Who can answer my car brakes repair dilemma?
96 Chevy S-10 Blazer, 4.3L. I installed new rear brake drums and shoes. Test drove. Left drum hot to touch. Right side A-OK. Left side, interference. Brake shoe adjustment screw at minimum. Will the shoes wear in, or should I be concerned about rolling down the highway in flames?
Comments
the adjuster on the left side is not at it's minimum setting or you have the wrong hardware for the brake shoe assembly.
If it's the correct hardware the adjuster can be set so that the drum doesn't make contact with the shoe at it's MINIMUM setting.
Did you put the shoes in right?
It takes a lot of effort, but I had to correct a GM rear drum brake setup that the owner had managed to cram both rear shoes on one side, and both front shoes on the other side. It didn't work very well to say the least.
Get your car to a brake shop (a different one, not the one that fouled up), and get the brakes adjusted properly.
I'm not sure if they will wear in or wear out.
My guess is that the tight one will wear in.
My guess is that the loose one will tighten if you back up the car and step on the brakes (this is how slightly loose drum brakes self adjust. . . if the self adjuster mechanism is working right).
Mechanics say that the self adjusters don't do as well as their own manual adjustment. As your car shows, mechanics can foul up sometimes.
Once a brake is adjusted too tight, the self adjuster cannot loosen it.
make sure all the springs, levers, and pins are in the right place. make sure the adjusting screw is all the way in ( sometimes people get confused and put them all the way out making them too tight). the brakes should just barely scrape when you turn the wheel. You don't have to worry about catching on fire but your brakes might smoke if they are too tight.