02 vue v6

[VueGuy168]

Have a hidious squeeling noise from the rear drums when reversing the car down the driveway. It seems to only do it in reverse. Took it in to have the brakes in the rear clean and adjusted. He recommended doing rear drum resurface because of uneven wear in the shoes?

Any ideas and does this sound right? The vehicle has 120000 miles on it.

Thanks

[far2grumpy]

Have a hidious squeeling noise from the rear drums when reversing the car down the driveway. It seems to only do it in reverse. Took it in to have the brakes in the rear clean and adjusted. He recommended doing rear drum resurface because of uneven wear in the shoes?

Any ideas and does this sound right? The vehicle has 120000 miles on it.

Thanks

VueGuy168 ... please post general part of continent of residence and color of vehicle. If your Vue has 120,000 miles ... and you're questioning having brakes replaced ... I want to watch out for you.

On a serious note: brake squeal - especially drum brakes - could indicate a serious problem. On the other hand, if the person who cleaned and adjusted your brakes only recommended a drum resurface ... and didn't confiscate your Vue ... there must be more to this story (I hope).

[1saxman]

It is very common on the VUE to have rear brake squeal when backing down a driveway. You may also get a grinding roar from the front brakes after wet weather from rust on the rotors (actually a good thing, as it shows there is no oil contamination on the brakes and the rust helps deglaze the pads). Now, I would term the squeal 'light', not 'hideous'. Most likely the self-adjusters on your rear brakes were not working because of compacted brake dust which should now be gone. I'd say a standard brake job with rebuilt wheel cylinders, new shoes and resurfaced drums would take care of it. This is not a very expensive job - maybe about $150 in most areas, or am I living in the past? A very good thing to do at the same time is to get a brake fluid flush done. Brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air, which can corrode and ruin the calipers and cylinders. It should be flushed out and replaced every five years or so. When it starts looking like used engine oil in the master cylinder reservoir, it's time. Also, with any vehicle with rear drum brakes, don't forget to do at least one aggressive stop in reverse every week to help the self-adjusters work. By aggessive, I mean a hard stop that locks the front wheels and throws your bobble head toy off the dash into the back seat.