Do rear brakes auto adjust?
- Thread starter GregM
- Start date
Thank you for your ideas. Good points all. It makes sense for me to more regularly apply the e-brake fix. Why not? Good idea.
Because I thought the brake pedal traveled too far to engage the brake, I took off the rear wheels to inspect the brake shoes. I did this at 74K miles. The leading shoe was at 3mm (the "yellow" zone), but an apparently competent Les Schwab brake tech told me 3mm is still okay and should last for a while. Since I drive my Tacoma infrequently, his prognostication seems all the more likely to be true.
Maybe it is the case that brakes on a 2014 Tacoma (gen2?) tend by their nature to travel what seems to me to be a too-long distance. Maybe? I don't know. Wish I knew more.
Worst case, I suppose, I order parts, turn down the drums, get on YouTube, put it all back together, and keep on keeping on.
Thanks for getting back.
Greg
Drum brakes have be self adjusting for decades. Its when the star adjuster inside the drum starts seizing up you'll likely need to manually set them.
Oh please save me from the wrath of the lesser-Toyota-god who would inflict on me the need to do the full cable-replacement job. But who knows? (I'll keep this YouTube lesson in my file.)
What I may do first, and this video you sent suggested it, is to remove the shift-lever panel to see what's what. Maybe I can take up any cable slack, although the foot pedal clicks pretty close to the number of clicks the Haynes Repair Manual instructed was proper. Or, was it my wife who told me what's proper? And then again, the clicks may have nothing to do with brake-pedal travel?
This project will keep me off the streets and out of the bars for awhile.
Thank you for the video.
Greg
What I may do first, and this video you sent suggested it, is to remove the shift-lever panel to see what's what. Maybe I can take up any cable slack, although the foot pedal clicks pretty close to the number of clicks the Haynes Repair Manual instructed was proper. Or, was it my wife who told me what's proper? And then again, the clicks may have nothing to do with brake-pedal travel?
This project will keep me off the streets and out of the bars for awhile.
Thank you for the video.
Greg
I'm gaining ground if today I'm only out of sync with the rest of the world by but a few decades.
So, like the sheriff in NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, I will deduce from what you wrote that backing up my Tacoma and applying the e-brake is a viable solution for what I think is a problem. This is good news.
And besides, doing this exercise repeatedly and at various speeds in front of our home will keep the neighbors guessing and at a respectful distance. It's all good.
Thank you.
Greg
I think you, and the dealer you talked with, are telling me my Tacoma's brake-pedal issue is pretty much universal in 2014 models and should be expected. If so, it seems I would be wise to accept what is reality, and, instead, focus more on when to replace the rear brakes.
So this takes me back to what the kind brake tech at Les Schwab told me; that with 3mm remaining on the leading brake shoe, my Tacoma is okay for a little while longer.
Or maybe not. What might be your thoughts in this regard?
Yes, my Tacoma has an automatic transmission. And from what you tell me about your experiences and your normal practice, it seems apparent I need to add the back-up-apply-parking-brake practice to my routine, too. Maybe every time I drive the truck. Shoot, I can do said drill when I back it our of the garage. Perfect. Good idea. Thank you.is this rig an automatic transmission?
since i have MT i have to literally always apply the ebrake especially when left idling in neutral
wish it to not ever fail... or there she rolls away
While I'm certain the parking brake is working, I am not at all certain the drum brakes are properly adjusted. And this seems to be the core issue.
I'll get up to speed on the proper procedure for adjusting rear drum brakes and then give it a go.
Thank you.
Greg
Under normal driving conditions these toyota drum brake shoes never seem to need replacing unless towing or carrying big loads on a regular schedule.
Rock62
Well-Known Member
True. Although the subject matter is rear brake adjustment.
"Drum gasket," yeah sure. I thought you were pulling my leg, and next you would offer your favorite recipe for Purina Unicorn Chow. But no. Mother Internet produced pictures and general information on "drum gaskets." I keep learning. Thank you.