96 Cav rear steel wheel doesn't come off, any good ideas?

[Langning]

My 96 Cav is still on the jack in my garage now, I removed the 5 lug nuts and the cover come off easily; the rear steel wheel refused to separate. I tried to pull it, ply it with my lug wrench, and rock the tire with my hands. Any idea on removing the rear wheel?

The last time the rear wheel was removed was probably 18 mos ago at a tire shop. The front wheels come off with no effort. thanks,

[public]

Sit down about leg length away from the car. Kick it in the same spot several times. It should break away from the brake drum and come off. The use of penitrating oil such as "Blaster or Liquid Wrench may help. If not you can use a drum brake adjuster spoon/lever to pull the shoes in and remove the drum and rim at the same time. Good Luck.

[Langning]

Did exactly as you stated. I kicked the wheel many times while sitting down; the 2 rear wheels did (finally) come off. I used a lot of kick force that my foot was resonating... I got my garage floor-ful of brake dust...

Still, the drums didn't come off (even when I tapped them from behind with a hammer); I even applied lubricant oil to no avail. I think the brake dust/rust built up on the axle and make them so difficult to slide out.

My 96 Cavailer is at 150K miles and done 2 brake jobs with Midas; 1st time they put in new front brake/rotor/pad; 2nd time new pad only (both they only "serviced rear drums"). With help of a friend, I put in new front rotor/pad myself last month; my friend doesn't know how to do drum... I like to know if my drum/shoe needed to be replaced.

[GTP Dad]

On the bottom of the backing plate there is a rubber groment that covers access to the adjustment screw. The screw operates with left hand threads so you need to do the opposite of normal to release the shoes. Once you have the shoes all the way in then try to remove the drums. They should come off although you may need a BFH to hit the drums hard enough to get them to break loose. The reason you can't get the drums off may be due to the shoes being in such poor condition that they are groved and stuck in the groves in the drum.
If you have never replaced the rear shoes I would imagine you will be in need of a total replacement including shoes, turn the drums and possibly replacement of the wheel cylinders. Most of the parts are available at Autozone or Advance auto parts. If you aren't sure how to do this job you might want to leave it to the pros or get a repair manual so if you make a mistake you can refer to the diagrams in the book.

[public]

Also a BIG clue.. Only disassemble one side at a time. So you can use the other for a referance :-)