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FCP Euro Service Kits

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MOT0100Brake bleeding has never been a particularly fun task. It's miserable; the fluid makes your hands feel weird, it eats away at paint, isn't water soluble, and doesn't even smell good. That, and the usual way of doing it requires two people - kind of inconvenient when you're trying to get the car on the ground and drivable again.

What if I told you there was a better way? A way we could finally break free from the traditional methods of having friends around, sharing a 6-pack, and having a good time with others? Yes, you can do it yourself, alone, and it's way easier than it should be. I rather enjoy it.

Why we bleed

So what's the lowdown on brake bleeding anyway? In short, your car's braking system uses hydraulic fluid under pressure to transfer braking force from your foot to each wheel's brake. Fluid is non-compressible, so the transfer of force is very efficient. (It's easy to compress air in a syringe, but you can't compress water, only move it) If air finds its way into your brake lines, the transfer of braking force to that particular wheel will be diminished. Your foot would be compressing the air, not transferring the fluid into your brake caliper. Also, fluid gets dirty over time. It's hygroscopic and absorbs moisture, etc.... Essentially, bad things happen to old fluid and you want to put fresh fluid in every few years. My 2013 Volkswagen specifies fluid replacement every three years, for what it's worth.

How does it work?

3331 Pressure, and a little extra fresh fluid keep the system happy and clean

I purchased a Motive Products Power Bleeder for my family's fleet of Volvos a couple months ago. After doing a smattering of caliper, brake line, and fluid exchanges, it was about time I made these jobs a bit easier on myself. I would just be doing these jobs again on the other two Volvos, so the purchase made sense. Sure, "one-man bleed" kits exist that use a check valve type bleeder screw, but I want to be able to see the fluid coming out, not sit in the car and pump the pedal. That, and I love buying cool tools. This looks a whole lot nicer than a pack of bleeder valves.

So how's it work? Simple, pressure. The power bleeder is nothing more than a pump that pressurizes the brake fluid reservoir, and is smart enough to keep it full so you don't inject air into your system unknowingly. When the bleeder screws on each caliper are opened up, the pressure from above forces fluid through, eliminating the need for a human in the car pushing the pedal.

On an older car, I'll usually soak the bleeder screws in penetrating oil before cracking them open. Sometimes they are seized and break off - it's not worth finding out the hard way. Once the power bleeder is screwed onto the brake fluid reservoir, fill the bleeder with some brake fluid, pressurize it to around 15psi, and open the bleed screw on the wheel farthest away from the master cylinder. In the US, that's the passenger side rear tire. Jack up the car, remove the wheel, crack the bleeder, and watch the old fluid become clean again as it magically expels itself out of your calipers. Do the other rear wheel, the passenger side front wheel, and lastly the driver's side front wheel. I've found that 15psi in the power bleeder is adequate pressure for bleeding all four corners of the car in one shot.

img_3265 Keep the bleeder screw open until no air bubbles are present and the fluid looks clean

Fluid maintenance is easy maintenance

Sad-forever-alone-face-only-lWith fresh brake fluid, there's less chance for moisture to destroy your braking system from the inside out, causing rust and other deposits to form on pistons. When these deposits are formed in the master cylinder, a panic stop could tear the seals inside the unit if part of a rusty piston comes in contact with rubber. It takes many years for this type of failure to occur, but as long as the fluid is maintained, your master cylinder, ABS pump, calipers and lines will be happy for a very long time. Congratulations, you just bled your brakes - all alone.

 

Shop Volvo Brakes at FCP Euro

 


About the Author: Alex FiehlAF Headshot

Alex is FCP's Blog Editor and an IT technician from Endwell, NY. He has over 8 years of experience working on a wide array of import makes, but lately is partial to Volvo . For some reason he just purchased a Volkswagen, and is excited to see what breaks first.


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Written by :
Alex Fiehl


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