how often do I need to bleed my stock brakes?
- Thread starter QIK_GT4
- Start date
suprakid95
New member
your supposed to flush out the fluid every 2 years.
suprakid95
New member
yup you gota start with the one farthest away from the reservoir, then the one oppostie, just bleeding them is like flushing them. i think....
To flush the system I just bleed out twice the capacity that the lines & resevoir hold (not sure what it exaclty is right now),
making sure to always top off the resevoir up front.
I do this from the rear driver side.
Then I bleed the other 3 corners as well in this order:
1. Rear Passenger
2. Front Driver
3. Front Passenger (with ABS).
Never let the resevoir go empty when topping it off.
I don't think it matters if it mixes in the process, because the ratio of old to new fluid when done is very small.
Oh yeah,
& don't re-use brake fluid that has been sitting on the shelf half-full for a long time.
There's a chance that the cap might not have been on tight & moisture got in.
I know some of you have a half full bottle sitting on the shelf of your garage right now.
So go on, get out there & throw it away
It's not expensive, just get a new bottle.
Also, careful taking off the bleeding-nut on the calipers.
Soak 'em good first.
They can break easy, especially if they are old.
I've done this once before.
Cursin' & throwing sh*t.
making sure to always top off the resevoir up front.
I do this from the rear driver side.
Then I bleed the other 3 corners as well in this order:
1. Rear Passenger
2. Front Driver
3. Front Passenger (with ABS).
Never let the resevoir go empty when topping it off.
I don't think it matters if it mixes in the process, because the ratio of old to new fluid when done is very small.
Oh yeah,
& don't re-use brake fluid that has been sitting on the shelf half-full for a long time.
There's a chance that the cap might not have been on tight & moisture got in.
I know some of you have a half full bottle sitting on the shelf of your garage right now.
So go on, get out there & throw it away
It's not expensive, just get a new bottle.
Also, careful taking off the bleeding-nut on the calipers.
Soak 'em good first.
They can break easy, especially if they are old.
I've done this once before.
Cursin' & throwing sh*t.
> QIK_GT4
> Location: Sydney, Australia
> Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:17 am
> Post subject: how often do I need to bleed my stock brakes?
> would i have to bleed it?
No not 'need' to. Good to flush out the old though
occasionally.
> my friend reckons I you have to bleed emm everytime
> u change ur pads and im like WTF?
Not a Bad idea. Rather cheap insurance.
# TomsGT4
# Location: Windsor Ontario, Canada
# Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:29 pm
# Oh yeah,
# & don't re-use brake fluid that has been sitting on
# the shelf half-full for a long time.
All Very good advice.
# There's a chance that the cap might not have been on
# tight & moisture got in.
The same thing happens In the car, Brake fluid can absorb some
moisture. It could lead to rusting the lines from the inside
over time.
Worth it to change the fluid when it starts to turn brown.
Which Might be after a year or two depending on how hard the
brakes are used ?
> Location: Sydney, Australia
> Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:17 am
> Post subject: how often do I need to bleed my stock brakes?
> would i have to bleed it?
No not 'need' to. Good to flush out the old though
occasionally.
> my friend reckons I you have to bleed emm everytime
> u change ur pads and im like WTF?
Not a Bad idea.
Rather cheap insurance. # TomsGT4
# Location: Windsor Ontario, Canada
# Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:29 pm
# Oh yeah,
# & don't re-use brake fluid that has been sitting on
# the shelf half-full for a long time.
All Very good advice.
# There's a chance that the cap might not have been on
# tight & moisture got in.
The same thing happens In the car, Brake fluid can absorb some
moisture. It could lead to rusting the lines from the inside
over time.
Worth it to change the fluid when it starts to turn brown.
Which Might be after a year or two depending on how hard the
brakes are used ?
RedCelicaTRD
Moderator
With Subarus we would do a gravity bleed every 30k. You would only add 1 qt of new fluid so it wasnt really a flush.
Okay why does everyone think that you bleed the rear passenger? because I KNOW FOR A FACT that you don't on the 165. You have to bleed the passenger front first. If you'd like an explanation on why. Look at the braking system diagrams with abs. You'll understand then. I believe it is the same on teh 185 but not completely positive.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
TomsGT4":x5cz2ovb said:
Yes, hence the need to bleed the 165 from the front first. Although without ABS you'd bleed the rears first.
The 185 acutator is in engine compartment front right, where the cruise control unit is on the 165. So you would bleed the rears first on the 185.
-Mike
Chai":2etgw7qm said:
No, you don't want to mix grades but, except for DOT 5, this is because mixing gives you a lower boiling point than the new fluid has. DOT 3, 4 and 5.1 are all chemically compatible so there's no other harm done by mixing. You just need to flush all the old stuff out and you do that by just repeatedly doing the normal bleeding process. Normally your old fluid will have turned brownish and the new stuff is completely clear, so it's just a matter of bleeding each wheel until nothing but clear comes out.
A pressure bleeder works well for this, but it can be done by the old pump the pedal method. I've mentioned this before, but I found this tool to be some of the best bucks I've ever spent: http://www.motiveproducts.com/02bleeders.html I got the "Pro" kit since I work on a few other cars besides the alltrac. Since I got it, I've been flushing and changing my brake fluid regularly, and it makes it easy to do right before a track day, for example.
One final note: Although there's some debate on the matter, the general consensus seems to be that DOT 5 is not good to use, unless the system is designed from the beginning to use it. (A search online will bring up lots on the debate.) So if you wanted to go better than DOT 4 go to DOT 5.1.
-Mike
//Zee-Roh//
New member
This reminds me of the whole windows 3.1 3.11 4.0 etc... Isn't the bigger the number, the better LOL...
I can use 5.1 in my car, but not 5?
I can use 5.1 in my car, but not 5?