Brake Fluid Change

[paulv]

Here's an interesting article I found a while back that supports [frequent] brake fluid changes.

Regards,
paul...

[Mike_Yi]

My question is, "Why would you skip a brake fluid change?" Once you have the bleeder (which costs $55), every change will cost you about $15 and take about an hour, maybe less. It's easy, doesn't take much work or getting dirty, and is a good chance to take a look at the condition of your rotors and pads.

If you every track your vehicle, you MUST change your brake fluid. I had a friend tell me that I only needed to replace the fluid that was in the calipers. His theory was that the fluid didn't circulate through the system, so only the stuff near the actual calipers got hot. I didn't think it through and we changed just a bit of the fluid before my first track day. Of course, my brakes failed as a result. We quickly changed all of the fluid at the track, and the car was fine for the rest of the day. BTW, the fluid that failed had about 45k of normal, road miles on it.

[Samson]

Originally Posted by Mike_Yi

My question is, "Why would you skip a brake fluid change?" Once you have the bleeder (which costs $55)...

You can also get a one-man bleeder kit for under $10. I've used mine on several cars, and it works great.

[stephen wilson]

Interesting article, it's a shame they stay very far away from mentioning any sort of timeline, such as typical levels in 5 year old fluid. The pictures are not very helpful either, except as extreme examples. There is no mention of the cars they came from, or their service history. They could have come out of a 20 year old car from the junk yard.

I'm well aware of the bad thing that can happen, fluid testing is wise, and replacement cheap insurance. But there is a bit of paranoia, if I don't flush my system every 2 years the brake system will explode and fall out of the car.

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by stephen wilson

But there is a bit of paranoia, if I don't flush my system every 2 years the brake system will explode and fall out of the car.

Not paranoia, just recognition that the braking performance will deteriorate, and that ultimately the ABS or PSM systems may not function as designed when you needed them most, and that eventually you will be in for some costly repairs that could have been avoided....

If you are not into doing the scheduled maintenance (routinely flushing the system is common practice in many OEM maintenance schedules these days), that’s fine, it is your car after all. But at least test the brake fluid once a year; you just might be surprised at what you find………….

[stephen wilson]

Well, I will flush every 2 years on the Boxster, and plan on testing my "less valuable" vehicles ( aka. beaters ).

Sorry, it's Monday, and I guess I'm feeling a bit contrary!

Come on Friday!

[Boxtaboy]

I too, think you can get by on longer schedules...in fact, I have. I've gone 3 yrs. without a flush, but do I recommend it? No, because your brake pedal begins to feel squishy. If you're not going to use the car in a spirited fashion, I think it's fine for light use to just do it at a longer interval. To me, it is a pain in the arse to get it done because you have to jack the car up, get the wheels off, etc., etc.,... And you do have to make sure you don't spill it, because brake fluid is some nasty stuff.

Again, I don't recommend waiting longer than the 2 yrs min. recommendation, but I do know a lot of people don't ever get their brake fluid changed, and don't even know that this is a regularly scheduled item to replace.

[sasha055]

Originally Posted by Samson

You can also get a one-man bleeder kit for under $10. I've used mine on several cars, and it works great.

Samson, where do I get a bleeder kit for 10$?

Thanks
Sasha

[kabel]

most autoparts stores (PepBoys, Autozone, AdvandedAuto etc) carry them. You could evn make your own with some tubing and a jar.