Rear Brake Wear

[DRW1000]

Our Venture has 120,000KM (70,000 Miles). I have replaced the front pads on 2 occasions. I took the drums off to look at the rears. (I assumed it would be time to replace them). Although I did not do an actual measurement of the pad thickness when I compare them with the replacements (Monroe brand) they have about 75% left.
I know that most brake wear is on the fronts and that a lot depends on driving habits but this does not seem to be enough wear. I am going to re-build the rear brakes and lubricate the self adjuster and the contact points but I wonder if anyone has an opinion in regards to the light wear I seem to have experienced.

[cdru]

I have expereinced similar. In my case, the rear shoes have very little wear. I've taken the drum off several times since I purchased the van 3 years ago due to a grinding sound that I though was the rivits making contact, but it never has been. I'd be interested to see if rebuilding the rear end does anything.

[DRW1000]

Thanks for the feedback CDRU. I will keep you posted but it may be a while before I notice if cleaning and manually adjusting the rears does anything.

[Kevcules]

light wear on the rear is normal. It's a good idea to remove the drum on the rear, when changing the front pads, to clean the dust out and lubricate the adjuster. You can also manually adjust your back brakes by turning the adjuster a little at a time with a screw driver then try to slide the drum back on. Do this until the drum slides on with a little drag.(do both rear drums the same) This will give you better braking and less pedal travel.You can also try to make the adjusters work automatically by going in reverse and sharply stopping, Do this a few times and it should adjust the pads for you. I have found the best way is to do it yourself, this way you can inspect for any other problems that may arise in the future.

[cdru]

I think that there is a difference between "light wear" and "nearly no wear". When I purchased my van the front pads were nearly shot. I replaced them and checked the back thinking that they too would probably be due soon. They appeared to still be nearly at their full thickness with plenty of life. Fast forward quite a few months and my (too cheap) break pads in the front were grinding again out of the blue one day. I checked them and found the drivers side inner pad to be completely gone and outer nearly. Replaced fronts again and checked the rears...same thing, no noticable change in thickness. I'm not happy with my current pads due to the amount of break dust they create and will be switching over to a ceramic pad here in a few week. When that happens, I'll double check the rears but my guess is that I'll find the same thing...little or no break wear.

[DRW1000]

CDRU,

That is it on the money. I don't feel I have light wear I feel I have minimal wear. After thinking about it I recall a vehicle I had that did the same thing. Turns out the adjusters were not turning freely. I will bet I have the same problem here. I have never done a GM drum brake job but have done numerous Fords. I suppose my haynes should get me through it though.

[pbellone]

Originally Posted by DRW1000

CDRU,

That is it on the money. I don't feel I have light wear I feel I have minimal wear. After thinking about it I recall a vehicle I had that did the same thing. Turns out the adjusters were not turning freely. I will bet I have the same problem here. I have never done a GM drum brake job but have done numerous Fords. I suppose my haynes should get me through it though.

I had similar issues with my Lumina APV and my 2002 Venture. With APV I had and oil change done @ a local shop that offer a free brake inspection. I new the fronts were fine because I changed them 6 months ago but the rears I didn't know. They said they looked fine but should be cleaned and adjusted. I agreed after looking at them. Well, I had a different van when I left. Stops were more positive. +

The main reason I feel is the discs adjust by keeping the piston extended as the pad wears. The rears are totally negleted. We don't backup and stop short enough to let the adjusters do there thing and I don't know how they could work well with all the dust and rust that accumulates on the threads of the adjuster wheel.

My 2 cents, Pete

[DRW1000]

My Haynes manual calls for the use of high temperature lubricant on the adjuster and contact points when doing the brake shoes. What do they mean by this:

Lithium grease?
Anti sieze?
or general chassis /bearing grease?

[cdru]

General chassis/bearing grease may or may not be designed for the hot temperatures that break components get exposed to. Antiseize is definitely not what you want as it isn't even a grease although it has a greasy texture.

What you want will be specifically labled as hi-temp or suitable for breaks. Lithium grease can be but doesn't have to be. This and this would be suitable.

[DRW1000]

Thanks CDRU..

I could not get into the site at first since they wanted a Zip code and did not like my Canadian Postal Code. I tried a few fake numbers but none of them were real. Then I remembered a TV show 90210 and tried that..........lol

I do have wheel bearing grease. I will check it. We also have the Permafix (?) brand so I am sure I can find it if I look.

Thanks again

[cdru]

Most autopart stores would stock high temp grease. If you can't find it, just ask. Brand name isn't really necessary. The two examples I have were just examples I found quickly.

[DRW1000]

Yeah..........not a problem. I used to use wheel bearing grease. I just need to check if it is high temp. I am not worried too much about brands but it is nice to have one in mind.

Thanks again.

[KJRich]

I have 90,000 miles on my rear brakes and they also look brand new. I replaced the fronts once. I don't think the rear self adjusters are working. I try to do the back-up adjustment thing as often as I can. I took it to a Chevy dealer a couple years ago and all the did was clean up the brakes, maybe relubricate something and they said nothing was wrong. I've pretty much just lived with it since then. I should try to manually adjust them with the drums off.

[egonzash]

I'm interested in learning if anyone has found an answer to the rear brake shoes not wearing out. My 2003 Venture has gone through one set of brake pads in 40k miles. I hear a lot of noise when we come to a stop (my wife drives it 99% of the time). Today, the front brakes made an awful deep groan after driving downhill. The front brakes were extremely hot vs. the rear drums being totally cool. I took a look at the rear brake shoes and they are practically new. It worries me obviously.

Thanks.

[denyp]

Originally Posted by egonzash

I'm interested in learning if anyone has found an answer to the rear brake shoes not wearing out. My 2003 Venture has gone through one set of brake pads in 40k miles. I hear a lot of noise when we come to a stop (my wife drives it 99% of the time). Today, the front brakes made an awful deep groan after driving downhill. The front brakes were extremely hot vs. the rear drums being totally cool. I took a look at the rear brake shoes and they are practically new. It worries me obviously.

Thanks.

My rig is a '97 with 138,000 miles. The first time I did breaks I bought pads for the front and shoes for the back. The shoes are sitting on a shelf in the garage - no need to replace them. I have great control in stopping thus I am not overly concerned but thought it odd as well!

Deny