Brake Fluid Flush

[Casper]

farthest is correct....hence the right rear is always first, the the left rear, front right, and then drivers front.

 

[supercliff]

Bled mine and installed the Stainless Steel Brake lines.

Casper, was it difficult to do? I beleive it's just a matter of unbolting the old one and installing the new lines. Do you need any special tools to bleed it? (I'm concerned about the ABS system). My local shop says the "manual" requires a toyota scanner to do the job....... Not sure I believe that....

 

[2007Sport]

I've always done my vehicles every 2 years. never had a problem with that routine. If you think about it most people never flush and I think it is weird that the owners maintance manual doesn't call for a brake fluid flush.

Thank you! I'm a service writer for Mercedes-Benz and drive a 4Runner (stop laughing). We recommend flushing the Benzes every 2 years. I thought someone tore the page out of my manual when it came to the fluid flush. I'm going to do mine now!

 

[ilovethedealer]

easiest way to do a flush only tool requires 10 mm line wrench

1. jack up entire vehicle, remove wheels
2. crack off all bleeder screws
3. allow to gravity bleed (drip all over) for 15 min.
4. at the same time add about 2 bottles of dot 3 OEM brake fluid
5. manuelly bleed them starting with the bleeder farthest from the master
6. never let the resevoir go dry during bleeding

vacumm bleeders are for rich kids...

 

[Medvedko]

I read quickly through this thread so maybe what I am about to say was already mentioned.

On my 2006 V8 SE you don't need to take the rear wheels off, just connect the the clear hose to the nipple on the rear caliper twist it open and hold the pedal down, the ABS pump turns on and pushes the fluid through atomatically without pumping the pedal 20 times. For some odd reason this only works for the rears.

For the fronts the wheels have to be taken off and the brake pedal has to be pumped the old fashion way to bleed the calipers.
First time took me 3 hours today I can have it done in 1 hour.

 

[OrdnanceMarine]

Has anyone else here used "Speedbleeders" with their brakes? They are essentially small check valves that replace the bleeder bolt. You can bleed your brakes by yourself in 20 minutes or so once they are installed and only have to open and close each bolt once. I have been putting them on my cars since 2001 (3 sets) and was thinking about putting them on my T4R. I must say that the fluid in my reservoir looks light and clean so either the previous owner had it done recently or Toyota's design keeps moisture out of the system better than my Hondas do (which turn dark after 2-3 years). I could have bought a cheap vacuum bleeder or made one of those homemade pressure assist systems mentioned earlier but that would be another thing kicking around my garage that I use less than once per year so I don't mind spending $30 or so per vehicle. I put together a DIY years ago on another forum so might as well stick that here.

DIY Brake and Clutch Bleeding with Speed Bleeder Installation - 8th Generation Honda Civic Forum

 

[Kmvreter]

I read quickly through this thread so maybe what I am about to say was already mentioned.

On my 2006 V8 SE you don't need to take the rear wheels off, just connect the the clear hose to the nipple on the rear caliper twist it open and hold the pedal down, the ABS pump turns on and pushes the fluid through atomatically without pumping the pedal 20 times. For some odd reason this only works for the rears.

For the fronts the wheels have to be taken off and the brake pedal has to be pumped the old fashion way to bleed the calipers.
First time took me 3 hours today I can have it done in 1 hour.

I can do my fronts without removing the wheels.
Don't forget to turn the ignition on (but don't start the truck) in order to activate the pump.

 

[MikesToy]

What will happen if you bled the brakes closest to the master cylinder first?

 

[KB084RUNNER]

VSC equipped models

If you have VSC then you have an accumulator pump in the system and need to do this:

3. BLEED BRAKE LINE
(a) Front brake line
(1) Turn the ignition switch to the ON position and wait
until the pump motor has stopped.
(2) Connect the vinyl tube to the brake caliper.
(3) Depress the brake pedal several times, then loosen
the bleeder plug with the pedal held down.
(4) At the point when the fluid stops coming out, tighten
the bleeder plug, then release the brake pedal.
Torque: 11 NVm (112 kgfVcm, 8 ftVlbf)
(5) Repeat (3) and (4) until all the air in the fluid has
been bled out.
(6) Repeat the above procedures to bleed the other
brake line.
(b) Rear brake line
(1) Turn the ignition switch to the ON position and depress
the brake pedal.
(2) Connect the vinyl tube to the brake caliper.
(3) Loosen the bleeder plug and release air.
HINT:
Brake fluid is sent through the pump, so keep the brake pedal
depressed until the air is completely bled out.

 

[Robs08Runner]

Hey guys,
My dd 99 firebird has never been changed. Got a price of $89 to do a power flush. I'm doing it on Wed. My question is, after the flush, will the brakes perform better? I plan on doing the 4runner when the brakes are changed in hopes to keep the calipers from sticking.

 

[Dougal]

Just out of interest I went to a Toyota Dealership to do other things on my 00 4runner but asked them to check my brake fluid (and do a boiling point test) which hadn't been changed since I bought it. They said the brake fluid was fine and no reason to flush even though I explained it hadn't been changed for 60k miles and 7 years. I guess if there is no rust discoloring the fluid and the boiling-point is OK (I assume due to lack of moisture) there is no reason to change?

 

[ZebRuaj]

I guess if there is no rust discoloring the fluid and the boiling-point is OK (I assume due to lack of moisture) there is no reason to change?

It's an easy and pretty cheap maintenance item to get done .. but brake fluid along with ATF are most commonly forgotten when doing maintenance. I'd change it out myself at your mileage/age for peace of mind.

Don't alway s go by color or looks. On my sport compacts, I ran ATE Superblue. Everyone who peeked at my fluids said it was bad because it was supposed to be amber. So don't believe everything everyone says to you. Know what you put in, and maintain it accordingly.

 

[Falonious]

I did the clutch fluid also when I did the brakes. It worked fine but it was black...nasty.
We manual guys have a hydraulic clutch...so change that fluid once every so often too. In my case (a 2000) I think 16 years was a bit too long to wait. FWIW.

 

[shahsmerdis]

my brake fluid is rusty, any idea what common thing that rusts in our brake system?

is it better to pressure bleed the system since its that nasty, dealer bleed or two person bleed it?

 

[KYBubblehead]

Has anyone else here used "Speedbleeders" with their brakes?

I put them on my Gold Wing (uses 8) and it makes the job a whole lot easier...