Matt G
Member
Ok, two potentially unrelated issues on my stock Scout 2 brake system (d44s, disc/drum, oem).
First, the parking brake. It doesn't seem to hold worth beans. I disconnected it for another project 3-4 months ago, and when I reconnected it I think I adjusted it too tight. My rear axle (limited slip) would pop loudly at low speeds, I lost 1 mpg, and it felt gutless towing. I loosened the parking brake cable adjustment and the axle popping dramatically reduced, and I got my 1 mpg back.
So today I pull the rear drums thinking I needed to replace the shoes (hasn't been done in years, and with the e-brake dragging I assumed they'd be toast). Well, the shoes look ok to me: between 0.2" and 0.25" thickness (5mm). See pic (what is the minimum thickness? I couldn't find that info in my shop manual). All of the other brake hardware (springs, cylinders) is of unknown age, but the wheel cylinders aren't leaking. Parking brake still doesn't hold the vehicle in place when in d or r, even at low idle (in reverse you can barely tell it's engaged).
Second, during this whole rear brake ordeal I made a routine inspection of the front disc pads, which had tons of life on them 6 months ago. Well, now one of the pads (driver side outer) is half-eaten away, while the other three front pads are all in great shape thickness-wise. And the driver side front wheel had tons of brake dust on it (unusually so), whereas the passenger side wheel had much less on it. So it looks like over the past few months I'm seeing way too much brake load placed on the front disc brakes (esp front driver side). That's a new condition: the front brakes have worn evenly for years.
Any thoughts? I'm not sure if I'm dealing with two fairly innocuous problems here, or if they're both symptomatic of something else (worn rear brake hardware? Messed up proportioning valve?). Since these are brakes, and this is my dd, I want to make sure it's all fixed.
First, the parking brake. It doesn't seem to hold worth beans. I disconnected it for another project 3-4 months ago, and when I reconnected it I think I adjusted it too tight. My rear axle (limited slip) would pop loudly at low speeds, I lost 1 mpg, and it felt gutless towing. I loosened the parking brake cable adjustment and the axle popping dramatically reduced, and I got my 1 mpg back.
So today I pull the rear drums thinking I needed to replace the shoes (hasn't been done in years, and with the e-brake dragging I assumed they'd be toast). Well, the shoes look ok to me: between 0.2" and 0.25" thickness (5mm). See pic (what is the minimum thickness? I couldn't find that info in my shop manual). All of the other brake hardware (springs, cylinders) is of unknown age, but the wheel cylinders aren't leaking. Parking brake still doesn't hold the vehicle in place when in d or r, even at low idle (in reverse you can barely tell it's engaged).
Second, during this whole rear brake ordeal I made a routine inspection of the front disc pads, which had tons of life on them 6 months ago. Well, now one of the pads (driver side outer) is half-eaten away, while the other three front pads are all in great shape thickness-wise. And the driver side front wheel had tons of brake dust on it (unusually so), whereas the passenger side wheel had much less on it. So it looks like over the past few months I'm seeing way too much brake load placed on the front disc brakes (esp front driver side). That's a new condition: the front brakes have worn evenly for years.
Any thoughts? I'm not sure if I'm dealing with two fairly innocuous problems here, or if they're both symptomatic of something else (worn rear brake hardware? Messed up proportioning valve?). Since these are brakes, and this is my dd, I want to make sure it's all fixed.
