Brake Fluid Change

Joe_Horner

colino wrote: »

If you have a spare few bob, get a hold of an old Autodata workshop times book (I don't think they do hardcopy anymore, everythings on the screen) and you will see how a proper, profitable garage should price jobs. You already know by referring to paying for the same hour twice, but that is the only sane way for a half-busy workshop to plan and bill time!

Seeing as I spent most of my time off school from about 12 years old to leaving helping out in dad's proper, profitable, garage, I'm well aware of how time's billed by (a) trained chimps who use the book and (c) mechanics who have a pretty good idea from experience how long it'll take them to do most jobs on most cars and can price accordingly.

Both are perfectly valid approaches to staying profitable, one is more honest than the other when jobs overlap.

EdGasket

I've never changed brake fluid for the sake of it in 40 years of driving and owning cars. Never had a problem. If your bleed nipple shears off you'll wish you'd left it alone.

arcon5

EdGasket wrote: »

I've never changed brake fluid for the sake of it in 40 years of driving and owning cars. Never had a problem. If your bleed nipple shears off you'll wish you'd left it alone.

Wow, just wow

Joe_Horner

EdGasket wrote: »

I've never changed brake fluid for the sake of it in 40 years of driving and owning cars. Never had a problem. If your bleed nipple shears off you'll wish you'd left it alone.

Yep, there is that side to it. Only, if you post that (or an unwillingness to buy winter / summer / full-moon / birthday tyres) around here, people will go wow!

forgotmyname

Why bother changing the brake fluid.. Brakes are not that important. Spend money on a decent stereo system instead.

At least you can listen to the stereo when your brakes fail.

Joe_Horner

Strangely, never had brake failure caused by the fluid in my entire driving career despite only ever changing the fluid on one car - which had been laid up for 35 years and was getting full new brakes.

Have had one complete failure caused by a blown seal in a master cylinder, and one caused by a burst (6 months old) brake pipe, so I'm well aware how much of a brown trouser moment it can be when your foot goes to the floor.

By far the biggest risk of leaving fluid in there is calipers / wheel cylinders getting sticky rather than failure. Even with saturated fluid you have to drive like an idiot to get enough heat into the fluid to boil it. Seeing as I don't drive on the brakes, it's not really an issue

AdrianC

Joe_Horner wrote: »

Strangely, never had brake failure caused by the fluid in my entire driving career

<waves> I have. Most entertaining to be coming down big steep windy long hills and find the middle pedal suddenly needs plenty of pumping up, because the fluid's boiled.

But I've also had to replace several wheel cylinders and calipers that have leaked because of corrosion caused by failing to replace the fluid.

Joe_Horner

AdrianC wrote: »

<waves> I have. Most entertaining to be coming down big steep windy long hills and find the middle pedal suddenly needs plenty of pumping up, because the fluid's boiled.

But I've also had to replace several wheel cylinders and calipers that have leaked because of corrosion caused by failing to replace the fluid.

Agreed on the corrosion, on hills that steep and windy, drop a gear for engine braking and flexibility out of the bends

AdrianC

Joe_Horner wrote: »

on hills that steep and windy, drop a gear for engine braking and flexibility out of the bends

That was using gears and engine braking.

iltisman

Corrosion damage is also caused by lack of use . I never see any mention of Silicon brake fluid in any of these "change brake fluid" threads. I am another of the old timers who has never changed hydraulic fluid just cos its old. I worried a lot more about brakes back in the drums all round and no split system era.
One thing I do is visually check fluid levels weekly.