How to Service Rear Brake Shoes

Maintaining your brakes is an important part of automobile ownership.

Your braking system is one of the most important systems on your car, and it is critical to maintain. Failure to do so could lead to serious injury or even death to yourself and others. Drum brakes are used on the rear wheels of many different auto models. With drum brakes, the brake pads are on the inside of a drum mounted on the wheel. As the brakes are engaged by the driver, the pads press out against the inside edge of the drum.

Things You'll Need

• Brick
• Jack
• Lug wrench
• Compressed air canister
• Safety goggles
• Work gloves
• Brake spring removal tool
• Brake wash
• Non-drying silicone brake lubricant

Instructions

1. Park the vehicle in a flat area and put the emergency brake on. Place a brick on both sides of the front tires to keep the vehicle from rolling and jack up the rear of the car.

2. Remove the rear tires with a lug wrench.

3. Remove the brake drums and inspect the brake pads. They will need to be replaced if they are less than 1/8 inch thick. If brake fluid is leaking, you will need to replace the wheel cylinder (the small cylinder on top of the wheel that has a piston on each side).

4. Clean the dust off of the wheel with compressed air. Wear safety goggles and gloves, and avoid coming into direct contact with the dust as it may contain asbestos.

5. Disconnect and remove the springs with the brake spring removal tool, starting with the outer spring.

6. Remove the auto-adjuster cable by lifting up the auto-adjuster tab and detaching the cable. The auto-adjuster tab is a small metal tab on the bottom of the wheel.

7. Disconnect the spring-loaded brake shoe retainers (the two springs on the bottom of the wheel).

8. Remove the auto-adjuster arm by pulling it forward and out.

9. Take off the brake shoes from the wheel and wash the wheel with brake wash. Again, wear gloves and safety goggles and avoid direct contact with any dust.

10. Lubricate the six points on the wheel where the brake shoes attach with non-drying silicone brake lubricant.

11. Attach the spring-loaded retainers onto the wheel, followed by the adjuster-arm spring, adjuster cable and brake shoe springs.

12. Slide the adjuster arm into position and attach the adjuster cable to it.

13. Reattach the brake drum. Repeat this process for the wheel on the other side.

14. Place the tires back onto the vehicle and slowly lower it to the ground.

References

• Free Auto Mechanic: Replacing Rear Drum Brakes
• 2 Car Pros: How to Replace Rear Brake Shoes and Drums