diambo4life
+1y
Hello all. I'm new to the Mazda B scene and I have a question about my truck. The rear (driver side) wheel wobbles as I drive. It does not rattle or even vibrate but I can clearly see something is not right. I removed the wheel and that is not the problem. With the engine running (on jackstands) you can still see the shimmying action. I tried to take the rear drum off but it doesn't seem to have been off in 20 years! Dust, mud etc must be caked on there. What do I need to look for? Unfortunately, having no manual I am walking into this blind. I would rather save time if I was pointed in the right direction. This is my first RWD vehicle with a solid axle. Thanks for any help.
axel breaker earl
+1y
Welcome diambo!
The rear drum is a tight fit, and you must make sure your rear brakes are not hindering your efforts while trying to remove it.
You need to make sure the emergency brake is OFF.
Then you'll need to adjust the brake shoes back off the drum, by using the access hole in the backing plate, and inserting a couple of screwdrivers and turning the adjustment "bolt" or "star wheel" to loosen the pressure that the shoes will have on the inside of the drum. This access hole is located right below where the fluid lines come into the wheel cylinder.
Once that is done, you need to remove the 2 phillips head screws that secure the drum to the axle flange. Here is a photo showing the 2 screw holes in the axle flange.
Once you remove those two flat head phillips screws, you can thread in the same sized screws (the flat heads aren't long enough really) in a separate set of THREADED holes in the drum, and tighten those longer screws down to help break the hold that the center hole in the drum has on the axle hub. These added screws will "push" the drum outward as you tighten them.
Here is a photo showing the holes in the drum.
A word of caution when re-installing the new shoes........after you get it all done, and you slip the drum back on, make sure you adjust the shoes to where they start to drag on the drum, and then back the adjustment bolt off 2 or 3 "clicks" and they will work great. You HAVE to do the adjustment after you get the drum back on, otherwise, that adjustment bolt will have too much slack in it and can actually fall out of it's place! Ask me how I know this! I just figured I could go in reverse and stomp on the brakes and the self-adjuster will do the adjusting for me..........worked for one of the sides.......the other side fell out of placement 1 day later, and I had no brakes in the rear to speak of then! Luckily I was close to home and limped back and found out what happened when I pulled it apart again!
The rear drum is a tight fit, and you must make sure your rear brakes are not hindering your efforts while trying to remove it.
You need to make sure the emergency brake is OFF.
Then you'll need to adjust the brake shoes back off the drum, by using the access hole in the backing plate, and inserting a couple of screwdrivers and turning the adjustment "bolt" or "star wheel" to loosen the pressure that the shoes will have on the inside of the drum. This access hole is located right below where the fluid lines come into the wheel cylinder.
Once that is done, you need to remove the 2 phillips head screws that secure the drum to the axle flange. Here is a photo showing the 2 screw holes in the axle flange.
Once you remove those two flat head phillips screws, you can thread in the same sized screws (the flat heads aren't long enough really) in a separate set of THREADED holes in the drum, and tighten those longer screws down to help break the hold that the center hole in the drum has on the axle hub. These added screws will "push" the drum outward as you tighten them.
Here is a photo showing the holes in the drum.
A word of caution when re-installing the new shoes........after you get it all done, and you slip the drum back on, make sure you adjust the shoes to where they start to drag on the drum, and then back the adjustment bolt off 2 or 3 "clicks" and they will work great. You HAVE to do the adjustment after you get the drum back on, otherwise, that adjustment bolt will have too much slack in it and can actually fall out of it's place! Ask me how I know this! I just figured I could go in reverse and stomp on the brakes and the self-adjuster will do the adjusting for me..........worked for one of the sides.......the other side fell out of placement 1 day later, and I had no brakes in the rear to speak of then! Luckily I was close to home and limped back and found out what happened when I pulled it apart again!
Cusser
+1y
Yeah, use two good-quality hex-head screws, thread 8mm x 1.0mm, about 30mm long, to extract the rear drums. Screw in alternately a little at a time.
u bought what?
+1y
and be sure and look very closely at the tire itself....sometimes the tire can have subtle defects that are not easily seen and can cause a wobble
diambo4life
+1y
Thanks a lot guys. You have been very helpful. I will update when I get to the bottom of it.
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