Drum brakes are a dying breed, so when they are encountered by a mechanically inexperienced person their repair can seem daunting. Drum brakes are not necessarily any more difficult to repair, they just have more parts to manipulate. Knowing the basic steps and tips to replace them will keep the task as easy as possible.
Instructions
- 1
Loosen the lug nuts using a ratchet and socket, but do not remove them.
2Jack up the rear of the vehicle and secure it with jack stands. Remove the lug nuts the rest of the way and remove the wheels.
3Tap the drum with a hammer to loosen it and pull it off by hand.
4Remove the shoe hold-down spring using the drum brake spring tool. To remove it, press the spring with the tool and turn it to line up the notch with the tab on the post. Simply pull the cap off and remove the spring at that time. There will be one spring on each shoe.
5Remove the two return springs from the top of the brake shoes using the needle nosed pliers.
6Remove the adjuster level spring from the bottom of the primary shoe. Now simply remove the shoes by pulling them away from the wheel cylinder.
7Place the primary (front) shoe in the notch in the adjuster, then into the notch of the wheel cylinder. Connect the primary shoe spring to the top of the primary shoe and connect the adjuster lever spring to the base of the primary shoe.
8Place the adjuster lever into the secondary shoe and place the upper part of the secondary shoe into the notch on the wheel cylinder. Attach the secondary shoe spring using needle nosed pliers.
9Push the shoe-holding spring post through the hole in the shoe, put the spring and cap over the post and press it with the drum spring tool to lock it into place. Repeat this step for the other shoe.
10Place the brake drum back over the shoes until it is fully seated on the backing plate.
11Replace the wheel and lightly tighten the lug nuts. Lower the vehicle and torque the wheel, using a torque wrench, to manufacturer specifications listed in the repair manual.
