So I recently just got a 2002 gs300, I was doing the brakes when I realized on one of the rear brakes the parking brake is holding the rotor on. I know to adjust it with a flathead from the hole in the rotor and etc however, the last person decided to not line up the hole where the gear is, any ideas on how to loosen the parking brake to remove the rotor?

Well the adjuster, which is the wheel with teeth on it, that slowly spreads the shoes apart as they wear. Is bolted into its proper location. If it’s not there, it can’t do its job, it should be in the bottom center on the back of the backing plate. Pull the rubber plug outta the hole and get your flashlight out and see if you see it. If it’s not there is really not there then the shoes aren’t getting adjusted and you shouldn’t have any problems. Make sure the parking brake is off, and if you can’t figure it out, you should be able pry the disc off the shoes, once it’s off, you’ll be able to figure out what is going on. I wouldn’t worry about it to much, I have seen these cars with hundreds of thousands of miles on them and the parking brake shoes still had plenty of pad left.

The rotor rotates independent of the parking brake so just turn it until the inspection hole lines up with the parking brake gear.

LOL I feel dumb I was trying to do like 5 things at once and didn’t think to fully jack the car up and do that thank you. Gotta get this stripped security lugnut off first

The rotor certainly spins but the backing plate does not, I assure you’ll find the adjuster if you look on the back side at 6 o’clock you’ll gmfind a rubber oval plug and you’ll find what you need behind it. If you have a problem with a lug nut you can pretty much always get them off with an old socket that’s just a bit smaller than the nut, just pound it on with a hammer so that its on there tight and likely never coming off. Try to use a standard size socket so it doesn’t matter if you damage it. It’s a good solution, I have had to do it many times and it’s always worked out.

Unfortunately the rotor makes it inaccessible to get to the parking brake adjustment lol

Hmm, what's going on with that lower circle? It should be an open hole so you can hit the adjuster and normally there should be a rubber plug in it to keep water out.

Sorry, I was thinking about standard drum brakes, it’s the rubber plug in between the wheel studs. In your picture you can see it, it’s got a slot to use a flat head screw driver to remove the plug and then spin the rotor until the hole is in around the 6 o’clock position, spin the rotor til u see the adjuster.

I pulled mine just to make sure I wasn’t going crazy, you can also use a couple bolts to force the rotor off. I think they are M7 and just screw them into the threaded holes on inside the wheel studs.

I think you guys are missing his point. The access hole on the rotor must be lined up with the access hole on the hub when installed. But the last person to do the job didn't know this and put it on so there is no access to the adjuster wheel. So unless there is a window in the back, he may have to force it off and replace the shoes/hardware, then install the rotor in the proper orientation for future maintenance.

Toyota/Lexus engineers wouldn’t make that kind of mistake, there is an access port between every wheel stud, and with the trans in neutral and the parking brake off, you can spin the axle until it’s in the proper position. However, if that is really the case, then a couple of M7 bolts installed in the little holes inside the wheel studs. And they will gently separate the rotor from the hub. The rotor will be able just slide off the brake shoes.

As you can see in his picture, it is an aftermarket rotor that has no holes for bolts, and only one access window that was not installed over the access window on the hub. He's screwed, big hammer time.