I have a 2001 olds silhouette and the driver side rear drum brake adjuster keeps breaking. I have replaced it twice now and its all put together right and the adjuster just keeps breaking. What would be causing this issue. Anyone have any ideas?

If it is just rusted, bang on the brake drum with rubber hammer, see if anything comes loose? In the adjuster slot, spray some rust inhibiter, let it set for a while. Just a thought.

1. Adjust the rear drum shoes for minimal clearance. Note that the linings may need replacing.

2. If necessary (and may not be) replace the two hand brake cables. Cables can rust solid and jam, but rarely break.

3. Remove the center tunnel cover between the front seats. Adjust the cables so the hand brake handle has minimal upward movement.

4. Put it all back together.

You may have to squeeze the shoes in towards each other. If you have everything assembled correctly the drum will go on right

Your e-brake cable is causing this,happened to me,my driver side e-cable was bad causing that side to lock up,messed up my drum.You must replace the e-cable.There's a hole on inside plate,maybe with a rubber plug,you can remove plug and get flat head screw driver and put in hole and push star screw to take pressure off brake,but it will keep locking up till you replace e-cable.check your drum to see if brake shoe ate into it,if so replace the other side one to.This problem will cause you u-joint to go bad,did mine.

shoe breaks are tricky but can be a little easier with practice and the right tools;
What you;ll nned:
Spring pliers
Shoe hold down tool
Diagonal side cutters.
Needle nose pliers
Flathead screw driver.

this project is easy so long as you can remember how the parts go back together.

!. remove brake drum.
2. see how the brakes fit together. REMEMBER HOW THE BRAKE BAR GOES BACK IN. IT ONLY WORKS CORRECTLY ONE WAY!

the brake bar is the metal piece that goes between the brake shoes.
3. remove the brake shoe springs with the spring pliers. *THE BRAKES HOW HIGH POWERED SPRINGS AND SHOULD BE HANDLED CAREFULLY*
4. remove the brake shoes with the spring tool.
5. clean parts thoroughly with brake part cleaner. (i like spraying it into a glass jar and shaking it a little) you can use a wire wheel to brush to clean the harder material.
then take some brake cleaner and spray down the backing plate and remove any and all grease and old brake material.
6. using brake grease, dab a small amount on the adjuster and the small oval shaped pads on the backing plate, *use a SMALL AMOUNT* less then a finger nail in size.
7. reassembly, now compare the shoes and take note that there are 2 long and 2 short shoes.
thte larger shoes go in the front and the smaller go to the rear of the vehicle. set the pairs aside so you do not confuse them. next a fix the shoes to the backing plate and then set the adjuster to the lowest setting, (shortest). and set the brake bar in place then set the springs (the longer springs)
8. adjusting the shoes. slip the drum on the hub and spin the brake, it should feel like it has a bit of drag. keep slipping the drum on and off making adjustments to the adjuster till the drum either is adjusted correctly or you cannot remove it, if you need to adjust the brake further there is an access in the backing plate for further adjustment.

The rear brake drums are drum brakes on the 94 excel. The Excel uses the front brakes the most, so are you sure you need to replace the rear brakes?

should be a regular break shoe setup, there should be a hole in the backing plate to adjust with a screwdriver but i find it's better to pull the brake drum off and blow out all the dust (just don't breath it) then you can check to make sure the wheel cylinders aren't leaking and all the springs are good. it's also a good idea to pull off the brake adjusters to clean and lubricate them. if you need to replace anything and your not familiar with brake shoe setups then do one side at a time and remember short shoe to the front long shoe to the rear.

Take off any hub caps and loosen the lug nuts (just loosen them) with the tire still on the ground it is way easier this way. Jack up the rear and set the car on stands as secure as you can, please be safe. Place chocks under the front wheels to keep it from moving off the stands. Finish removing the lug nuts and remove the rear wheels. Look on the outer edge of your brake drum for a punch slot, it is an oval looking indention in the drum that you punch out to access the rear brake adjusters. If you do not see this punch slot look on the rear back plate for a rubber cap that you can pry out with a screw driver. Inside will be the brake shoes adjusters, you have to back off the adjusters to get the drum off the axel. Once you have backed off the adjusters, you can use a hammer and hitting the drum on the front edge it should come loose now to access the brake shoes. Next work on one side at the time using the other side as your guide remove & replace the shoes . Put it back together.

You will need to loosen the adjusting clip. In the back of the brake plate where you would bleed the brakes and at the bottom of that plate is a hole that probably has a rubber plug in it. Pop that plug out and put it someplace you won't loose it.
Then take a screw driver, (they have a regular break adjusting tool for this) But a screw driver will work. There is a little toothed wheel onthe other side of the plate down at the bottom of the brakes in the middle.
You need to back that off a little until the shoe compress back in so the hub will fit back over them.
I am assuming these are shoe brakes and not disk brakes correct?? Once you get the shoes compressed and the drum on and the wheel all the way back together then drive the car in reverse and hit the brakes semi hard. They have an automatic brake adjust that in reverse will set them properly. Do that several times and you will be good to go. Now if these are disk brakes You may need to take off the other side to see if you replaced them correctly by looking at both sides and comparing the two. I see no other reason why the hub would give you problems otherwise. Wile you have that hub off if they are disk brakes you may want to add some grease to the berrings just for good measure. Let me know how we come out. Its hard for me to help without seeing the situation. If these are drum brakes you will need to bleed them after you get them back together. Let me know and If you don't know how to do this I will guide you through the process. The Raz