Was told brake flush should be done every 2 years

[Carnoobie]

brake flush with vacuum system to get all fluid out and re-bleed brakes. Every 2 not 3 years. Is this true or is this shop trying to get my money?

I said "even if my brake fluid is still clear and clean in the res and my brakes are soft?"

They said yes, something about them having to measure the amount of water or air in your brake system as it will get into your system over time.

He said takes 1.5hrs to do.

 

[The motor guy]

yes that's when you're supposed to do it. Brake fluid absorbes water. Supposedly after 3 years you have 3 or 4 percent water in it. which reminds me that my buddy needs to help me change my fluid one of these days.

 

[HTSS_TR]

Most car manufactures recommend 2 years for DOT-4 and 3 years for DOT-3.

Most car owners never do brake flush, even some high performance car owners such as BMW, MB, Audi ...

 

[chevys10]

Honda says 3 years. My Odyssey is still in warranty so I complied. I have read about the moisture in the fluid messing up the parts of the ABS sensor. If true, a few bucks in fluid is cheaper than replacing the sensor.

 

[92saturnsl2]

Every three years is cheap insurance. ABS components are getting more and more complex and expensive to replace.

OTOH, I've had vehicles whose fluid had never been changed in 10+ years and it never caused any problems, but the brake feel was noticeably improved once the old fluid (which was almost black) was changed out.

 

[Carnoobie]

Well i just had my entire brake lines vacuumed and flushed exactly 2 years ago from today. Cant I just empty the brake fluid from my res and refill and do this a couple times over time, and over time it will be the same?

$150 to do a brake flush seems bit expensive. And thats taking that its done in 1.5hrs, but im guessing more like 2 cause thats what my previous mech charged. It took him 2hrs and charged me $150.

It actually takes pretty long, have to disconnect all 4 brake lines and vacuum them out, drain the master cy and then refil with new fluid and rebleed all 4 brakes.

 

[JHZR2]

Every car I own except the Chevy says 1-3 year intevals.

I wouldnt vacuum, Id use the motive pressure bleeder.

With a pressure bleeder on a lift, this is a 30 minute job. 1.5 hr is excessive. I can see him having to round up to 1hr to make ends meet, but 1.5 is a lot at $100/hr.

 

[Carnoobie]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Every car I own except the Chevy says 1-3 year intevals.

I wouldnt vacuum, Id use the motive pressure bleeder.

With a pressure bleeder on a lift, this is a 30 minute job. 1.5 hr is excessive. I can see him having to round up to 1hr to make ends meet, but 1.5 is a lot at $100/hr.


WHen i had it done 2yrs ago, took the guy 2hrs and costed me $150. He did it from his home.

I wouldnt mind getting it done right now and not waiting til next year but if i can save money by going to maybe just a regular brake shop instead to save some $ id do it.

What kind of shops would have the pressure bleeder? Im guessing its a new technology?

 

[djb]

Every two years, or just before going out to the track.

Most cars can be bled on the rack without removing the wheels. A good pressure bleeder will keep the reservoir full and provide about 10psi to push the fluid through. It should take about 20 minutes, so figure 40 minutes of billed time. It takes us about under an hour with two people, jacking up the car, removing the wheels and measuring each caliper and outer pad with a micrometer.

 

[gathermewool]

I like to do a brake fluid flush every couple of years, not to exceed three years.

After my wife bought her used '08 Civic last year the first thing I did was replace all the fluids, which included a brake fluid flush. The fluid that came out of the front brake zircs looked alright (for what ever that's worth,) but the rear was very dark and kind of gunky-looking.

The previous owner maintained ALL records, none of which included a brake fluid flush, so this fluid was 3-4 years and 65k miles old. IMO, it was left in too long.

FWIW, before her previous Civic was totaled (thank you TS Irene,) I did the same thing, and found that the fluid all around was terrible-looking! The fluid coming out of the rear drums was darned near black.

 

[RoGuE]

Originally Posted By: Carnoobie
Well i just had my entire brake lines vacuumed and flushed exactly 2 years ago from today. Cant I just empty the brake fluid from my res and refill and do this a couple times over time, and over time it will be the same?

$150 to do a brake flush seems bit expensive. And thats taking that its done in 1.5hrs, but im guessing more like 2 cause thats what my previous mech charged. It took him 2hrs and charged me $150.

It actually takes pretty long, have to disconnect all 4 brake lines and vacuum them out, drain the master cy and then refil with new fluid and rebleed all 4 brakes.


Brake fluid doesn't circulate in the system. If you don't bleed it at each wheel, you can't get fresh fluid into the lines.

 

[crazyoildude]

one of my 79 cadillac's which we got new in 79 never had a flush lol

 

[mongo161]

I use the turkey baster method twice each year with the Pennzoil Dot 3 that I picked up at big lots. Once before winter and once before summer. I remove all of the old fluid from the reservoir and replace it with clean fluid, after I wipe out the reservoir with clean paper towels.

Fresh Fluid is better than Old fluid any day of the week.

No Problems. I have the brake lines bled every 2 years.

BTW....I perform the turkey baster maneuver on the Power Steering reservoir twice a year.....with Mobil 1 synthetic ATF. I have some short piece of clear plastic tubing that I retro fit, securely, onto the turkey baster so I can get the reservoir as empty as possible.

 

[Dakota1820]

this is the best way to check brake fluid and antifreeze!! get a multi meter and put positive in the fluid and ground on a metal object if the fluid reads .03 volts consider doing it soon . at .04 it needs done asap. that is the absolute most sure fire way that i know to check it.

 

[expat]

I have never known anyone Vacuume the system, I can't see the point.
Wheel cyls bleed from the top, you may Vacuume the fluid from the lines, but the wheel cyl will stay full.
Pumping new fluid through via the brake pedal is quick and easy and will not allow any air into the system if done properly.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: Carnoobie
Well i just had my entire brake lines vacuumed and flushed exactly 2 years ago from today. Cant I just empty the brake fluid from my res and refill and do this a couple times over time, and over time it will be the same?

$150 to do a brake flush seems bit expensive. And thats taking that its done in 1.5hrs, but im guessing more like 2 cause thats what my previous mech charged. It took him 2hrs and charged me $150.

It actually takes pretty long, have to disconnect all 4 brake lines and vacuum them out, drain the master cy and then refil with new fluid and rebleed all 4 brakes.


Why in the world would you disconnect all of the brake lines and drain the master cylinder?

 

[expat]

Originally Posted By: chevyboy14
this is the best way to check brake fluid and antifreeze!! get a multi meter and put positive in the fluid and ground on a metal object if the fluid reads .03 volts consider doing it soon . at .04 it needs done asap. that is the absolute most sure fire way that i know to check it.


Hum...... Can anyone verify that?

 

[Stanley Rockafeller]

Originally Posted By: expat
Originally Posted By: chevyboy14
this is the best way to check brake fluid and antifreeze!! get a multi meter and put positive in the fluid and ground on a metal object if the fluid reads .03 volts consider doing it soon . at .04 it needs done asap. that is the absolute most sure fire way that i know to check it.


Hum...... Can anyone verify that?


Yeah, it's pretty accurate. The mulit meter method is pretty well-known. Heck if you want a DIY you can look on youtube and I'm sure that you can find some step by step instructions to get it done.

 

[Stanley Rockafeller]

I once invested in a "motive power bleeder" for my e30 and after one use did I realize how much of a joke it was.

Sure it operated correctly and I had fresh fluid in it etc. but after using it on my car with my older brother who is a mechanic, he noticed that we could get the old fluid out of the bleeders FASTER by merely having one person in the car pressing the brake pedal down while the other guy went around from wheel to wheel cracking open the bleeders and flushing them clean (making sure to keep the res. full of course).

Another method I learnt was simply doing a "gravity" bleed. It can easily be done by one person and requires no special tools. Just jack up each side of the car and remove each wheel and then open the bleeders and let them bleed clear. Then close off that valve and move onto the next wheel. Also making sure to always keep an eye on the res. to avoid air from entering the system.

After learning these two methods, I quickly went and sold my motive bleeder to a porsche owner. He thought he was getting a deal HA!

 

[JimPghPA]

Originally Posted By: 92saturnsl2
Every three years is cheap insurance. ABS components are getting more and more complex and expensive to replace.

OTOH, I've had vehicles whose fluid had never been changed in 10+ years and it never caused any problems, but the brake feel was noticeably improved once the old fluid (which was almost black) was changed out.


A very valid point, however while ABS and the increasing complex brake systems probably do demand a lot from the specialized hydraulic brake fluid they use, one of the other things to keep in mind is that after the failure of the hydraulic system on Flight 427 in Hopewell township PA due to old fluid, any legal group with an understanding that hydraulic systems are used to stop vehicles, and giving advice to an automotive manufacturing company, would want to cover their assets by making a very safe fluid change interval recommendation, so that if a system did fail due to old fluid, the auto manufacturer would be able to claim that the customer did not follow the recommended brake fluid change(s).