How Do I Repair Drum Brakes on a 1995 Ford Escort?

A critical maintenance task that you must complete on your 1995 Ford Escort is maintaining its brakes. Like many cars, the rear brakes on Ford Escorts are drum brakes. This is a type of braking system in which the brakes are located inside a drum on the wheel hub. When the brakes are engaged, the pads press out against the inside of the drum to slow the car down.

• 1

  Park the Escort on a firm, level surface. Engage the emergency brake and shift the car into "Park" (automatic transmission) or first gear (manual transmission).

• 2

  Loosen the lug nuts on the rear wheels with a lug wrench but do not remove them.

• 3

  Raise the rear of the car with a jack and place a jack stand underneath the outer frame on each side of the car. Slowly lower the car onto the jack stands.

• 4

  Unscrew the lug nuts with the lug wrench and remove the rear tires.

• 5

  Remove the brake drum from the wheel hub. If the drum won't slide off, you will have to retract the brake shoes. To do this, remove the rubber plug from the back of the brake and rotate the sprocket inside of the brake upwards with a flat head screwdriver. Continue to retract the brakes until the drum comes off of the wheel hub.

• 6

  Clean the drum with brake wash. Avoid coming into direct contact with the brake dust and wear safety goggles and gloves because the brake dust may contain asbestos. Use a drain pan to catch the brake wash.

• 7

  Disconnect the shoe retracting springs at the top of the brake with a brake spring removal tool. Disconnect and remove the bottom springs.

• 8

  Locate the auto-adjuster tab. This is a small metal tab located on the bottom of the wheel. Lift the tab up with a pair of pliers and a screwdriver and disconnect the auto-adjuster cable.

• 9

  Take the primary braking shoe off of the wheel hub. Disconnect the secondary braking shoe from the parking brake cable and remove it.

• 10

  Clean the wheel hub with brake wash, again avoiding direct contact with the brake dust. Apply brake grease to the wheel hub where it comes into contact with the brake shoes. Use the drain pan to catch the brake wash.

• 11

  Slide the new brake pads into position on the wheel hub.

• 12

  Reassemble the brake by reversing the above steps.

• 13

  Remount the tires onto the wheel hubs and secure them with the lug nuts. Tighten the lug nuts with the lug wrench just until you begin to feel resistance.

• 14

  Raise the Escort with the jack and remove the jack stands then slowly lower the car to the ground. Tighten the lug nuts.