Second year car service - they recommend changing brake fluid - is it necessary?

zildjian09

I rang up my Citroen dealer to book in my C1 for its second service. It is an 08 reg and done nearly 26,000 miles.

When I rang up for a quote she said that they recommend that the brake fluid is changed every 2 years. She quoted me £164 without brake fluid and £207 with the brake fluid changed.

Is it worth it or are they trying to con me?!

ankspon

£43 for brake fluid,wow,is it liquid gold?

mvteng

Look in the service book. If its in the service book for 2 years, & you choose not to do it, the warranty on the brake parts will be invalidated

I know for a skoda fabia its every 2 years, but they only normally charge £20ish for a brake fluid change.

[Deleted User]

How would you know if they actually changed the fluid or not!

LandyAndy

zildjian09 wrote: »

I rang up my Citroen dealer to book in my C1 for its second service. It is an 08 reg and done nearly 26,000 miles.

When I rang up for a quote she said that they recommend that the brake fluid is changed every 2 years. She quoted me £164 without brake fluid and £207 with the brake fluid changed.

Is it worth it or are they trying to con me?!

Looked at my Mazda2 handbook. Brake fluid replacement is part of the standard schedule every 2 years.

Brake fluid absorbs water and becomes less efficient with age.

Manufacturers are, rightly, very concerned that safety systems are in top condition.

LandyAndy

Deleted_User wrote: »

How would you know if they actually changed the fluid or not!

Mark the filler cap?

LandyAndy

davidhwdn wrote: »

£43 for brake fluid,wow,is it liquid gold?

£43 fluid, labour and VAT

You don't get much labour at a main dealer for that.

anewman

You would need a brake fluid boil point tester to check if it had been changed (the cost of them makes them not worthwhile buying though http://www.toolsupplies.co.uk/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1664_1665_1693_1694&products_id=149902 ). Old fluid is often darker than new but after 2 years you'd hardly tell the difference. Also it's almost impossible to tell if they did actually suck the brake fluid from the bleed nipples on the brake cylinders, calipers, and the clutch slave cylinder. I understand some places consider sending fluid through one bleed nipple = full fluid change when it doesn't. If all Skoda dealers follow the internal service manual, then they should do the job properly.

Reasons to change brake fluid are it is hydroscopic and absorbs water over time. This degrades braking performance as when you brake, it heats up the brake fluid, and old brake fluid is more likely to boil leading to brake fade. Also the moisture in the system can lead to corrosion of the parts which means they need replacing sooner than they otherwise would.

artha

zildjian09 wrote: »

I rang up my Citroen dealer to book in my C1 for its second service. It is an 08 reg and done nearly 26,000 miles.

When I rang up for a quote she said that they recommend that the brake fluid is changed every 2 years. She quoted me £164 without brake fluid and £207 with the brake fluid changed.

Is it worth it or are they trying to con me?!

Something I've always wondered as I don't think from my experience that, in reality,it's done that often.

I've both of our Toyotas serviced at a main dealer until they were 6-7 years old (60- 80K miles done at that age). Both have service schedules that require brake fluid to be changed at 2 year intervals but having checked my records I can't see anything on the bills that shows it being changed on either vehicle.

It sometimes makes me wonder whether during services that specified items other than oil/oil filter are ever given that much attention even at a main dealer. If you are non technical and don't go under the bonnet how will you ever know? Sure, you can look at the dipstick and see clean oil and perhaps check that a new air filter is there but I have my doubts that when you receive a long checklist of things inspected/replaced how much has been done according to original manufacturers specification.

I know it may be a long time ago but my brother was apprenticed at a British Leyland main dealer. They were given a job sheet for a service with a specified time/cost for the job. If the mechanic didn't think he was going to finish the service in the allocated time then many items were left uninspected and the box ticked

johnnyroper

artha wrote: »

Something I've always wondered as I don't think from my experience that, in reality,it's done that often.

I've both of our Toyotas serviced at a main dealer until they were 6-7 years old (60- 80K miles done at that age). Both have service schedules that require brake fluid to be changed at 2 year intervals but having checked my records I can't see anything on the bills that shows it being changed on either vehicle.

It sometimes makes me wonder whether during services that specified items other than oil/oil filter are ever given that much attention even at a main dealer. If you are non technical and don't go under the bonnet how will you ever know? Sure, you can look at the dipstick and see clean oil and perhaps check that a new air filter is there but I have my doubts that when you receive a long checklist of things inspected/replaced how much has been done according to original manufacturers specification.

I know it may be a long time ago but my brother was apprenticed at a British Leyland main dealer. They were given a job sheet for a service with a specified time/cost for the job. If the mechanic didn't think he was going to finish the service in the allocated time then many items were left uninspected and the box ticked

you may well be correct for some garages/dealers however do not tar everyone with the same brush.
i did my time at a peugeot dealer plus 2 years after qualifying and then 5 years for vauxhall,i can guarantee you i never ever ticked a box on service checklist and did not carry out the job,the brake fluid was due to change every 2 years because it is hydroscopic and it always got done if due and customer wanted to pay.

Hammyman

zildjian09 wrote: »

I rang up my Citroen dealer to book in my C1 for its second service. It is an 08 reg and done nearly 26,000 miles.

When I rang up for a quote she said that they recommend that the brake fluid is changed every 2 years. She quoted me £164 without brake fluid and £207 with the brake fluid changed.

Is it worth it or are they trying to con me?!

Not only is it worth it, its pretty much a must. The first time you'll find out you should have done it is when the brakes fail as you're descending a 1 in 6 hill braking most of the way or you have to brake hard from 70MPH.