Originally Posted by clinebarger
A lot of Matrix/Vibe/Corolla's go to the bone yard wearing their original rear brake components.....My wife's Corolla rear shoes look brand new approaching 150,000 miles.
The "Push Bolt" holes in the drums should be 8x1.25mm, I would wet the center hole with some penetrant, Snug-up the 2 push bolt, & Whack the drum a few times with a rubber mallet.
Rear shoes aren't all that hard, A good Shoe hold down/Spring cap tool is the only special tool I use on Non-Servo brake shoe arrangements. I use a long pair of diagonal cutters to remove & install return springs buy gripping the stem of the spring while using the long body of the cutters to stretch the spring & release the hook.
Sometimes you can't get the head of the diags in where you need it, I use some long needle nose for that.
The Spring Cap tool is Snap-on part# S6118A.
Last time I tried to lube and clean the rear shoes on the Prius, I had the wheel cylinder cups jettison themselves across the garage. Honda shoes are even worse.
Now that you tell me, I might be better prepared for the shoes on this Matrix. They seem identical to the Prius ones from the outside.