Easiest 1 Man Brake Fluid Change

I just do it the old fashioned way. Works fine.

Hook up bleeder bottle to brake bleeder of your choice.

Drain and refill reservior.

Either pump pedal or let gravity do all the work.

Top off reservior.

Repeat for every bleeder.

 

I use a Minivac but it seems like a pain. Or, maybe I am just not patient enough.

 

Your poll is incomplete, it should include 'pressure bleeders'.

Vacuum bleeders can suck air around the bleed screw threads so you'll never know when you're done.

Speed bleeders have a similar problem, the threads can leak air backwards on the pedal up-stroke.

I use a pressure bleeder & a tube down to a collection bottle, mine is a home-brew version of the Motive pressure bleeder. You want the European model. About $50 + shipping on Amazon. I find it's very quick & hard to make a mistake as long as you make sure that the pressure bleeder's tank doesn't run dry. The Motive bleeder is well known on Fchat, just search the body of posts for 'Motive' 'pressure' & 'bleeder'. I like it because I can get a positive bleed when doing it by myself.

As Rifledriver says, the old fashioned way also works, altho it's best if you have someone who can pump the brake pedal while you operate the bleed valve.

BTW, I alternate between using ATE Super Blue brake fluid & a standard colored fluid. The color change between the blue fluid & the std fluid is quite noticable so I can always tell when I've purged the old fluid from each line. As for std fluids, I like Valvoline SynPower great value for most conditions, Then there are the premium fluids like ATE 200 or the expensive Motul 600.

This site has a table comparing most brake fluids:
http://www.swedishbricks.net/700900FAQ/Brake%20Fluid%20Comparison.htm

 

I use bleeders to bleed a system. Then they are often needed. The question here was to change the fluid. The two operations are often confused. Changing fluid suggests there is no air and the system is operational. The 2 processes are somewhat different.

 

I prefer to use a pressure bleeder however my business is located in a complex where some very attractive women work and have voluntered to help me bleed brakes on very short notice ( they love the cars ) and I have become good friends with them, does that count?

 

Good Idea! Thanks.

 

I use the "Motive" pressure bleeder system, cheap and works great for 1 person.
I've worked on cars as a hobby for 30+ years and I've never found a better system for bleeding brakes. I have another car (NSX) with speedbleeders, both methods work well but I still prefer the Motive pressure system.

 

I usually use the two man bleed method so I just voted for that.

 

Yup, that's the one I bought! Hope to use it on my car later this week, as one of the last steps before startup!

 

I also use the Motive bleeder, great for 1 man operation.

 

I used to use my wife to help bleed em. A little costly tho.

 

+1

 

I've been using the Motive bleeder for years, and at school, I love it. I have collected a number of brake and clutch master cylinder caps to do a bunch of different cars. The only thing I do differently from the instructions is that I leave the bottle dry, just use it as pressurized air. It's a lot less messy. Just make sure the master cylinder doesn't run out of brake fluid. And good luck, Rick! -Steve

 

I learned a good trick from a 512BBI owner. He used a turkey baster with a hose on the end. Compress baster and attach the end to the brake bleeder screw. Crack open the bleeder screw and it sucks out the brake fluid. Since the baster is opaque, you can see when the dirty fluid changes to the normal color. Purchase one at the dollar store, use once and throw it away. No mess, no storage, but you can keep it if you want. Just don't use it at Thanksgiving.

 

* Yes, the 0100 Euro version is correct for the 308, I don't know about other model Ferraris.

 

Thanks Steve! Got the main ECUs connected today. Biggest job left is getting the front coolant hoses connected. To avoid leaning on induction system, I have a plan to set up supports/platform so I can crawl up there. Don't seem to have good enough access through the wheel wells. After I get this done, it's just hooking a few other electric and brake and A/C lines up, then fill and bleed coolant system and brake/clutch. Oh - and final hookup of cats to exhaust system. Hope I can start by end of week, but we'll see.

 

Sounds kinky!

Yes, it also fits a 360.

 

Brian,
can you explain this a little further. I have always used the gravity method when trying to get rid of air. I know it probably takes longer, but seems to be foolproof. I have not had to do this on my 308, though, so I am thinking that there are cars where the gravity method (only) will not work for bleeding? Thanks.

George

 

While I am not half as capable as Verrell, I must respectfully disagree that speedbleeders leak air backwards. This was the problem I encountered with standard bleeders. The speedbleeders that I recently bought came with a wrapped sealant on the threads to prevent any air seepage. Futhermore, they only need to be cracked 1/4 to 1/2 a turn to bleed, further minimizing the possibility of air intrusion. I learned about them from a fellow FerrariChat posting and love them.

OTOH, I fully agree with Verell about alternating ATE Superblue with ATE Type 200 (yellow) to facilitate indication of when you've reached full purge. My DIY on this in the Dino section:
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=222647

 

Old aircraft mechanic trick I learned from Bob, reverse fill/bleed. Put fluid into a squirt can, place nipple of squirt can over a clean shop rag and jam tightly into hole where bleeder screw was removed. Pump. Keep pumping until the reservoir begins to fill. Remove and install bleeder, top off reservoir. On a car where you have lines going to two sides, I go to the opposite side when I see fluid in the reservoir. We did this several times in high gear aircraft and I was amazed. Usually there is no air left in the system and no need for further bleeding, or so little one pump of the brakes will clear it. After years of doing it by pushing air downhill, sucking it downhill, etc., this has greatly simplified the process and I can usually do it all by myself.

 

That would be OK if ATE was a good modern brake fluid. It is just not up to the demands of modern brakes.

 

That is why it is done that way on the production line.

 

Funny the parts stores, Vo-techs etc., cant tell everyone this crap instead of selling hundreds of dollars of BS equipment to people they dont need. Oh wait, that was the idea