disc/drum diagnosis help needed
yes I thought that was strange that the one pad was real thin & the other thick on the LF. the stuck lug nut was on the RR. when I adjust em should I have the rear up on stands & it idling in gear & adjust till I hear a light tick during one revolution? EDIT BLU I just saw your post. car has been not driven in awhile but I dont remember pedal being that low. no changes at all in that time.
A few things-
If the car has been sitting for awhile the brake fluid may have absorbed a bunch of water. That can cause a soft pedal that doesn’t pump up (unlike air, which will cause a soft pedal that will pump up). Brake fluid will absorb moisture out of the air over time.
It’s also possible that you’ve lost a seal in the master cylinder, causing the fluid to leak past the seals and giving a soft pedal
For the uneven pad wear, it’s a single piston caliper set up so the whole caliper has to slide smoothly to wear the pads equally. If the caliper doesn’t slide on the caliper bracket, you’ll wear out one pad faster. You’ll want to make sure that the caliper piston moves freely, but if you have slider type calipers you may want to inspect the sliding surface on the caliper brackets
For uneven wear in the rear, it’s possible you have a plugged brake line or collapsed brake hose. Check the drum that has the thick brake pad lining to make sure you’re getting good fluid movement on that side. It also could be that the adjuster on that side isn’t working properly.
To adjust the rear drums you’ll want the car up on stands but running is absolutely not necessary or advised. You just need to adjust the star wheel until you feel the brake drag a little when you spin the wheel (by hand!). Once you feel the brake start to drag, back off the adjuster one click.
But yeah, worth pulling the wheels and making sure the adjuster parts are all present and working properly. Especially on the side that wasn’t wearing as much.