I've had my '98 Cherokee in and out of the shop to try and fix the rear left brake. I've replaced the drums twice, replaced the brake cylinder in the drum assembly and bled the lines but nothing seems to do the trick. After driving it for any length of time the left drum is considerably hotter than the right and after about a week or so it becomes warped and I get vibrations as I stop. Anyone have any thoughts about what this could be?

 

did you adjust the shoes after you did the work?
how is the adjuster? is it installed correctly?
is it the correct wheel cylinder for that side? (bleeder above the brake line).

forgive me for asking these questions if you know for a fact you have everything in order. these are common mistakes.

can you snap a pic of that side assembly?

 

And, are you certain the leading and trailing shoe are in the proper positions?

You might try buying a new hardware kit and replacing everything.

Make sure your parking brake cable is adjusted properly.

I would look really hard at the self-adjuster. It should turn very easily. Dry, with no lube on the threads. Make sure it is positioned properly, and is the correct one for that side. There should be a thin washer between the removable end and the main shaft.

 

I've had to have a mechanic do the work and he's had it in his shop 4 times now and hasn't gotten it right. I asked about the shoes and adjusters and he said they were adjusted correctly. I had the same problem with this drum when I did the brake work about 2 years ago and haven't been able to fix it really. The brake cylinder is correctly installed as far as I know and it should be the right one. He did say that when he took off the old one, there were signs of a leak but it's still doing the same thing with the new one. I'll try to get you a picture. Is this a common problem with cherokees? As far as I can see this system is about as basic as it gets which is why the problems are really annoying.

 

I just went thru this. Had to replace the self adjuster which took very little time. And my e brake was sorta stuck. After fixing those prob gone

 

New (non-drinking) mechanic time.

 

Did the mechanic replace all of the hardware? This was happening with mine. I even started a thread about it. It took me several times of adjustmenting and I finally got it.

 

I agree with Turbo. If your mechanic can't do the brakes correctly it's time to find a new one.

 

Thanks for the input. This is what I was thinking as well.
I'll have to get the adjusters replaced and probably the rest of the hardware as well. I wish I had the time and place to do it myself but until then I'm afraid I have to leave it up to a mechanic.

To rgr4475, where is the thread for your brake problems you had?

 

There are actually 2 threads.

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/rea...estion-190049/
https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/rea...raking-190624/

Check out the first thread. I had a problem with a stud on the shoes from napa. They were too long and causing the self adjusting mechanism to not function. See pictures.

 

Wondering if someone tightened the E brake cable, not getting it that play is taken up at the wheel adjuster. That might explain the dragging.

Petal free-play is adjusted at that wheel.