How to Adjust the Rear Brake Shoes on a '95 Mazda 626

Adjusting the brake shoes on a 1995 Mazda 626 is not necessary ordinarily. They have a self-adjusting mechanism installed in the upper spreader bar. But this is not to say they never need adjusting -- the adjuster can become rusted or dirty enough to stick. The brakes must always be adjusted during replacement because the adjuster must be removed, and when replaced, it must be adjusted to compensate for the thicker shoes.

Instructions

1

Loosen the lug nuts on the rear wheel by turning them one turn counterclockwise with the lug wrench. Raise the rear of the car and place jack stands under the rear axle. Lower the car onto the jack stands. Continue to remove the rear wheels.

2

Spray rust penetrant on the center hub protruding through the brake drum. Allow a few moments for it to work. Use the drift and hammer to tap the brake drum between all the wheel studs to break the drum loose from the hub.

3

Place the dust mask on and pull the brake drum off the hub. Inspect the spreader bar and adjuster located at the top of the brakes. There is a wheel cylinder with a return spring directly underneath. Directly below that is the flat spreader bar. Notice on the forward end of the spreader bar there is a split. The outside of the bar is a gear toothed semi-circle, and the inside section has a slight curve, also with gear teeth. The semi-circular outside section is the adjustment. As it is, notice that most of the teeth are exposed facing outward toward you. As this section is ratcheted in, it causes the leading shoe to move outward, tightening the adjustment. The more it moves outward toward you, the more the shoes contract.

4

Hold the brake drum with your fingertips over the inside edge of the drum. This is a good way to feel the adjustment necessary. Move the drum onto the shoes slowly and feel the distance the shoes are from the drum. When the adjustment is correct or very close, you cant feel any space between the drum and shoes. When adjusted correctly, the shoes should just barely rub on the drum.

5

Spray the adjuster with brake cleaner until it is free of dirt and corrosion. Allow a few moments to dry. Spray the adjuster with rust penetrant.

6

Use the flathead screwdriver to push in on the adjuster bar. Do this gently so the adjuster only ratchets a few teeth at a time. Try the brake drum. There is no need to install it completely until the adjustment is correct. If it still has space between the shoes and drum, ratchet the adjuster in farther and try again. When the shoes are close enough for the drum to offer a very slight resistance to installation, push the drum on completely.

7

Rotate the drum. It must show very little resistance, but the shoes should be heard rubbing inside the drum. Install the wheel and tighten the lug nuts enough to contact the wheel to be torqued when lowered to the ground. Lower the car and torque the lug nuts to 85 pound-feet.