Friend has a 2004 Ford Escape. It has rear drums. If the parking brake is released, you get a squeak from the drum when you release the brake pedal (but not if you release the brake pedal when the parking brake is up). I deal in european cars, so I don't know much about drum brakes. What is this?

 

Just pull the drum and clean them with some brake cleaner. Then scuff up the drum with some sand paper. Them adjust them to where theres very little drag.

 

Is this something that needs addressing, or just a harmless squeak?

 

Did you pull the drum off to make sure the shoes didnt come apart. Most of the time they just squeal frpm being out of adjustment and dust build up.

 

The squeal is probably just the pads releasing from the drum and the drum rotating slightly at the same time. If the e-brake is engaged, the drum can't rotate and therefore nothing happens when you release the brake pedal. Clean everything up, and lube the areas where the brake shoes pivot and/or contact the backing plates. This should help damp the vibration that is causing the squealing.
I really hate drum brakes. I have them for the e-brake on my Subarus inside the disc brake rotor and they're a pain to work on. I would never buy a car with them as the primary rear brakes, because it's not 1957 anymore and the world has moved on. Mostly.

 

Lol I was about to say aren't there a few cars that still have rear drum brakes, my 02' Taurus had them.

 

They're still around, I see them all the time. Amazes me that anyone would buy a basic transportation appliance with them though. Or maybe that's the explanation....

 

That disc and drum setup on some subies is ridiculous. Watched my friend replace everything in the rear for his 2.5RS and I just couldn't fathom why that exists lol.

 

It's a really nice setup, just a pain in the ass to do anything with. It's a true emergency brake though, not just a parking brake. There aren't any shared components, so the emergency brake doesn't share brake pads with the main rear brakes, etc. Kinda like the aftermarket brake setups that use a small separate disc caliper. That's the big benefit.

 

I think it's because most people don't know what is a drum brake and what is a disc brake.

Every BMW, Porsche, and Mercedes I've worked on had that setup. I didn't realize there was anything else for 4 wheel discs. I never found it hard to work on though.