aradmahogany

looks like a brake overhaul is on the horizon. Luckily I can warranty for new shoes and drum. The rest will come from Amazon. Might as well get some fresh fluid in the system too. Gregg is one spoiled LT. Imagine if he were an ss! Before that I gotta put on his new set of shoes and not the brake kind. Too bad none of you guys are local To Help me with the brakes :/ it's up to the trusty mechanic on this one. No more in-laws haha 😂 also it's not worth replacing the self adjusting guts right? And the other hardware is just under a year old so no sense in replacing those either.

Grizzly old man

I used to hate working on brakes for anyone, I worried that my repair would fail. As time went on I found myself working on brakes for all kinds of folks and they never failed until they were worn out again.

Since I had my own shop I would use used parts on my own vehicles but really hated to use used parts on anyone else's machines but, there were folks that would bring me used stuff to use trying to save money.

It got to where I would use whatever they brought but had them sign paper work stating that I had used the parts they brought so they couldn't sue me. NO ONE ever did try to sue me for brake work.

I would inspect the parts and if I could not use them I told them they had to be replaced. If they could not do that then I would not do the job for them.

So, inspect the parts, clean them, if they look alright go ahead and use them but know they might fail,... also know that brand new parts can fail too. rear brake shoe adjusters can be rusted solid in just a year or so, if you can move them at all you can probably take them apart and lube them good and reuse them, if not replace them.

donbrew

I got new cylinders for near $10 each a while ago. I replaced my self adjuster hardware on GPs.

malibuhhr

One more thing on HHR rear brakes: they will last FOREVER if you don't service them every 6 months. Why? Because your front discs are doing 90-100% of the work and you're not putting any wear on the rears. Why? Because HHR rear brakes need adjusting every 6 months. I turn the star wheels 5-7 clicks every 6 months which will bring the hand brake lever down from 5-6 clicks to 3-4 clicks where it should be.

Servicing should include greasing the rub points behind each shoe and the backing plate (there are 3 per shoe). Use a small amount of high temp grease. Blow out the crap with compressed air, not brake cleaner or water. Don't breathe the dust. Lube the adjuster wheel (tiny amount of oil). Clean and lube the threads on the brake bleeders or they will seize up over time.

After 300,000 km of driving and servicing my 2007 HHR, I figure the front pads and discs should last up to 60,000 km (40,000 miles) and the rears easily double that.