Does anyone find that if you brake hard the car feels a little loose in the back, kind of where it doesn't track straight? Not that it pulls, but it feels more like the back is mushy. This is the first car I've ever owned with drum brakes so I'm not sure if that's the issue. My suspension is fine and have brand new tires on it. If it is the drum brakes, has anyone ever put disks in the back and if so how hard of a job is it? Cost? I bought the car 3 years ago, a 2010 5mt base with 36k on it and it now has 72k. I also wonder if a sway bar would improve on this? I've done a few "upgrades" like HPS intake and Yonaka catback exhaust.

 

Sometimes the drums get out of adjustment especially in new england where salt assists the adjuster in rusting stiff.

They are supposed to self adjust when you brake hard or pull the parking brake on all the way. Most of the time a good indication of out of adjustment is pull your parking brake on when driving 5-10 mph you should be able to lock up the rear wheels even on dry pavement.

If this isn’t the case you can try applying the parking brake all the way 10 to 20 times.

If that doesn’t help you have to pull the drum lube the adjuster, then adjust.

If it looks like the titanic you might be better off buying rear brake parts. I go with everything (shoes, hardware(springs hold downs etc.), drums, and wheel cylinders(they’re cheap just do them)

The drums feel fine in the car when they’re working correctly even under heavy braking.

 

That's all good advice. I would add given the age of your car to flush the brake system with new fluid. Also the rear shoes last a long time on these cars and given the number of miles rear shoes should be ok but definitely remove the drums and inspect, clean, and service if needed. As far as converting to rear disc brakes for a daily driver car personally think this is a waste of money but others who have done this would probably say otherwise. I installed a rear sway bar on my 09 Fit several years ago and it does help with body roll. But it does nothing with respect to braking if that's your question.

 

I am uniquely qualified to answer this, in that I've done that conversion on mine. Under very heavy braking WITH a rear disc conversion it wants to stop fairly squarely, like I've thrown a parachute out. I never liked how much travel there was in the pedal stock for braking, no matter how fresh the brake fluid.

I will say now having gone to 11 inch front brakes and rear disc the pedal is very firm, very reassuring. I'll be the first to admit I have no idea how much the rear discs are actually contributing, because I did all my brakes at once so I didn't have a point of comparison, but my car now has tremendous confidence under braking.

 

I believe there are a couple threads either on here or honda tech forums covering it. there is no plug and play solution. From what I recall (of course i have thought about doing it too!) its either A. sourcing parts from other make/models, and engineering them to fit, or B: importing an entire rear axle assembly from somewhere, because rear disc was an option on some GEs outside the US.

as for the feeling, in my experience, the fit is rather light in the rear, and under heavy braking, there's not much keeping the wheels on the ground, so it can get a bit squirrely. it can make it pretty fun to toss into corners though

 

Recently, on a similar car, brake flush gave (much) better brake pedal feel and balance.

Later we upgraded pads and rotors; that improved stopping, balance and confidence (LR brakes were well worn from a sticky emergency brake cable so that was a factor you may not see).

 

Thanks for the recommendations

 

I'd like to recommend investigation of the rear shocks in the event that the above doesn't pan out for you. Apparently, modern shocks can fail in multiple ways (internal valve stuff) that can affect the whole range of travel OR just a limited portion, and do so without any trace of a leak. I know yuh said that they're good, and the mileage is low, but if you should hear some thunking when starting to reverse, or when hitting a speed bump with the rears, it would be worth consideration. The job is easy, but does require a 14mm crow's foot.

Mine went early at around 45k miles or so (it was quite a few years back) so I'm definitely biased.

 

Has it always felt like that? It is a front heavy car and the front brakes do the majority of braking work on every car, so it makes sense if the rear gets a bit light.

but its an economy car, it is designed to be safe for all users. Something may be off

rear disks won’t make a real difference, that would be a waste of $$$ imo

 

Rear shocks failed on our Fit around 45k miles also.