On 2 May 2007 04:23:43 -0700, leslie > wrote:

>Hello. I have a 2003 jeep wrangler - great vehicle! I took it to the
>shop yesterday to have the oil changed, tires rotated and brakes
>checked. All looked good, but the mechanic told me he'd never seen
>brake shoes like I had on the rear, and I'm wondering if this is
>normal or if they need to be changed...the rear brake shoes have a
>"cut" down the middle. There is no metal-on-metal sound when brakes
>are applied, but they do making a low "thumping" kind of noise. Since
>these are the original brake shoes, I don't know if this is normal or
>if they've deteriorated and should be replaced? Any help on this is
>greatly appreciated.


The thumping noisy you hear is likely from warped drums thatcause the
brake shoes to "walk" around in drum a bit when brakes are applied. I
would not worry about groove is there is plenty of pad left but do not
try to run pads down to bitter end, When I inspect pads and find about
40% or less pad left, I change the pads. Granted I am spending a bit
more in the long run doing this but then I also have more reserve wear
in them if I do not check them again for a while.
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