hey guys. i'm pretty sure this is the right forum but if not someone let me know and i'll repost.

i consider myself a pretty decent amateur mechanic. i've shimmed valves, dropped gas tanks, replaced whole suspensions, replaced a transmission sensor here and there, yada yada, but i just never, ever could bring myself to do a drum brake job. yes i know, it's ridiculous.

so here's the scoop. my girlfriend's 2003 eclipse RS needs new rear brakes and i personally don't find the mitsu shop manual very helpful. i could use a little help with a good DYI with photos or direct experience if anyone has it. also, would i be better off buying a new hub or just replacing the pads? (provided the existing hub isn't damaged or anything).

for those of you who are wondering i did troll a few eclipse forums but i just couldn't find what i needed. everyone was more interested in the drum to disc conversion it seems.

thanks in advance!
Bob

 

club3g has everything you would ever need to know about eclipse's. the amount of info on there is 10x what you could find on here.

www.club3g.com

 

what is drum brake?

 

One way is to raise the rear end, take both drums off, and work on one side while using the other side as a guide. It's a pretty easy job; just keep tension on the springs to keep them from shooting off after disconnecting. Remember to chock the wheels and release the parking brake, etc.
Replace the pads, but turn/machine the drums as well. The machine shop, brake shop or auto store that turns the drums will let you know if the drum(s) need replacement due to insufficient thickness. That shouldn't be a problem if the pads haven't been changed previously.
It has been a few years since any Honda had drum brakes, hasn't it??

 

thanks for the help guys. i was actually on club 3g and eclipseforums.org and maybe it was the way i was searching but i couldn't find any DIYs. i'll try again, maybe i just missed them.

Hey Will Y., thanks for the tips. i might just buy all new drums and change them out because i won't be able to leave her car in pieces for more than a morning before she will need it again.

Bob