes off the drum. Inspect emergency brake cable first to see that there is little tension holding it. let me know how you go. cheers.

the emergency brake is controlled by a ratchet action near the handle or foot pedal(hand release under dash) There will be a star wheel for adjustment in the backing plate (slot) or in the hole in the front of the drum

if your vehicle has got rear drum brakes for the handbrake which i think it has then the brake shoes may be stuck to the drum try release the hand brake then hit the back of the brakeplate behind the rear wheels with a hammer it may release it

Removing the rear brake drums vary little from one vehicle to the next.First,loosen the lugs on the rear wheels,release the hand brake, block the front wheels,jack up the rear and use jackstands.Then remove the rear wheels.Looking at the drum after the wheels have been removed, you will notice two threaded holes one on each side of the axle flange.Give the brake drum a smart rap or two with a plastic mallet or piece of wood and spray the flange w/ WD 40 or brake parts cleaner.Obtain a bolt with the exact size and thread to fit the hole. I found it useful to "borrow" such bolt from around the work area-My favorite is the one fastening a cable or a hoseclamp to the differential.If that don't fit, look around under the hood:there's one there you can use.Thread the bolt into the hole alternating from one hole to the other.The bolt pushes the drum against a flange inside and removes the drum.After work, adjust the star wheel brake adjuster so that the drum turns with hand push with a little drag.

Off, make sure hand brake is not on, push the shoe in to hydraulic cylinder carefully and centralize shoes between even circles play back on and on til You get it

You may have a collapsed rubber brake line at the rear axle holding pressure in the line . Have your brake lines ever been replaced? At this age it would be a good idea to do anyway to avoid any other issues .

1. Apply and fully release the park brake several times. Verify that the park brake lever releases completely.
2. Turn ON the ignition. Verify the red BRAKE warning lamp is not illuminated.
3. If the red BRAKE warning lamp is illuminated, verify the following:

• The park brake lever is in the fully released position and against the stop.
• There is no slack in the park brake cable.

1. Turn OFF the ignition.
2. Disable the SIR system.
3. Remove the front floor console.
4. With the park brake lever in the released position, using ONLY hand tools, loosen the adjusting nut completely to the end of the front cable threaded rod.
5. Raise and support the vehicle.
6. Remove the rear tire and wheel assemblies.
7. Adjust the rear drum brakes.
8. Ensure there is no brake shoe drag after adjustment by rotating the brake drums. If drag exists, re-center the brake shoes and perform the brake shoe adjustment again.
9. Install 2 wheel nuts to the wheel studs and firmly hand tighten in order to retain the brake drums.
10. Lower the vehicle to permit access to the park brake lever.
11. Raise the park brake lever 1 detent position. Notice: Refer to Fastener Notice in Service Precautions.