Need new rear dust shield - remove wheel bearing?

[MazterDizazter]

Hey guys,

I went to replace the parking brake components on my '91 318is and it turns out the LH rear dust shield is rusted out where one of the parking brake shoe hold down pins would go. There's basically a hole where the pin locks into. It looks like I will need to replace the backing plate, but does that mean I need to press out the rear wheel bearing to get to it? And does anyone have a good dust shield they wanna sell me?

[jlevie]

You will have to pull the hub to change the backing plate, which means that you'll need to replace the bearing.

[roguetoaster]

Rrr, those dust shields sure are a pain. You could potentially weld the current one back into working order on the car, but it wouldn't be a great solution.

At least this is a good time to service the entire rear end.

[MazterDizazter]

F#%K. I had a feeling. I wanted to do the bearings anyway, just not right now! OK, well looks like the right side will work for now, and I'll replace the bearings and backing plates later.

[dougie30]

My dust shield where like that, I just used a washer on the back of the locking pin that was wide enough to sit out side of the hole

[sweet6e30]

the backing plates are easy to change, its the rear wheel bearings that can be a real rat basterd!

[MazterDizazter]

Right, right... Well, thankfully I work at a car dealer, so when I get everything else back together I can buy one of the techs lunch and he can help me tackle that :) Maybe two lunches...

[Adrian_Visser]

Why do you even care about the damn dust shield? I plan on removing all of mine when I do my brakes... For razzz.

Seriously though am I making a mistake in thinking they aren't necessary and that not having them will help my brakes cool better?

[FredK]

Well, the rear shields hold the parking brake assembly, and it is necessary to have the parking brake functional to pass a Massachusetts state vehicle inspection.

Not having them will help your brakes cool more evenly, especially up front.