How to Replace Drum Brakes

Replacing drum brakes isn't difficult but it does require special tools and a mistake could kill you. This article will describe the general process but you should consult a repair manual for yourbrand and model car. It is not recommended that you attempt to repair your own brakes. This article is for educational purposes only and hopefully will convince you that the price charged by a trained mechanic is well worth it.

Be sure to read the cautions and warnings below!

Steps

1. 1
   Remove the hubcap and loosen the nuts.

   
   
2. 2
   Jack up the car and support it with jack stands. NEVER work on a car supported by a jack alone. Blocks of wood or bricks or even cinder blocks aren't suitable substitutes.
3. 3
   Finish removing the nuts and remove the tire.
4. 4
   Spray the hub of the wheel with penetrating oil (PB Blaster - WD-40 is not a penetrating oil!).
5. 5
   Look at the studs that hold the tire and cut off any retaining clips with diagonal cutting pliers.
6. 6
   Grab the brake drum by the edges and try and pull it off.
7. 7
   Note: some brake drums are held on with screws so you will need to take them out.
8. 8
   Once the drum is off take a look at it. It should be refaced or replaced if it is scored.
9. 9
   Spray the whole brake mechanism with brake cleaner. The dust from most brakes isASBESTOS and you don't want to breathe it in.
10. 10
    Drum brakes have a bunch of springs and levers for the self-adjuster and parking brake. They are usually different colors. Take a picture with a digital camera of make a detailed drawing of where everything is before you take anything apart!
11. 11
    Compare the new brake shoes with the old ones. Make sure they have holes in all the same places.
12. 12
    Make sure the brake shoes are the same width.
13. 13
    Remove the shoe return spring(s).
14. 14
    Detach the parking brake lever.
15. 15
    Hold the shoe retaining pin from the back and remove the retainer springs.
16. 16
    Spread the shoes apart from the top and disengage the shoes from the wheel cylinder pins.
17. 17
    Remove both shoes and the self-adjuster as one unit.
18. 18
    Lay the old shoes on the ground next to the new ones.
19. 19
    Sometimes the front and back shoes are different. The shoe with the shorter strip of lining usually goes towards the front.
20. 20
    Carefully tip the tops of the shoes inward to loosen the tension on the self-adjuster spring.
21. 21
    Remove the self adjuster.
22. 22
    Remove the spring and immediately hook it onto the new shoes exactly as you removed it.
23. 23
    Screw the self adjuster back in. One side will be a left hand thread.
24. 24
    Place the self adjuster on the new shoes and spread the tops apart to tighten the spring.
25. 25
    Put the shoes back in place and slip the retaining pins through the right holes.
26. 26
    Install the shoe retainer springs.
27. 27
    Attach the shoes to the wheel cylinder pins.
28. 28
    Reattach the parking brake lever(s).
29. 29
    Install the return springs.
30. 30
    Check your new brakes with the picture. If anything looks different start over.
31. 31
    Slide the new or resurfaced drum over the wheel studs.
32. 32
    Reinstall the tire.
33. 33
    Adjust the brakes.
34. 34
    Remove the jack stand.
35. 35
    Lower the jack.
36. 36
    Repeat on other side.

    
    

Video

This is the first video in a comprehensive 4-part series about drum and disc brake repair.

Tips

• When buying your shoes, buy a new spring kit. These are cheap (usually ~$10) and are worth having.
• Don't do your own brakes if you aren't qualified.
• Typical drum brake jobs include more than what I've described here. The question was how to replace brake shoes.
• No two brands of vehicle have the same brakes and they can be very, very different. These are only general steps based on an American car.
• Don't take both sides apart at the same time. If you get confused you can look at the untouched side to see where you went wrong.
• Some drum brake systems don't have a self-adjusting mechanism. Manually adjusted systems usually have a square adjuster at the back of the assembly. Winding this out as far as possible may help to get a badly worn or scored drum over the brake shoes (steps 5, 6 and 7 above).

Warnings

• Don't do your own brake repairs if you don't know what you are doing. This is no place to start with auto repairs.
• Buy the right tools. They make them for a reason.
• Avoid breathing brake dust! A particle mask won't help much--asbestos particles are way too small for a simple mask.
• Never work on a car supported only by a jack. Never, not even in an emergency.
• When the brake drum is removed do not touch the brake pedal. You will pop a piston out of the wheel cylinder and fixing that is a different topic.

Things You'll Need

• A jack
• Jack stand
• Lug wrench
• Various common hand tools. Pliers, screwdrivers etc.
• Brake cleaning spray (2 cans)
• Return spring tool
• Retaining spring tool
• Digital or Polaroid camera
• Repair manual for your vehicle
• Torque wrench

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