Maybe your emergency brake is dragging? Go in reverse and hit the brakes to adjust the drum brakes.
Drum Brakes
Does anyone know the average life span of a set of drum brakes. My car has around 54k on it, and I think they may be in need of service. I just started getting a sort of scraping / dragging sound coming from the drivers side rear area. Only happens when I'm moving really slow, and even then doesn't happen all the time. At higher speeds and when braking I don't notice anything abnormal. If I get a chance today I'll pull the wheel and take a look. But if it's not the brakes, anyone know what else it might be? Thanks.
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
Which taurus has this problem? My 2000 had a similar problem, the e brake spring had snapped and was not completely released. The drum would still turn, but after awhile a lip was formed in the drum and I could not get the drum off.Originally posted by dIESEL600@Apr 26 2004, 01:36 PM
Does anyone know the average life span of a set of drum brakes. My car has around 54k on it, and I think they may be in need of service. I just started getting a sort of scraping / dragging sound coming from the drivers side rear area. Only happens when I'm moving really slow, and even then doesn't happen all the time. At higher speeds and when braking I don't notice anything abnormal. If I get a chance today I'll pull the wheel and take a look. But if it's not the brakes, anyone know what else it might be? Thanks.
When the dealer was finally able to get the drum off, he told me about the ebrake spring, and it had completely destroyed everything inside the brake assembly. Everything was completely blued. Luckily I have ESP, and it covered the ebrake failure.
Otherwise it would have cost me $500
-Damon
Well this has become a much bigger pain in the butt than I had initially hoped for. The drivers side drum came right off. That is the side I'm pretty sure the noise was coming from. Plenty of brake lining left on that side, but I noticed a fresh scratch mark along the drum, so I think a piece of rust or something was caught and was occasionally scraping a bit.
Since there was a lot of dust in there, I figured I'd take the other drum off, make sure that side was ok, then spray everything on both sides down with brake cleaner, flush the lines, and put everything back together. Well the passenger side drum would not come off. After lots of time using a plastic / rubber headed mallet, I switched to a metal hammer, and wound up breaking a little chunk off the drum. So now the drum really needs to come off so I can replace it. I thought so I would have better access to the adjuster hole I would just take the whole knuckle off. But the strut pinch bolt was so seized I wound up snapping it off, even after using like half a can of pb blaster. That was enough for me for the day. So now tomorrow I have to cut the bolt off at the strut tab to get the knuckle off. Hopefully I can get the rest of that bolt out somehow then so I can reuse the knuckle.
Sometimes I really hate cars.
Since there was a lot of dust in there, I figured I'd take the other drum off, make sure that side was ok, then spray everything on both sides down with brake cleaner, flush the lines, and put everything back together. Well the passenger side drum would not come off. After lots of time using a plastic / rubber headed mallet, I switched to a metal hammer, and wound up breaking a little chunk off the drum. So now the drum really needs to come off so I can replace it. I thought so I would have better access to the adjuster hole I would just take the whole knuckle off. But the strut pinch bolt was so seized I wound up snapping it off, even after using like half a can of pb blaster. That was enough for me for the day. So now tomorrow I have to cut the bolt off at the strut tab to get the knuckle off. Hopefully I can get the rest of that bolt out somehow then so I can reuse the knuckle.
Sometimes I really hate cars.
Well, I think what I told you was correct.Originally posted by dIESEL600@Apr 27 2004, 12:51 AM
Well this has become a much bigger pain in the butt than I had initially hoped for. The drivers side drum came right off. That is the side I'm pretty sure the noise was coming from. Plenty of brake lining left on that side, but I noticed a fresh scratch mark along the drum, so I think a piece of rust or something was caught and was occasionally scraping a bit.
Since there was a lot of dust in there, I figured I'd take the other drum off, make sure that side was ok, then spray everything on both sides down with brake cleaner, flush the lines, and put everything back together. Well the passenger side drum would not come off. After lots of time using a plastic / rubber headed mallet, I switched to a metal hammer, and wound up breaking a little chunk off the drum. So now the drum really needs to come off so I can replace it. I thought so I would have better access to the adjuster hole I would just take the whole knuckle off. But the strut pinch bolt was so seized I wound up snapping it off, even after using like half a can of pb blaster. That was enough for me for the day. So now tomorrow I have to cut the bolt off at the strut tab to get the knuckle off. Hopefully I can get the rest of that bolt out somehow then so I can reuse the knuckle.
Sometimes I really hate cars.
Im 99.9% sure that the drum dragged to the point where a lip was formed in the drum, and trying to pry it off wont help.
I would take it to a pro and have them deal with it.
Like I said, its a major pain in the a** and its costly. You may need to replace the entire assembly.
-Damon
Okay, I'm pretty sure the only thing keeping me from getting this stubborn drum off are the shoes themselves. I understand how you are supposed to back the shoes off using that star wheel on the adjuster, but from looking at the side that I could get the drum off, there is this thingee that fits in the teeth on the wheel that only lets it rotate one way, and that is the way to tighten it. And from what I have tried, I think I have proved myself correct. I can get the adjuster to tighten the shoes even more (which is bad), but it won't go the other way. Please help, I am getting desperate. Having to ride my motorcycle to school yesterday in the 40 degree weather was no fun.
I know how to solve this problem (had it myself on my 1987 Sable), but it's hard to put into type. The automatic brake adjuster is keeping you from turning the star wheel the way you need to. You need to get a thin screwdriver and poke it through the adjuster hole and release the automatic adjuser, and simultaneously use the brake adjustment tool to turn the star wheel.
Look at the side that has the drum off, and you'll see what I'm talking about.
PIA...
Look at the side that has the drum off, and you'll see what I'm talking about.
PIA...
I bought my car with drum brakes and 22k miles. I put another 50+k on the car before I converted to disc brakes. The car had been driven with the parking brake on at least twice (don't let female friends drive your car!!!). I never replaced the rear shoes, and they had another 5-10k left on them when I removed the drum brakes.
If you do a lot of highway driving, your shoes will last forever.
If you do a lot of highway driving, your shoes will last forever.
Ok I see what you mean. I'm gonna have to play with it a little more. It's really tough to get in there at the correct angle to release the thing.Originally posted by Sablewagon@Apr 28 2004, 03:18 AM
I know how to solve this problem (had it myself on my 1987 Sable), but it's hard to put into type. The automatic brake adjuster is keeping you from turning the star wheel the way you need to. You need to get a thin screwdriver and poke it through the adjuster hole and release the automatic adjuser, and simultaneously use the brake adjustment tool to turn the star wheel.
Look at the side that has the drum off, and you'll see what I'm talking about.
PIA...
1 - 9 of 9 Posts
- This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Taurus Car Club of America : Ford Taurus Forum
A forum community dedicated to the Ford Taurus and SHO models, Mercury Sable and Lincoln MKS. Join the discussions on EcoBoost, aftermarket performance, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Recommended Communities
