Hi, my ex-wife bought a nice little 1998 2.0 Mazda 626 for our daughter, the car has a few issues but the main one right now is the rear drum brakes! I've replaced drum brakes on Chevy trucks and cars many times but I'm having a hard time getting the drum off! I've researched online but I haven't come up with any useful information. So in so many words, HOW DO I GET THE REAR DRUM OFF? Lol! I watched a Youtube video and the guy just tapped on the drum with a hammer and it fell off! Well that's not the case here, it didn't budge so do I remove the large nut first or am I just opening a can of worms?

 

I had to work hard on my 98 Mazda protege as well. The problem is that there was so much wear that there was a lip on the inside of the drum that catches the shoes.

I used more power in form or a small sledge hammer. Now I think there is a smarter way and you can try this out for me: Open the bleeder then use your gentle persuader. In theory the lip on the drum will push the shoes back and squeeze some fluid out of the wheel cylinder via the open bleeder. Let us know how it works.

Don't you love it when they show you videos and never have a problem?

 

most rear shoes have an adjuster on them. look here:

http://www.justanswer.com/car/2l3ii-...ar-brakes.html

scroll down, and you will see a picture of a pawl. there will be an access hole either on the drum side, or the rear backing plate side. using a screwdriver, you can turn the pawl so that the shoes adjust inward. also, a lot of the time, no one ever uses this to adjust the shoes outward, which may mean the shoes still have a lot left on them, and only need to be adjusted.

 

keninn:
There was no such adjuster on my '98 Protege. The adjuster is built into the quadrant, (13) in the explosion drawing. It adjusts when you back up and hit the brake.

I have seen the kind of adjuster you show in my Ford Windstar.

 

that link i posted IS a 98 626, and it clearly shows the adjuster. the reason i know it is there is because we used to own a 626 2.0. i generally dont post on anything i have no actual experience with. for example, i have no experience with a 98 protege, so i would never post anything on that series. but, 88 323gt and gtx, 96 626 2.0, and 2 99 millenia 2.3.

 

Thanks for correcting me. I am always open for that.