The question of "Why drums" has been asked over all over the internet and the most common answer I see is that supposedly they provide better holding power for a parking brake system (or they are cheaper). However in the case of my 1993 Loyale Sedan FWD, the parking brake is on the front discs. So Why the drums in the rear?

 

Does anyone have any idea why Subaru did discs in the front and drums in the rear?   I am contemplating doing my rear drum brakes and just looking at it is a lot of little bits that can go wrong if one isn't really careful. Seems like a whole lot of extra complexity either to save money or for some other unknown engineering reason. Are they still doing this on their new vehicles?

 

Also is there a way to know if my drums have the automatic or manual adjuster before I take things apart? Maybe using the VIN or something??

 

 

My guess is drums are cheaper.

hi,

  pretty sure your 93 would have the self adjusters,

 i don't know the answer to the why question,   but the 85- on  ( in this series cars )  that have the turbo motor option , came with disc rears, both 2wd and 4x4,  you could convert easily if you  want to.   you need parts from a 2wd turbo wag,  sedan,  or xt ,  will have all the pieces,  the 4x4 backing plates have a bigger hole in the center where it fits the suspension arm  but otherwise the parts are interchangable.   easy bolt on conversion,  i even put a set on my 84 wagon.

 

The drums are easy.  Some of the easiest out there.  The diagrams make it look like more than it is.

 

Drums are just cheaper is why.  Wheel cylinders as opposed to calipers.

Drums also last way longer. A set of shoes will go 200k miles where as pads seem to wear out every 60k. Plus since all the moving parts are enclosed in the drum, they tend to not rust up like caliper pistons, slider pins, and pad brackets do.

 

The downside is they don't dump heat as well, so under hard driving conditions they can let you down.

Manually adjusted rear drums will have an adjuster bolt at the bottom of the backing plate.

Look at the backside of your brakes, there will be a bolt at the bottom if they are manually adjusted. May still have the rubber cover over it, may not. But if there is a bolt there, they're manually adjusted ones.

 

And yeah, over all cost, drums are cheaper than discs for the rear for the Manufacturers.

drums are cheaper,and even most economy cars today still have rear drums.While four wheel disk brakes will stop better for the average car it is isn't worth the extra effort when drums still stop the damn thing.

Thanks for all the great answers. I am going to order the parts today and do the work next weekend.

Drums are lighter

Oh yeah, drums also create less drag because the return springs pull the shoes back off the drum, where a disc pad is always skimming the surface of the disc. Most Hybrids have rear drums for this reason. Better MPG with less brake drag.