Can you have a look and tell me how the hell to fix drum brakes!!!!

Can anyone tell me how to get the brake shoe touching the cylinder? Do I need special tools, or am I one already....by the way, the only consolation was that it was 28 Degrees C when I broke it...sorry to all in UK
Kelvin

Do you not need to wind the auto-adjuster thing back into to it's shortest position?

Hi Kelvin,

I would normally ask you to forgive the intolerance of my colleague the Plaxton - but on this occasion I tend to agree with him. The questions you pose lead me to suspect you might not be entirely sure of how the brake system functions. With a safety critical system, if you are not confident of your abilities, it is, perhaps, better that you employ somebody who is!

That said, my immediate comments are that when bleeding brakes it is imperative that the caliper/cylinder pistons are restrained or the result will be just as you have found - air will push pistons out just as surely as fluid - it will just compress. Fit the drums and carry out the basic shoe adjustment before attempting to bleed.

As the rear brakes wear the linings become thinner and allow the shoes to move outward. To prevent excess pedal travel there is an automatic adjuster to "take up the slack". When fitting new shoes this must be "de-adjusted" to allow the shoes to fit in their original positions. If this is not done the drum will simply not go on.

Go to the Technical Resources section - look for "brakes" in the Green Books sub section - you will find the 360 rear brake overhaul procedure described (page 15 (B19)).

If you still have problems post further questions, but please, make sure what you do is safe!

Mac.

Spot the difference.

Note the screwdriver is used to test the adjuster is working properly. The adjuster ratchet should rotate when the screwdriver is levered sideways. Rotate it by hand/pointy thing to screw it back down.

Hello, yes you can have plenty of fun with those adjusters, but take care because they are unobtainable new (as far as I know) and hard to find as 360's are well-rare these days. From memory / imagination, you can use a tiny screwdriver to release the ratchet detent and then turn the knob with something else so that you wind the self-adjuster in. It may just be easier to take it all apart if its too stiff, wind it back in off the car and then put everything back together again, but perhaps not a good idea if you have doubts about doing that.... that's all I can remember.... but I was never very good at anything like this or I wouldn't be driving a 340 ;-0