car is a 2003 toyota sienna. I wanted to check how much life the rear drum pads had left so i took apart the drum. the drum was frozen to the hub so i used m8x1.25 to get it off. it got it off but the area around the m8x1.25 screw hole cracked. The crack is probably 1/2 inch long from the screw hole.
is this anything to worry about?
slight crack @ the drum
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Should be just fine, but check once in a while to make sure the crack hasn't grown from the heat/cool cycle.
You may not know this, but your car has a rubber plug in the forward edge of the backing plate. This plug is meant to be removed for shoe inspection, and saves you the hassle of pulling the drum. The plug is placed where the most wear occurs on the linings. You might have to brush off the crud on the back of the backing plate before you can see the oval plug, which is about an inch long.
Also, when the drum is rusted to the hub, there is a simple technique that is used to break the rust. It involves some careful tapping with an ordinary hammer.
Shop around - drums are cheap...finally replaced the 4 Runner's drums at 190K...they just don't wear much...
When you do put the new ones on - clean the axles well and hit them with a shot of pure zinc primer...it will make the next removal much, much easier...you could use anti-sieze as well...
No reason to worry about that crack. I see that often.
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Originally Posted By: Chris142
No reason to worry about that crack. I see that often.
Probably nothing to worry about but you could drill a small hole at the end of the crack to stop it from spreading. Iron drills easy enough.
Originally Posted By: Trav
Probably nothing to worry about but you could drill a small hole at the end of the crack to stop it from spreading. Iron drills easy enough.
The drum clamps around the holes - so it is probably OK as is.
But You may have warped it - check it.
The drill technique is a good idea.
Sure, you can get drums real hot, but in real life in a street vehicle that is not towing, no absurd temperatures are reached.
You shouldn't have cracks in a drum, but I have dealt with some Toyota cars where the drum gets cracked, and nothing bad happens.
I would still recommend replacing the drum. See what a drum costs.
This crack is between the hub and wheel. Theres lots of holes in that area. Holes where the wheel studs go through the drum as well as threaded holes where you screw bolts into the drums to remove them.
They often crack in this area and I would not worry about it.
The crack is not on the wear surface.
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