Please help with rear brakes....

[ashbata]

Did a full rear brakes job. One of the wheel cylinders popped so I just replaced everything at once. Everything under the drum is new, including the drum.

So my problem is that the drums don't fit over the shoes. I had to gently persuade them on with a BFH. Then I did the e-brake trick to get them auto adjusted.

Drove to work this morning and when I got there they're burning hot. Like 10 minutes with a hose, barely cold enough to touch. Had to drive back home after work and the same thing happened.

Took the drums off and turned the adjuster all the way back to give the most room, and the drum still won't fit. What did I do wrong?

 

[gamefreakgc]

Are you sure the adjuster is all the way back and not forward? You can adjust in on the vehicle without removing the drum by removing the rubber cover and adjust with a screwdriver. Although you should have had a clue they weren't going to work if the drum didn't fit. If they are as superheated as you say they are (brakes are dragging) then you don't want to drive it or you'll warp your new drums and have to buy new ones, again.

If that doesn't help at all then you either installed the springs wrong or they gave you the wrong parts. No way the right parts installed correctly would not fit. Maybe try another brand.

 

[Dephcon]

Could be a couple of things. Frozen wheel cylinder, or most likely wrong parts. I would verify everything is for the correct model of 4runner you have. Auto parts guys read 1000's or part numbers a day and human error could have caused a mix-up somewhere. With the adjuster turned all the way down, the drums should fit over the shoes without even touching the drum.

 

[ashbata]

Could be a couple of things. Frozen wheel cylinder, or most likely wrong parts. I would verify everything is for the correct model of 4runner you have. Auto parts guys read 1000's or part numbers a day and human error could have caused a mix-up somewhere. With the adjuster turned all the way down, the drums should fit over the shoes without even touching the drum.

Brand new wheel cylinders. I hope that's not it.

Are you sure the adjuster is all the way back and not forward? You can adjust in on the vehicle without removing the drum by removing the rubber cover and adjust with a screwdriver. Although you should have had a clue they weren't going to work if the drum didn't fit. If they are as superheated as you say they are (brakes are dragging) then you don't want to drive it or you'll warp your new drums and have to buy new ones, again.

If that doesn't help at all then you either installed the springs wrong or they gave you the wrong parts. No way the right parts installed correctly would not fit. Maybe try another brand.

The adjuster is all the way back. It has about an 1/8th inch of play. I can slide it back and forth between the shoes.

I'll post up pics to make sure it's not installed wrong.

 

[gamefreakgc]

Might also want to check your e-brake to make sure it's not somehow accidentally engaged. Make sure the handle is all the way down, maybe even disconnect the cable at the rear axle to make sure there's slack in the system and see if that makes a difference.

 

[Arnezie]

. Like 10 minutes with a hose, barely cold enough to touch.

Why would you spray them for 10 min with a hose?

 

[ashbata]

Why would you spray them for 10 min with a hose?

They were hot. So I could work on it.

Might also want to check your e-brake to make sure it's not somehow accidentally engaged. Make sure the handle is all the way down, maybe even disconnect the cable at the rear axle to make sure there's slack in the system and see if that makes a difference.

Parking brake cable is slack. Checked underneath.

 

[A-dog]

Until you figure out the problem, I would avoid cooling the drums with cool water from the hose. Going from very hot to very cool quickly will be more likely to warp the drums. If they cool gradually, the chances of them warping are less.

 

[nevada]

Did a full rear brakes job. One of the wheel cylinders popped so I just replaced everything at once. Everything under the drum is new, including the drum.

So my problem is that the drums don't fit over the shoes. I had to gently persuade them on with a BFH. Then I did the e-brake trick to get them auto adjusted.

Drove to work this morning and when I got there they're burning hot. Like 10 minutes with a hose, barely cold enough to touch. Had to drive back home after work and the same thing happened.

Took the drums off and turned the adjuster all the way back to give the most room, and the drum still won't fit. What did I do wrong?

where did you get the shoes?

we have noticed this problem with some carquest shoes. for whatever reason, they don't seem to fit correctly. a different brand fixes it.

that is assuming all other parts are correct, and in their proper place.

 

[NWFLBowhunter]

Something isn't aligned right. Take them apart and try again. When I did mine last week, I had the same issue, turned out to be that the shoes were not in the notches all the way. If you have any gap between the shoe and the wheel cylinders slot, the drum won't fit right.

 

[heat]

Are the brake shoes aftermarket? Some are slightly oversize to compensate for worn drums. A time or two, I have actually taken a big rasp and just filed down the shoes until the drum would fit.

 

[ashbata]

Are the brake shoes aftermarket? Some are slightly oversize to compensate for worn drums. A time or two, I have actually taken a big rasp and just filed down the shoes until the drum would fit.

where did you get the shoes?

we have noticed this problem with some carquest shoes. for whatever reason, they don't seem to fit correctly. a different brand fixes it.

that is assuming all other parts are correct, and in their proper place.

I took it all back to O'Reillys. I'm just gonna order oem stuff. Anybody got the part members for shoes and associated hardware?

 

[Brveagle]

Also, just because you have slack on the ebrake cable under the vehicle doesn't mean that that ebrake isn't seized. The bell housing located on each drum is known to seize, so it'll hold the shoes against the drum even after dropping the handle.

And fyi, get new drums. No way those survived the glowing red heat and then shock treatment of cold water.


Good luck

 

[ashbata]

Also, just because you have slack on the ebrake cable under the vehicle doesn't mean that that ebrake isn't seized. The bell housing located on each drum is known to seize, so it'll hold the shoes against the drum even after dropping the handle.

And fyi, get new drums. No way those survived the glowing red heat and then shock treatment of cold water.


Good luck

I've checked the bell housings too, they're fully operational. Also swapped the drums at O'Reillys. Thanks for the tip tho.