Any recommendation or ones to avoid for rear Subaru drum brake kits? It’s about time for them on my 2008 Subaru Forester. Rockauto has a complete kit from Centric and PowerStop with coated drums. I’ll be doing the whole shabang.. drums, hardware, cylinder, shoes. I’m not sure who Subaru used for their OE?
Subaru drum brake recommendation
- Thread starter Soobs
- Start date
For the drums, either Powerstop or Wagner coated drums.
For the shoes, either Centric, or MK Kashiyama (not sold on Rock Auto)
For the shoes, either Centric, or MK Kashiyama (not sold on Rock Auto)
What's the reason for replacing drums? Rusted out?
I tend to stick with OEM for everything as well; however, Subaru hasn't had OEM drums or shoes available for this year/model in years. Every dealership parts department sources aftermarket for these parts and that varies depending on local suppliers/contracts.
Age and wear. They're original, have never been machined, and are on the end of life with their second set of shoes. The exterior is incredibly rusted and I'm fine with that, but it's just time for some fresh drums. At $20-$40 per drum i figure why not!
I tend to agree. It seems like if you look at any brand whether it be Powerstop, Centric, Raybestos, Durago, etc they're all made in China for this application. I think I'll just order whatever has some partial or full exterior rust protection and the extra holes to help push it off the wheel. Oddly, most brands don't have these holes.
Thanks! Any idea if MK Kashiyama was the OEM provider? I'm wondering if those are made somewhere other than China? I found those at NAPA and some online parts retailers.
The MK shoes are made in Japan, but they're not the OE supplier. I think Akebono is OE, but Akebono doesn't sell any aftermarket drums or shoes.
@Soobs I don't know if you ever did the drums yet, but in case you still haven't done them and still have the car, DO NOT buy the Wagner drums!
Get Powerstop or UQuality drums instead
I just bought a set of Wagner drums, and they aren't coated on the inside anymore, so I want to warn everyone else that they cheapened them
Get Powerstop or UQuality drums instead
I just bought a set of Wagner drums, and they aren't coated on the inside anymore, so I want to warn everyone else that they cheapened them
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I have a suspicion that most aftermarket shoes and drums come from the same 1 or 2 suppliers, and they're equally junky.
Me too. I can't prove it, but there can't be a lot of $ in selling shoes and drums for old Subarus or GMT400s etc. It seems unlikely Chinese factories are racing to build these parts with relatively low sales volume.
In many cases the first set of drums and shoes will last the life of the vehicle.
They might be from the same supplier or 2, but there are still some differences. For example, Centric shoes are GG, while most of the other shoes are FF. The only other GG shoes I know of for these Subarus (FMSI #S676) are the house brand CQ/Wearever shoes at AAP (which are made by FDP), though Centric could also use FDP.
Some drums are coated and some are not. Some have those holes where you can use bolts to pull the drum off the hub if it gets stuck, and some don't. Even if Powerstop and Wagner use the same supplier for their drums, Powerstop is coated on the inside and has the bolt holes, while Wagner has neither.
Powerstop and UQuality could very well be from the same supplier and be identical, so just pick the one that's cheaper (depending on how much RA shipping is to your zip code, people that live in Arizona, Colorado, etc).
All of those differences are arguably immaterial - suppliers can dictate how they want their product presented.
Friction codes are similar to utqg ratings - they don’t tell the full story.
