Help, brake pads replaced but bleeding issues.

I'm feeling your pain! I looked over my '97 and the calipers could be reversed if you had aftermarket flex lines. Don't think this is your problem.

I would investigate my bleeding procedure to see if this might be the problem.
A Mighty Vac tool available in most auto part stores might be a good investment. Remove a small amount of fluid from your master and push fluid in reverse under pressure through the caliper and up to the resivour. They come with directions and only cost $20-$30.

I'm racking my brain and if I think of something I'll chime in.
 
Grezdlitn said:
I'm feeling your pain! I looked over my '97 and the calipers could be reversed if you had aftermarket flex lines. Don't think this is your problem.

I would investigate my bleeding procedure to see if this might be the problem.
A Mighty Vac tool available in most auto part stores might be a good investment. Remove a small amount of fluid from your master and push fluid in reverse under pressure through the caliper and up to the resivour. They come with directions and only cost $20-$30.

I'm racking my brain and if I think of something I'll chime in.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the kind tips. Yes I have factory brake lines so I know that the i did not reverse my calipers.

So is it called a Mighty Vac tool? I went to a local pep boys last night, asked a employee about this and they only pointed me to a bottle type reservior which was labeled do-it-yourself brake job. I was like, no way this is not it. The employee told me that was the only thing he could think of. What am I to look for?

I called Toyota and asked them what they will charge me to get my brakes bled properly and the guy told me $150 bucks and he'll take care of me. I just don't want to take it there, eventually they'll wanna place the Master Cylinder, Calipers, brakes, abs system, etc and my bill can cost up to thousands and thousands. Urrgggghhh.
 
Look at mightyvac.com

I got mine at either a Harbor Freight or Northern Tools. Can't remember which one. Comes with a small booklet that explains the various fitting and the methods to use the tool. Great tool to have in your tool box. You can use it to test for vacuum leaksand all sorts of things.
 
Hey dude I work at a toyota dealership... First of all, is the little disk in the master cylinder resivour down at the bottom or floating up? Second, you need to bleed rr, lr, rf, lf, if you took the calipers off... Third, I believe the rear brakes may bleed off the pump... 4th, if you have all the lights on, you probably have a trouble code stored... If possible, let me know what that is... Typically, only the brake light will be on if you have a fluid problem... 5th, pedal will be hard with engine off as there is no vacuum to the booster... And mushy with engine on because there is vacuum... That's normal... Air has got to be in the system... Let me know as much as you can please... And finally, don't be afraid to take to a dealership... Reasons like this are why we are here... If everything worked fine before, chances are all your components are still okay and won't need replacing... Experience and knowledge is key so don't be afraid...

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
 
toy-runner said:
That is good info, but I do not have a TOYOTA hand held tester. Thanks anyways.
Click to expand...

I don't have a scan tool either. Just pointing out that I was able to firm up the brakes by following the steps (2.a to e, the extra pumping routine) leading up to that point because I didn't let the fluid go low in the MC. It may seem extreme but I followed the 40 without power & 20 with power pumps at a slow 15 second interval (15 second hard pump and hold, 15 second wait between) and it helped. Needed to repeat it days later for even more improvement.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-g...what-gives-feels-like-pourage.html#post836721

And, yes, make sure the pads are installed correctly before bleeding.
 
Yota_Tech87 said:
Hey dude I work at a toyota dealership... First of all, is the little disk in the master cylinder resivour down at the bottom or floating up? Second, you need to bleed rr, lr, rf, lf, if you took the calipers off... Third, I believe the rear brakes may bleed off the pump... 4th, if you have all the lights on, you probably have a trouble code stored... If possible, let me know what that is... Typically, only the brake light will be on if you have a fluid problem... 5th, pedal will be hard with engine off as there is no vacuum to the booster... And mushy with engine on because there is vacuum... That's normal... Air has got to be in the system... Let me know as much as you can please... And finally, don't be afraid to take to a dealership... Reasons like this are why we are here... If everything worked fine before, chances are all your components are still okay and won't need replacing... Experience and knowledge is key so don't be afraid...

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
Click to expand...

I don't recall seeing a little disk in the master cylinder at all. As for the bleeding I did do the rr, lr, rf, lf. I hooked up a actron obd 2 scanner to the system and it read no codes.

So if I have air in my master cylinder, how do i get it out without taking my car to the dealer?
 
Last edited:
toy-runner said:
I don't recall seeing a little disk in the master cylinder at all. As for the bleeding I did do the rr, lr, rf, lf. I hooked up a actron obd 2 scanner to the system and it read no codes.

So if I have air in my master cylinder, how do i get it out without taking my car to the dealer?
Click to expand...

Ok so there is a little electrical connector on your master correct? Well that is a switch... Basically off and on... There is a little floating piece in the resivour. When brake fluid gets low, it touches and makes continuity with that electrical connector... This closing the circuit and causing lights... Look inside of resivour and see if you have a floating piece or if its stuck to the bottom... Next, you said 01 runner right?

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
 
TheDurk said:
http://www.ncttora.com/fsm/1996/SIL...pdf/02rmsour/2002/024runne/br/braflu/blee.pdf

This is the link for the bleeding chapter in the '02 4Runner FSM. The procedure for bleeding the hydraulic booster does NOT require the use of the hand-held tester. I would perform those steps to bleed the booster first, then bleed the wheel cylinders manually in the order specified.

Disclaimer: I have a '99 so I really know nothing about these boosters.
Click to expand...

Lol it's not that difficult... The boosters are basically the same, it's the resivour that's diff... On the 01 and newer ones, they have an abs ecu attatched to the abs actuator which is bolted to the booster... An abs/vsc/trac ecu is added to the 01 and newer runners, but basically all it does is pump fluid to the wheels instead of pressing fluid to them via a master cylinder...

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
 
Yota_Tech87 said:
Ok so there is a little electrical connector on your master correct? Well that is a switch... Basically off and on... There is a little floating piece in the resivour. When brake fluid gets low, it touches and makes continuity with that electrical connector... This closing the circuit and causing lights... Look inside of resivour and see if you have a floating piece or if its stuck to the bottom... Next, you said 01 runner right?

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
Click to expand...

Yes it is an 01, from what I read on multiple forums the 01-02 4runners brake systems are more sophisticated than the older models.

I will have to check the reservoir later when I get home later and update you. Thanks
 
toy-runner said:
Yes it is an 01, from what I read on multiple forums the 01-02 4runners brake systems are more sophisticated than the older models.

I will have to check the reservoir later when I get home later and update you. Thanks
Click to expand...

Let me know what you find. I'm only here to help you dude.
 
Yota_Tech87 said:
Lol it's not that difficult... The boosters are basically the same, it's the resivour that's diff... On the 01 and newer ones, they have an abs ecu attatched to the abs actuator which is bolted to the booster... An abs/vsc/trac ecu is added to the 01 and newer runners, but basically all it does is pump fluid to the wheels instead of pressing fluid to them via a master cylinder...

Sent from my HTC MYtouch 4G
Click to expand...

Well, the point is that the earlier MC's can easily be bled right on the truck just by loosening the lines and blocking the ports with your fingers after applying pressure to the brake, as per my '99 FSM. I have done this with success. This procedure appears not to apply to the later models which have a whole different process, as per my link.
 
Yota_Tech87 said:
Let me know what you find. I'm only here to help you dude.
Click to expand...

Yota_Tech87, I looked in the reservoir earlier today and I couldn't find the piece that you're talking about. I shooked the reservoir to see if I could find anything in there and all I see is fluid. Anything else that I should do?

Since you work for Toyota, how much do you guys usually charge for bleeding the brakes??? Is $150 fair???
 
Update!

So I took my car to Toyota this morning (aug 16). I just recieved a call from the Mechanic and he asked me what I did to the vehicle. I told him that I replaced the front pads. He asked me if I tried to bleed the rears, I said, "yes, after I couldn't get pressure I tried bleeding the rears also". He told me that is what probably messed up the system.

The initial statement per TOYOTA Manual was a $152 dollar fee to bleed the system (Labor work: 1.5 hours). Now the Mechanic said that they might have to charge me extra because he can't get pressure to the rears, and will have to keep the vehicle over-night to check things over.

So should I be charged extra when he's the Mechanic and he can't get it done within the 1.5 hours time that they are initially charging me??? What are your thoughts???
 
Update!

Toyota just called me and they are gonna bump up the $152 dollars to $400 bucks because they can't get pressure to the rears??? Now, they wanna tear it down to see what is wrong.

Everything was fine before I replaced the pads.....

UrrgGGghhh......Should I alow them to do it???
 
toy-runner said:
Update!

Toyota just called me and they are gonna bump up the $152 dollars to $400 bucks because they can't get pressure to the rears??? Now, they wanna tear it down to see what is wrong.

Everything was fine before I replaced the pads.....

UrrgGGghhh......Should I alow them to do it???
Click to expand...

uum no, $400 will get you complete brake job somewhere else, unless you screwed something major up they should be able to fix it, $400 is a rip off, i hate dealerships, get your ride and take it somewhere, else, tell them to put it back together as is and you'll deal with the pressure in the rears on your own, 152 for bleeding your brakes is out of control as well, i balked at a guy in midas for trying to charge me $60 just for a brake bleed, something fishy is going on, before you go and pick it up though find another shop to do the work cheaper, heck even if the other shop charges $200 (still really high) you save $200, and if your uncomfortable with driving it the way it is, spring for the $50 AAA membership and get it towed to another shop, you still be saving money and have 2 tows left for the year on your AAA account.

i'm sorry your going through this crap, $552 trying to get youre brakes bleed properly is out of control, someone is taking advantage of you, unless you broke a line or really really messed something up there's no way total cost to you should be 152+400....that's out of control!
 
Just got off the phone with the Mechanic at Toyota, and he told me that the only thing he could think of left is that the Master Cylinder took a dump. He told me he is a master technician and two other master technicians agreed with him.

So I'm heading off to Toyota tomorrow morning to pay them the 152 bucks I owe them and then drive the car back home. Going to find a Master Cylinder at a cheaper price than what Toyota has to offer ($1400). And possibly try to install it myself.

I know I messed up at first by taking off the brake lines, but I've done plenty of vehicles like this before, and bled the system with no problem.

Anybody have a master cylinder for sale???
 
i would consider trying to find a way of testing that cylinder first, think about this....


you walk into thier shop for a brake bleed, $152
they come back and say they can't get pressure to the rears and need to take everything apart for $400 more....
you tell them you don't want to pay the $400 and you will take your truck somewhere else....
they say "we know what's wrong with it, master cylinder" $1400 and we can fix that for you....

see something fishy here? if they knew it was the master cylinder in the first place why where they trying to charge you $400 to diagnosis the problem? why wouldn't that have just came straight back and said, "can't get pressure to the rears we think the master cylinder took a dump and that's a $1400 repair." why even try to charge you that $400 in the first place?

i did the same this you did man and i don't think my master cylinder took a dump on me, i snapped a brake line on my last pad swap and had to replace it, i managed to bleed my brakes enough to work but i still got a cel on, so i went out yesterday and bought the mightyvac thing mentioned in here ($34.99 from harbour freight) and am going to have a go an bleeding them later this week to sort them out right.

my point being is i would take everything the stealership said and throw it out the window at this point, as you don't know how valid their assessment is
at this point, were they being honest with you about the damage or were they just trying to keep their doors open on your dime? i don't know about our runner but i know you can usually test the master cylinder with a vacuum tester but again i'm not sure how you would go about that on our trucks. good luck man and i hope you get out of this a bit cheaper, also look at junk yards for a used one, master cylinders don't fail everyday in our trucks so find a used one from a junky yard maybe a good bet
 
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