Steel
Member
Morning Guys!
I have noticed there is a few DIYs concerning brakes and changing pads etc but no real guide for bleeding the brakes so thought i would do one up. Some people think it should be left to a professional mechanic but if you have any sort of mechanical aptitude you will be able to do it easily. Always test the brakes before you leave the driveway, if you cant stop in a few meters after rolling your car something went wrong but you didnt go anywhere. Generally speaking though, after you start the engine and put your foot on the brake, if it doesnt go all the way down and feels pretty firm you will be alright. Anyways on to the show...
NOTE 1: When selecting brake fluid, all glycol based fluids can be used and mixed together even though ideally you never want mix old stuff with the new. Dot3, Dot4, Super Dot4 and Dot5.1 are all glycol based. Only difference is how high their boiling point is. Obviously tracked cars will want a higher point etc.
NOTE 2: Some Brembo calipers will have 2 bleed nipples. Again the same principle applies and do the outside (furthest) nipple first. The size of the nipples for these are usually 11mm.
When bleeding you always start at caliper that has the longest line/furthest from the brake master cylinder. Generally: Left rear, Right Rear, Front Left then lastly Front Right - driver side.
You Will Need:
Let me know what you guys think. Layout is a little rudimentary. Let me know if i can tidy it up a little better.
Cheers guys!
-Kitten
I have noticed there is a few DIYs concerning brakes and changing pads etc but no real guide for bleeding the brakes so thought i would do one up. Some people think it should be left to a professional mechanic but if you have any sort of mechanical aptitude you will be able to do it easily. Always test the brakes before you leave the driveway, if you cant stop in a few meters after rolling your car something went wrong but you didnt go anywhere. Generally speaking though, after you start the engine and put your foot on the brake, if it doesnt go all the way down and feels pretty firm you will be alright. Anyways on to the show...
NOTE 1: When selecting brake fluid, all glycol based fluids can be used and mixed together even though ideally you never want mix old stuff with the new. Dot3, Dot4, Super Dot4 and Dot5.1 are all glycol based. Only difference is how high their boiling point is. Obviously tracked cars will want a higher point etc.
NOTE 2: Some Brembo calipers will have 2 bleed nipples. Again the same principle applies and do the outside (furthest) nipple first. The size of the nipples for these are usually 11mm.
When bleeding you always start at caliper that has the longest line/furthest from the brake master cylinder. Generally: Left rear, Right Rear, Front Left then lastly Front Right - driver side.
You Will Need:
- 10mm Flare nut spanner (best tool), or a 10mm single hex socket and ratchet. (i avoid using double hex ring spanners and sockets as they can strip the bleeding nipple really quick!
- Plastic tubing about 5mm in diameter and about 500mm long
- Plastic container to cat old fluid (a coke bottle with a hole in the cap would do the job fine)
- Silver grade anti seize (recommended but not needed)
- Small tube of clear silastic (roof and gutter is fine)
- Brake cleaner
- Trolley jack
- Axle stands
- Wheel nut socket or wheel brace
- Bottle of fresh brake fluid
- 1 gym junkie mate that doesnt skip leg day
- Crack the wheel nuts
- use trolley jack and lift the rear end of the car using a STABLE and STRONG point in the middle of the car underneath
- Place axle stands underneath as wide as possible, again in a stable spot where vehicle movement is minimized
- Let jack down SLOWLY to rest on axle stands. (you can leave the jack where it is, not in your way and another point to help stability)
- Remove wheels
- Pop the bonnet
- Remove brake master cylinder reservoir cap and top up fluid if need be
- Make a hole in bottle cap and thread tubing into it
- Have said gym junkie in driver seat
- Use flare nut spanner or socket to crack bleeding nipple (If you have that anti seize handy you can remove the nipple entirely and just put a small amount of anti seize on the thread and do it up.)
- Once it has started to move affix plastic tubing to bleed nipple
- Have mate pump the brake pedal 6 times or so and then HOLD PEDAL DOWN
- Open bleed nipple and watch for air bubbles in the fluid as it comes out.
- Close bleed nipple FIRMLY but not tight
- Have mate release brake pedal and repeat steps 12 - 14.
- Every 3 rounds just check the level of the brake fluid in the reservoir. Try not to let the level drop below minimum marked.
- Once there is no air coming out of the caliper, tighten and clean the nipple with brake cleaner use some silastic and just coat the nipple with it. (If it doesnt have a rubber cap)
- Move on to the next corner and repeat steps 10 - 17
- Put your wheels back on
- Jack up the vehicle high enough to remove axle stands
- Slowly let the jack down and remove.
- Tighten wheel nuts
Let me know what you guys think. Layout is a little rudimentary. Let me know if i can tidy it up a little better.
Cheers guys!
-Kitten