i know our manuel says to replace the brake fluid every two years but several mechanics have told me that unless there is a problem you should never replace or bleed brake fluid. i thought if the brake fluid isn't replaced it can turn to acid and build moisture and air. what should i do? has anyone else here never changed brake fluid?
thanks

 

I have an 00 TL (soon to be sold to my brother) and have done the brake fluid twice in 88K miles. Brake fluid absorbs moisture, making braking efficiency less when the fluid is hot. Also, dirt/ contaminants in the fluid can cause failure of the rubber seals in the braking system, so there is no good reason not to change it. It generally costs $60-90 to have the system flushed via bleeding the old fluid out.

 

You are supposed to, I don't know of any car that has a manual that says NOT to do anything with it. I don't see what their logic is.

 

i was looking in the manuel and it doesn't say how many quarts of break fluid are needed to replace. how much fluid do i need to replace?

 

I would just suck out what ever is in the Brake booster now while the car is off and just add brake fluid while you are bleeding one at a time I think that would put new fluid through each line.

 

im in the automotive field, and you are supposed to bleed your brakes. i wouldnt know why a person would tell you, especially a mechanic not to bleed your brakes. i believe the saying is, 1% of water in the fluid lowers the boiling point 10 degrees.

If you use a vacuum bleeder it is easy, but dont ever let the master cylinder run out of fluid. Dot 5 fluid doesnt absorb water like dot 3/4, but 5 absorbs air, so its basically impossible to bleed air out.

if your fluid is old and crummy, use like a turkey bastor, suck out some of the fluid in the master cylinder, then pour new fluid in, use a vacuum bleeder, or by hand, and just open and close the bleeder, then fill, then open bleeder, until u see clean fluid.

if you get new brakes, bleed and replace the system. i wouldnt know why a mechanic would tell you that, because that means they make money if they bleed your system.

 

please bleed your system... i need to do mine soon...

 

thats one of the things on my list

 

I just recently replaced my master cylinder, bled the master cylinder, and bled the brakes lines due to "sinking pedal". I used Valvoline Syn Power exceeds Dot 3 & 4 brake fluid. My brakes work great now. You need two people to do the job yourself.

One thing I like to mention, I don't think it's necessary to bleed the back wheels first like some people say. I was looking at the master cylinder and it has two outlets. One for the rear brakes, and one for the front system. Since they are independant of each other, I felt it was easier and more important to bleed the fronts first, since that is where most of the stopping power is. Let me know what yall think.

 

i went to strauss today. i said i wanted to bleed and replace my brake fluid. they told me there is no need to do that if i don't have any problems. i don't know why everywhere i go i'm being told not to do this? i'm begining to think mechanics simply don't like to do this job. why are they giving up business?

 

You can take it to a local Honda dealer, and they will do it, no questions asked.

 

Because you really don't, unless you do have problems.

It's a closed system. Sure, it could boil and/or air could seep in over time, but on an ordinary car, it really isn't that big of a deal. I boiled the hell out of the factory fluid for two days in a row at an event, and I drove home a thousand miles after that. It was fine.

You only do it if you have problems, like spongy brake pedal, sinking pedal, requiring more than regular pressure, etc. Otherwise it's like changing engine oil at every 1,000 miles. There's just no point.

Having said that, is it a good thing to do? Yeah, it's good to keep it clean and dry. But you really don't have to do it too often.

 

To find out from the sake of this thread, I took my car to the dealer today and asked that I need to get the brake system bleed, the service guy asked if there is any problem.
They looked at the car and told me there's no need for it. I have 209k on it and I need got it done.
So, I guess, not all the dealers would just do it.

 

Laziness, that would be the reason for not bleeding brakes. How much does a can of fluid cost, $4.00 for a quart? Brake fluid has an alcohol base, it wants to absorb water, imagine what that does to your antilock brakes or calipers? To me it is false economy to not do this job and it is actually good to excercise those bleeders every couple years. Like anything else, you get out of it what you put in it....want trouble? Sit back and do nothing, see what happens. Ask racers on this forum what they do and you will find out that they change fluid before every race, they don't want their pedal going to the floor when that moisture boils.

 

i gave in and bleed plus flushed the brake fluid but i don't feel any difference. i probably wont bleed again for another 4 years (if i have the car that long). i didn't do anything with the ABS. will the fluid from the ABS now mix with the new fluid i put in the master cylander? i'll change the brake pads next. will i have to add brake fluid if i change the pads?