REAR DRUMS LOCKING UP 05 Tacoma!

Pull and wiggle on your parking brake cables and look at the end pieces that are bolted on the backing plate.

 

Thank you for your response back. I knew this is what was happening as you stated.
“This is likely why it locks up while moving forward and applying the parking brake. What it is doing is touching the fwd shoe to thedrum and essentially wedging itself in,like a cam roller lock that allowsmovement one way but not the other.”

I appreciate all your help!!

 

No problem!! Essentially what I was trying to say is that it sounds like everything is operating correctly. But your symptoms point toward just needing a good cleaning and lube. When I worked at a Toyota dealer it was part of our 30k service, which included Oil Change, Filters if dirty and rotate and balance tires.

 

Sorry, this will be a bit long winded as well....lol Just trying to pass down some knowledge.

Also, just to help a little with some pictures from my truck. 2015 with 52k and I don't know if they have ever been cleaned and lubed.

This is where you access the adjuster wheel to bring the shoes closer or further away from the drum. It has piece of metal on the inside that only allows it to spin one direction (bringing the shoes closer to the drum). However if you have trouble getting the drum off due to a lip of corrosion you can push this piece of metal toward the outside of the truck and with a second screwdriver adjust the shoes away from the drum to help get the drum off.



I know it's not the best picture but here goes.
-Blue arrow is pointing at the star adjuster wheel.
-Red arrow and highlighted portion is the adjuster wheel one way lock.

Rotating it by pushing the top toward the outside of the vehicle will make the shoes get closer to the drum, to loosen (or move the shoes further in/away from the drum) you would use a second small screwdriver to push the highlighted piece being pointed at with the red arrow and rotate the top of the adjuster wheel towards the inside of the truck. You can play with this a little to familiarize yourself by tightening it until the wheel doesn't freely spin anymore and then back it off before disassembling of course.



This is a look at what is shown above with the drum removed to make more sense of it.



To aid in removing the drum you can grab a couple M8 x 1.25 bolts and screw them into the threaded holes of the drum. As you tighten them it will pop the drum off the hub. Before doing this step I recommend 2 things. 1 give the drum a few good whacks with a hammer around the hub, in between the studs. Do not hit around the outside of the drum, you can cause damage. 2 rotate the drum like it is shown here where the bolts are facing fwd and aft. The reason is when you start to pop the drum off you can rock the drum from the top and bottom, screw the bolts in a little more, rock a little more and continue till you can remove it easily. If you have the bolts top and bottom orientation and try to rock it from side to side the shoes will just rock with the drum....which will accomplish nothing.



Below the red arrows are pointing at where the shoe rides on the backing plate. There are 3 contact points for the fwd and aft shoe...top, middle and bottom. If there is a lot of build up that isn't coming off with just brake cleaner, try to get a steel or brass brush to clean these surfaces off. After cleaning apply a small amount of brake lubricant on each contact surface. This is what the brake shoes should look like after taking sand paper to them and removing the glazed surface.

Also while you are in there it is a good idea to spin the adjuster out around 10mm or so to clean the threads and apply some lubricant on the threads as well to make sure the adjuster works like it is supposed to. It's also a good idea to put a little anit-seize or even the brake lube on the hub of before putting the drum back on, you wan to focus on the hub bore section. At no point does lubricant or anit-seize need to be liberally applied, just a nice thin layer. Too much will collect dust faster and is just a waste.

 

Great write up.
My 05 did this every time i launched my boat.

I ended up replacing the shoes, drums and springs. Then it did it again.

I took it back apart and greased all the springs and friction points with drum brake grease.

That was a year ago. It hasn't locked up since

 

BTW, this is the brake lube/grease I prefer. I know there are others out there that are good too, but this has never let me down.

$17 Permatex 24125 Ceramic Extreme Brake Parts Lubricant, 8 oz., Pack of 1

https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-241...ords=brake+grease&qid=1614956899&sr=8-2-spons

 

Thanks everybody for all your detailed information I appreciate it!!!