is there a diy for changing rear brake shoes

so how do you adjust the rear brakes i have an 06

 

alternate bolts untill drum comes off

 

can you adjust the brakes with out removing the drum

 

I would remove the drum so you can get a better understanding of what you did from the outside. sounds like you may have gone the wrong way.
it would then be easier to adjust with the drum off, getting it close to desired location.
I believe they self adjust when you pull the emer brake.

 

ok ill try that

 

pull the drum , look everything over
adjust the star wheel untill the drum will just slide over the brake pads.
once back together, pull the emer brake a few times and it should tighten up.
just enough to get tension, dont over do it

 

With this rear brake job. Was wondering is there a gasket on the inside of the drum where it mates up with the axle flange , that needs to be replaced??? And where can I get the gasket or must I make my own???

 

I just checked my the other day.
Had a total brain fart and left the e-brake on like an idiot.
Had to get new retainer spring caps because I bent the old ones too much... but the shoes had pleeeenty of life left on them.
And I used the two bolts that hold on the air intake plastic piping under the hood to get the drum apart.. if anyone wanted to know.

 

I checked and adjusted mine the other day. 85k miles and they still have plenty of life. I ordered everything I need incase I needed to change them, so now I'll wait till 100k or so and change them out.

According to a local Tw member who is also a mechanic, he said to adjust the star wheel properly, you have to (with the drum on) adjust the wheel as tight as you can get it then back it off 15 clicks. He said all manufacturers are different, but Toyota specs 15 clicks.

Since this was my first time messing with drum brakes I removed the drum (used a bolt in the threaded hole and then a claw hammer to grab behind the drum and pull). Then inspected everything and figured out how the star wheel works. Then lined up a hole in the drum with the star wheel and used a small flat head screw driver to adjust the wheel.

Tough to explain how to adjust the wheel, but if you get the drum off and then play around for a little while you should be able to figure it out. I thought about drilling a larger hole in the drum so you can see the star wheel easier.

 

And when you re-assemble the brake drum - wire-brush clean all the spots which were rusted together and put Never-Seize on them before you put the parts back. Some Never-Seize on the wheel studs is always a plus too. It takes just a little - don't slop it all over everything. Even if it's not you - doing this will make somebody very grateful in the future. <g>

 

2007 Base with 2.7 engine -

The rear brake shoes are some of the easiest I have ever worked on. Absolutely nothing to be afraid of there. They are a simple basic design, easy to get apart without specialized tools, and even easier to get back together. Most especially the emergency brake arm! Toyota made it a dream to get off and on.

I took some pics and carefully laid out the taken-out-parts in general placement on the concrete under the truck - but it's really obvious and intuitive the way they work. Ford, GMC, Dodge, Jaguar and other foreign cars - all more difficult. Of course I was doing brake work when All cars had all drum brakes all around too. <g>

I just did all four wheels in an hour and thirty five minutes from jack up to wheels re-torqued and everything cleaned up. Except for sweeping the driveway. No air tools. I used:

A floor jack
The truck's lug wrench
Regular, small, and extra small screwdrivers
Needle nose pliers
Lineman pliers
And also a 14mm by 3/8" socket & ratchet and a 6" C clamp for the calipers.

Also lubed all the contact points, the self-adjuster threads and slider, and contact points on the piston & caliper fingers and the slider pins on the front calipers. Oh, and the center hub (where the wheels center) and all the lugs lightly again. <g>

I think the rears were about 60-65 minutes from jacking up to re-dropping the wheels down off the jack and the fronts about 10 minutes each. The first rear side was slower as I took it slow at first to make sure I knew what was there. And taking the pics took a little time. The second rear of course took less time. Want to call it 35/25 on the rears? <g>

I have had these rear drums off before - I used pusher-bolts last year or the year before to check the brakes - so the drums came right off today. Oh; by the way - before you fight the drums off the first time take a minute to clean out the female threads well. And then afterwards fill the threaded holes with heavy grease or Never-Seize - so they never corrode again. When I pulled the drums the first time I bought three pusher-bolts and ground a lengthwise groove in the side of one of them - it was cheaper than buying a metric tap I would never use again. I used that side grooved bolt with some grease on it to clean out the rusted pusher-hole threads.

Yesterday Pep Boys quoted me about $400. to do all four wheels - without cutting the drums or rotors. The parts were less than $100. so I guess I just made about $200. an hour doing the brakes myself. <g>

PHM
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There is an oval rubber plug about 1/2" by 1" on the top rear of the backing plate of the brake assembly. It just pops out of the hole with a screw driver.

BTW: If you spray it with silicone spray before replacing it - it will last forever.

Look into that oval slot with a small flashlight. You will see the edge of a toothed wheel. The teeth are there so that you can push the toothed wheel around with a brake adjustment tool / screwdriver.

That toothed wheel is called: a Star Wheel.

You cannot turn the star wheel backwards as there is a spring-loaded ratcheting lever on the side you can't see. As you look in there - facing the hole - to tighten the brakes - you have to move the teeth "up". So stick a screwdriver blade in there with the blade end low and the handle end high. It will need to be slightly angled so the handle is somewhat more rearward. With the blade engaged in the teeth of the star wheel move the screwdriver Handle end Downward. This will lever (with the bottom of the oval hole being the pivot point) the star wheel upward.

This is true on both sides as the passengers side uses right-handed threads and the drivers side using left-handed threads.

If you are doing it right - and making the star wheel turn - you will hear a clicking sound (like a ratchet handle makes) - maybe three or four clicks for each levering push you make. What you will be hearing is the teeth on the far side of the toothed clicking past the ratcheting lever I mentioned before. Do not confuse this clicking sound with the sound your screwdriver will make if it is not engaging the star wheel well and is just slipping over the teeth. Although you will feel this as chattering through the screwdriver handle if it happens.

Just so you know: that ratcheting lever is spring-loaded against the star wheel and both adjusts the star wheel, if needed, whenever you apply the brakes, AND only let's the star wheel turn in one direction. This is so vibration cannot ever loosen your brakes.

You can probably get them adjusted close enough by just spinning the drum after each adjustment until it's just barely dragging on the brake shoes. You will feel and hear this as you turn the drum each time.

Someone else mentioned adjusting the brakes by tightening so as to lock the drum and then backing off the star wheel 15 teeth. That is fine but to turn the star wheel backwards requires that you also use a very small screwdriver to poke into the oval hole Past the star wheel to push the ratcheting self-adjuster lever out and away from the teeth of the star wheel while you are levering in downward to loosen it. It's very easy but it does take some fiddling around as you are working largely by feel.

Don't forget to put the rubber plugs back into the oval backing plate hole slot when you are done. These serve to keep water, salt, and general yak out of the brake assemblies.

PHM
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Poodle Head Mikey "I took some pics" Where are these pics you speak of ? "when All cars had all drum brakes all around" Me too - you must be old like me Nice write up and good suggestions. I like the clean out bolt with the length wise cut in it. Thanks for any reply.

 

Having owned Toyota's in the past one of the very first thing I did when my truck was new was to remove the drums and apply antiseize to the axle where the drum fits if you don't you'll never get it off when it has 150K on it.

 

Hi all.

There is a round rubber plug on the front side of the axle. You can remove it and see the thickness of your leading shoe using a small mirror and flashlight. This can be a quick way to get an idea of your rear brake pad wear since the leading shoe normally wears faster than the rear.

Cheers
Ray.

 

That's a great idea - Why didn't you tell me 6 years ago now I'm f'd aren't I

 

Good info. Thanks.

 

Gloucester County - and you?

I don't think of myself as old but I can tell you: I am fully aware that this is as young as I'm ever going to be. <g> I started working on cars in an intensive way when I was about twelve years old. That winter my father said that I could have a 1958 Vauxhall Victor - if I could get it running. He always said later that he had had zero expectation that he would actually be giving me that car. <g>

The pics are on my phone. I could email them to myself and then have them on my computer. But after that I would be lost in terms of sending them anywhere else except by email. They are close in and I doubt would illustrate anything worthwhile to anyone but me. But I'm not trying to hide them either. <g>

I didn't use the pics as it turned out that the Toyota brake design is so brilliantly simple and obvious to work on.

PHM
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Morris County work in Bergen County. Belated Congratulations on the 1958 Vauxhall. I don't really need pics - just asking. I just do one side at a time and use the other for reference if I need it. You do have me worried about taking drums off at 150,000. I'm at 75,000 now - maybe I should start spraying and praying. I've done the front - glad they had taps for back off bolts on the rotors.

 

where the pic everyone?