One of the most vital systems on your Civic is its brakes. Failure to properly maintain your Civic’s brakes can have a major impact on your safety as well as the safety of others on the road. Like many cars, the Civic’s rear wheel brakes are drum brakes. This is a braking system in which the brake pads are located on the drum and press against the drum when the brakes are applied. You can change drum brakes yourself with the right tools and knowledge.
Park the Civic on a firm, level surface. Apply the emergency brake and put the car in Park if it’s an automatic or in second gear if it’s a manual.
Loosen the lug nuts on the rear wheels but do not remove them.
Raise the rear of the Civic with a jack and place the jack stands under the outer frame. Slowly lower the car onto the jack stands.
Remove the lug nuts from the rear wheels with a crosshead wrench and remove the tires from the car. Work on one side of the car from now on.
Screw two 8mm bolts into the holes in the front of the brake drum. Turn each bolt two turns at a time until the brake drum comes out of the wheel hub.
Clean the brake drum and wheel hub with brake cleaner. Wear goggles and gloves and avoid direct contact with brake dirt as it may contain asbestos.
Disconnect the springs that hold the brake pads to the wheel hub. Start with the lower spring: press down on the spring and turn the screw that holds the brake pads in place with a screwdriver and a pair of needle-nose pliers.
Remove the front brake pad from the wheel hub. Disconnect the rear brake pad from the parking brake cable.
Remove the U-clip that connects the parking brake arm to the brake pad using the needle nose pliers. If the frame is too damaged to use the pliers, grind it with a Dremel drill but do not damage the bolt.
Clean the wheel hub with brake cleaner. Apply brake grease to the spots on the wheel hub where the brake pads make contact.
Slide the new brake pads into place on the wheel hub.
Reassemble the brake by reversing the process you used to disassemble it. Repeat this procedure on the wheel on the other side of the car.
Reassemble the wheels onto the wheel hubs and then tighten the lug nuts with the crosshead wrench.
Lift the Civic off the jack stands with the jack, remove the jack stands and slowly lower the car to the ground.
Tips
Seat the brake pads, after changing each one, by pumping the brake pedal until it feels firm. This process forces brake fluid into the brakes and removes any air that may have seeped in during the change.