Happy New Year! I have a 2003 Accord, SE, manual xmission, 142k miles. My objective is to clean and adjust the rear brakes. I was able to remove the left rear drum and clean the brakes. I'm having trouble removing the right rear drum. I have sprayed the hub area with PB Blaster, used light hammer blows and also used pry bars. I haven't been too aggressive with the hammer blows and the pry bars for fear of damaging internal parts. In addition, I tried screwing in bolts in the two holes on the drum surface. 8 mm bolts were too big, 6 mm were too small. The 7 mm bolts fit the hole but when I try tightening them, they just keep turning without advancing deeper into the hole. Perhaps the pitch on the bolt doesn't match the hole thread? I have just about given up. What should be my next step? See attached pics.

 

Are you sure you don't have the E brake set. It shouldn't be that hard to take it off

 

The issue may be there is a ridge on the inside of the drum that the brake shoes are catching. I think there is a hole in the bottom of the backing plate where you can adjust the brake shoes. If you shorten the adjuster, the ridge in the rotor may be able to pass over the brake shoes. There are some good ericthecarguy videos on youtube about adjusting drum brakes and I think he has some on Hondas.

 

Ignore the part about access to the adjuster. It looks like Honda doesn't have access to the adjuster on their drum brakes.

What sized bolts are you using to push off the drum? I believe the thread size to push the drum off the hub is 8x1.25 mm thread. Typically, a 12 mm socket is used to removed 8x1.25 threads. Just remember bolts requiring a 12mm socket will have either coarse or fine threads, so make sure you are using the correct thread or you risk stripping out the threads in the rotor.

 

Sean, I'm not using the E brake. So that the car doesn't move, I put the xmission in 1st gear and put chocks around the opposite front wheel before releasing the E brake. I've been able to freely rotate the rear wheel when on a jack stand.

PAhonda, I've been referencing NutzAboutBolts youtube video on 2003-2007 Accords, which lays it out quite clearly. That's where I got the idea of using the bolts. As I mentioned, I had already tried 8 and 6 mm bolts. The 7 mm seems to be the right size but the pitch may be wrong. Regardless, I'll go to Ace Hardware and ask for a different pitch for 7 mm, and I'll also try 8x1.25 mm as you suggest. Hopefully one of them will fit.

 

I think those are the same thread as the bolts for the mounting brackets for the brake hoses. Try those and either use them directly or take them to the store to match the thread.

 

I had previously indicated that 8 mm bolts were too big. This was based on just a visual look. I have a lot of faith in you guys so I bought 8x1.25 mm bolts again. This time I actually tried inserting them in the holes and they were the right fit! I was able to get the stubborn drum off and clean the brakes. Based on the NutzAboutBolts youtube video, the brakes didn't require any further adjustment. By the way, how often should the rear drum brakes be cleaned and adjusted?

My parking brake requires adjustment too. The specs specify 4 - 7 clicks and I can do 10 clicks. Is this a one person job?