- 1987 Scottsdale
- Automatic transmission
- RWD

Some context:

I bought this 1987 Scottsdale a couple of weeks ago from a fisherman that used it primarily for hauling loads. He had is parked on his property for about a year prior to selling it. When we bought it the rear driver's side drum break was seized and would only turn halfway before locking up. We had it towed to our shop and worked on it for about a week.

Among many other things we went and had the drum for that particular wheel turned, replaced the brake shoes on both rear wheels, evacuated and replaced the brake fluid, re-assembled the breaks, and threw the wheels back on. The truck drove fine for a day and I didn't notice any remaining brake drag. The next day while parked I engaged the emergency brake out of curiosity to see if it was effective, it was the only thing I hadn't checked yet. Upon releasing the emergency break I began noticing that the drag on the driver's side rear drum brake had returned, although much less than before.

We drove back to the shop and jacked it up, noticing that the break seemed to stick more after driving for about 20 minutes, enough to prevent the vehicle from moving while idling in drive or reverse, but still driveable otherwise. A subtle burning scent is noticeable from that particular drum brake after driving a fair distance. In neutral all wheels spun freely except for the driver's side rear, which still turned but required significant effort.

We checked the parking break cable for tension or binding but it seemed typical, so we removed the drum and adjusted the star adjuster to make a bit more room between the pads and the drum as a temporary solution.

The issue hasn't been resolved. From a cold start there is no noticeable brake drag until I've driven for about 15 minutes. The longer I drive the stickier that brake becomes. It is only affecting the driver's side rear drum brake, it is significantly hotter than the other wheels after driving but isn't smoking.

I'm driving it to the shop after work today to take another look, any suggestions on something specific I should check up on? Reading around online has led me to believe it may have something to do with old brake lines deteriorating internally, trapping pressure after heating up.

Thank you.

 

If it has self adjusters it might be adjusting too much or seizing.

 

Issue has been resolved.

Was easier to see what was going on once we had it up on the hoist with the wheel off. Turns out it was the emergency break cable after all. The cable had rusted enough to seize right at point where it enters the braking mechanism behind the wheel. So upon pulling the emergency break release the cable would loosen up enough outside of the drum to make it appear released (and for the E-brake dash light to turn off) but the cable was seized at the drum entry point, so the tension inside the breaking mechanism for that wheel would not fully release, causing the drag. The drive to the shop sure took a lot out of the break shoes. Charred, cracked, and unevenly worn. Glad we found the problem before they completely wore out.

 

Thanks so much for letting us know what was wrong. So often we never find out the resolution to the problem.
Happy New Year and enjoy your ride!