Vehicle: 2000 KZN185W Hilux Surf (3rd gen 4Runner)
with ABS


I had the goodridge braided brake lines (2 fronts/rear center installed in 2008) replaced with StopTech braided lines. the MC piston was also replaced with a Toyota repair kit. no problem with the brakes prior to replacement except for the brake fluid becoming dark after a few hundred km. i thought the blackening was caused by a leak in the lines somewhere so i had the 3 lines replaced. when opened, the MC had no scratches and the piston kit didn't have any excessive wear. The MC piston kit was previously replaced in 2019 using Toyota repair kit

The brakes were bled 3x and the MC was bled prior. But the pedal is still very soft with no brakes. after pumping the pedal a few times, it hardens a bit but won't hold, the pedal just goes to the floor. I also tried reusing the goodridge lines but the problem is still there.


EDIT: forgot to mention that the engine was running while bleeding.



How should I diagnose the problem?
Is there a procedure on how to bleed the abs actuator/pump?

What do you think is/are the problem and how can I solve it?
Thank you. Appreciate your inputs.

Internal leak on MC?

Make sure your back brakes are adjusted properly. I didn’t have the dark fluid issue but my brakes went to the floor and once I adjusted the back brakes the pedal went back to where it should be instantly


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what would be the symptom for an internal leak of the MC?
prior to replacing the lines, the brakes were functioning properly, except for the blackening of the fluid.
i also had the MC pistons replaced.

This is really sounding like the brakes aren't fully bleed properly and or the rear brake are not adjusted up properly.




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Don’t pump the brakes before opening bleeder.

Let it sit overnight and then do another gravity bleed on all 4 corners until no air bubbles are in the clear hose.

Then bleeded with the pedal by doing this until no air bubbles are seen:

Open bleeder-push pedal to the floor-close bleeder-release pedal.

I don’t like speed bleeders…..and if you don’t have a friend that can listen to instructions them buy the Motive Pro pressure bleeder.

When you pump the brakes to make pressure you make a million air bubbles that end up everywhere

Black fluid means it’s absorbing moisture.

I use the synthetic dot 3/4

when I say “no air bubbles seen” I mean after a long while.


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Possible air made it into the ads unit?

I have speed bleeders stainless steel ones and they work great. I can see folks not caring for them though....

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I heard that speed bleeders do a much better job bleeding the air out of the system than a standard 2 person method. FSM states some year model trucks need to have the engine running in order to get a precise bleeding job. I've never done it on my 2000 but my rear bleeders are s*** so I might be looking into speed bleeders. Would a power bleed be better for our trucks?

Very well might be better. I just have them on my 1998 and my 1997 limited. I really went to them because they are stainless which is very good in the rust belt.


I always bleed brakes with the engine running.



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it's possible. would you happen to know how to bleed the abs actuator/pump?

Only easy way to bleed the abs is to first do a brake bleed and then activate the abs and do another bleed if your pedal gets soft.

Edit: it took me three ABS activations on wet roads before my pedal firmness felt the same before and after activation.


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If you ever used vacuum to bleed brakes you’d see the air getting sucked in through the threads of the bleeder.


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I use a dirt/gravel road.
The speed sensors will pick up a brake lockup (when pressing the brakes)and run the abs pump freeing the air bubbles trapped in the abs pump. After that, I re-bleed all four brakes when I get back to the garage.

Yup. I done it both ways. The good speed bleeders have thread lock in the threads to prevent that from occurring . That's a valid concern though....

Rough thread or bad machining of threads make that issue ever worse.

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