I have a 2002 Taurus with rear drum brakes. I have replaced the drums, shoes, springs, and adjusters (all new equipment) and am experiencing a "chatter" when stopping. The sound is a dull clunking sound coming from the back wheels. The car sounds fine when the brakes are not being applied. Someone please help. This problem has me baffled. Thanks! Doug.

Make sure the dust shield is not mangled up, rubbing on the drum. Not sure why that might cause a chatter only when brakes are applied.

Did you grease the landings on the backing plate where the drums rub? If not, that could be contributing to a noise. Does the noise only occur under light braking, or is it always there when braking? If it's always there when braking, are the drum adjusters properly set? Maybe you don't have full braking in the rear so even when you're pressing the pedal fully, the rear brakes are not fully engaging.

If there is oil or grease on the shoes, you might get a similar noise, but since you replaced the shoes and the drums, that is not very likely. Are the wheel cylinders leaking at all?

Have you tried putting the car on jackstands and having someone gently apply the brakes while you rotate the rear wheels? If so, can you hear the noise then? If you do hear the noise, can you tell if it is for sure coming from inside the drum? If you don't hear the noise, maybe the noise is actually a suspension issue. Did the noise start happening shortly after having a four wheel alignment performed? Maybe some bolts didn't get tightened in the rear.

Can you still hear the noise when braking in reverse?

-Rod

The dust shield is clearing fine. Yes, I greased the landings where the shoes ride on the backing plate. The noise occurs under hard and light braking. When you "mash" the brakes the noise is less noticable but the car is also stopping quicker. When you lightly apply the brakes it is a pretty noticable "clicking" sound. The wheel cylinders are dry. Could they be bad if not leaking? I have not tried the car on jackstands idea. I will have to before I give up and take this to the repair shop. I need the car as a daily driver and am worried about driving it in this condition. The car has not had a four wheel alignment so everything should be tight in the suspension. Yes, It sounds to me like you can hear the noise when braking in reverse as well as forward although it is not as noticable. Could there be something wrong with the ABS? Thanks for the comments and ideas. I really appreciate it!

The dust shield is clearing fine. Yes, I greased the landings where the shoes ride on the backing plate. The noise occurs under hard and light braking. When you "mash" the brakes the noise is less noticable but the car is also stopping quicker. When you lightly apply the brakes it is a pretty noticable "clicking" sound. The wheel cylinders are dry. Could they be bad if not leaking? I have not tried the car on jackstands idea. I will have to before I give up and take this to the repair shop. I need the car as a daily driver and am worried about driving it in this condition. The car has not had a four wheel alignment so everything should be tight in the suspension. Yes, It sounds to me like you can hear the noise when braking in reverse as well as forward although it is not as noticable. Could there be something wrong with the ABS? Thanks for the comments and ideas. I really appreciate it!

If the wheel cylinders were bad but not leaking, I would expect them to be seized in which case they would change when you apply the brakes, or if they did change, they wouldn't release and your clicking would not go away when the brake pedal is released.

If there was a problem with the ABS, it would likely only cause a noise when the ABS is activated which should only be under hard braking.

You mention a bunch of new parts that you put on. Were these all put on in an attempt to fix the noise? Did any of them make any difference in the noise? Was the noise present before replacing the parts? If not replaced looking for the noise, remove the drums again and take a good look at the braking surface. Make sure there are no cracks and also look for a ridge of rust just outside the braking surface. If you see a ridge of rust, see if the edges of this rust are polished at all. If so, you may want to have the drums machined and see if it changes your clicking.

Maybe one of the springs is on backward and is rubbing the drum or backing plate during braking. Check the inside of the drum and the backing plate for polished marks which would indicate rubbing.

-Rod

I had the same problem with my 2001 Taurus. What I found was that I didn't properly adjust the shoes when I installed them. I took the car to a brake place and they fixed it for me.