Need expert advice on finishing 94 Celica brake job Options

[Langing]

JULY 22 UPDATE: "BRAKE JOB" FINISHED. (See comment of today's date.)

JUNE 2 UPDATE: REAR BRAKES FINE NOW; FRONT RIGHT STEERING KNUCKLE DEFINITELY BENT (AT THE EARS); SEEKING ANOTHER KNUCKLE.

MAY 28 UPDATE: NOW WHAT? THE REAR WHEELS ARE LOCKED BUT THE PB IS DOWN! WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?

MAY 27 UPDATE: SATISFIED THAT THE REAR DRUM BRAKES ARE NOW FUNCTIONING PROPERLY; PROBLEM DEFINED DOES NOT AFFECT THE BRAKE AT ITS PROPER ADJUSTMENT OPERATING POINT; MOVING ON TO NEXT TASK

MAY 23 UPDATE: REAR DRUM BRAKE PROBLEM DEFINITION IS NARROWING SUCH THAT AN EXPERT MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP ME (SEE LAST POSTS)


This is my first experience doing such an extensive job on my Celica, and I have the Green Books (FSM). Everything looks beautiful (to me), have photos.

I have finished replacing/rebuilding all parts of the brake system -- meaning at all four wheels (including new hardware, hoses, wheel bearings, etc) and am ready to put her back on the road, but . . . with all new shoes, pads, drums and rotors, how can I know they are working properly? I’ve already discovered a couple of assembly mistakes I had to correct, which tells me there may be something else I am missing?

First known issue: because I don’t have a vernier caliper longer than 6”, an AMPRO T71558 Brake Drum Resetting Gauge will arrive on Friday so I can set the ‘clearance’ between the shoes and drums at the rear. Beyond that I have some confusion on how the parking brake works to maintain the proper clearance, given the initial setting of the rear brakes. I want to be totally clear about what I am doing so I am not making a stupid but costly mistake.

For example: the manual says to verify that the parking brake levers (on the rear shoes) turns the adjusters (they do) and then to minimize the length of the adjusters (I did), then install the drums and pull the parking brake lever (in the cabin) all the way up until a clicking sound can no longer be heard (did that as well). The very next procedure is to check shoe clearance, but the last step left the parking brake on? And I was thinking that engaging the parking brake and then releasing it was the cause of the adjuster turning, and that it turns only by just one gear tooth distance. All that said, the manual has me just setting the initial clearance, popping on the drums and tires I'm good to go. Is that really all I need to do to make sure the rear breaks are functioning properly?

Second issue: with new rotors and pads on the front disc brakes, there isn’t a lot of free space in the caliper bracket and there is a scraping sound when I turn the rotors by hand, so there is obvious interference. I don’t know whether the slide pins are not working well, since the calipers aren’t sliding in and out when hand manipulated, or are they just supposed to rub together until enough friction material wears off that they can begin to have enough space to work once the car is on the road? How do I check them BEFORE I put her on the road, so I can be certain they are working properly?

My inexperience has me ready to go, but dead in the water.

This post has been edited by Langing: Jul 22, 2014 - 11:06 AM

[richee3]

Congrats! I'm sure you were more than ready to be finished with this job!

[Langing]

Congrats! I'm sure you were more than ready to be finished with this job!

You can say that again!

Still, since each step was a learning adventure, I felt a bit sad, for some reason, when this overly drawn out project finally completed. Starting out I just wanted to redo her brakes, but once I was into it, there were the wheel bearings, and then . . . Momentum was building when coming down the stretch but I had learned some stuff so I changed out one brother's front brake pads on his Honda Accord EX, and another brother's left front axle and both front shocks on his (gigantic) Suburban to show myself that I had, indeed, learned something.

Now I'm finished with my Betsy "wheels" project, but, there are so many things I see you guys doing to your Celicas that I feel I want to start another project on Betsy and maybe take Betsy to full restoration or beyond (no doubt something far short of that), cause I love driving her. I liked what njccmd2002 was doing to his suspension on the 96 he just sold, and now I am looking to buy a large sized compressor so I can sand blast. Since I don't know much about this kind of work, I don't know my limitations.

BTW: Is there a venue on here where I could post some pics of Betsy's dermatological "problems" and get a group of you experts to advise as to what I could do about them and then what needs to be added to make her body look "striking" so I don't feel like people think I am just driving an OLD CAR? This would sure help my wife. . . to see Betsy looking better than before after I've spent months working on her. All that work I did. . . Betsy drives smoother than ever, but there is NOTHING THAT SHOWS!!!

I need help figuring out where to start, advice that 'hopefully' comes without the word 'LOWER'. In the meantime, I've got to fix that EGR problem.