How many miles or kilometers do the brake pads of the rear drum brakes last approximately? Say on a 4/4.
On a 4/4, unless it's used for racing or extremely hard driving, they will last a very long time indeed. I would conservatively reckon to replace every 10 years / 50k miles / 80k Km, but they would probably last twice that so long as they don't get contaminated and are adjusted properly. I last changed mine in 2011 and they were absolutely fine when I checked them this winter.
Thanks for the info, Hamwich. My question was intuitive because my son and I have been doing all the inspections ourselves for years and I always hear that the drum brakes don't need to be checked very often if they are working properly. But mine are getting 80.000 km old now, so it's worth a closer look.
Dani, I would join the camp that says that 4/4 rear disc brakes are too strong and complicated to install and also complicated in brake balance. This is of course based on my experience that I never had any trouble with my drum brakes. But one thing was very obvious, we bled the brakes in autumn with new brake fluid. It was astonishing how much air was in the rear right of the system and how much better controlled the brakes worked afterwards.
