How to Install Rear Brake Drums on a Chevy

The rear brake drum on a Chevy is a large, cast iron cover that fits over the wheel hub. The brake shoes on the hub push against the inside of the drum causing the drum and the hub assembly to slow down (causing the vehicle to slow down as well). While the drum rarely, if ever, needs replacing on Chevy vehicles, the shoes need to be checked at regular intervals. To access them, you need to know how to remove and install the rear drum.

Instructions

1

Put wheel blocks in front of the front wheels.

2

Loosen the rear wheel lug nuts by turning them 45 degrees counterclockwise with a tire wrench.

3

Lift up on the rear jack point on your Chevy. This is usually the rear cross-member on Chevy vehicles. The cross-member is a solid steel beam that runs just behind the trunk.

4

Finish removing the wheel lug nuts and pull the wheel off the hub.

5

Remove the brake drum by hitting the outside of the drum with a hammer. You will have to hit the drum fairly hard because the drum is made of iron. Chevy doesn't use any retaining bolts on their drums. Instead, the wheel holds the drum to the wheel hub. The reason the drum may initially be so difficult to remove is that the surface of the iron drum rusts and corrodes very easily. You need to knock off the rust to loosen the drum. Once you do that, the drum will come right off.

6

Pull the drum off the wheel hub. To install the drum, simply slide the drum back onto the wheel hub and put the wheel back on over the drum.