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H3 DIY Brake Replacment

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Griff22usmc

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Messages
41
Location
Wilmington NC
Ok guys need some help. I decided to replace both pads front and back. I am at 92000 and still had 10% left on stock, amazing. Once I got the hang of it, it was probably one of the easiest things I have done on the 3. took me longer to take off the tire and put it back on.

Problem is, I went gung Ho and started unbolting everything on the first one before I realized what to do. I undid the bolts holding the calipers together on the front brake. about a pint of brake fluid leaked out. Immediatly I rebolted it back together and no leaks, everything is good. I finished the pad replacment and went for a test drive. I now have alot of play and gummyness in the pedal. I can pump the brakes 4-5 times and they stiff up. I checked the reservoir and it is halfway between full and min. I have tryed pumping with lid on and off, but I still get the horrible play on the test drive. To the point it takes me 5 seconds to stop at 5 MPH. Im lost right now and have the wife picking me up a botle of fluid on the way home. ANy ideas on what it could be though? Air in the line or just the reservoir not showing the fluid defiency? Thanks for the help.
 
DJinCO

DJinCO

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,565
Location
Colorado - Sometimes Park County; usually Colo Spr
Yes, but do not let the resvoir get low and suck air. Have your wife pump while you keep the rev full. start at right rear and go furthest to closest. Yes, do the back, it doesn't hurt to get the old fluid out.

BTW, do not get the fluid on the paint, and do not use DOT 5; use DOT 3.
 
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Hunner

Hunner

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Messages
2,334
Location
Arkansas
Try using a jar you can see in and use a hose attached to the bleed valve. With some fluid in the jar you can close the valve before the end of the brake peddle stroke to prevent making a mess and if you don't do it in time it won't suck back air but rather some brake fluid. Keep the fluid in the jar clean from caliper to caliper in case it does pull back any fluid with bubbles. Just pump slow and steady.
Power bleeders are more efficient but before those, you just had to be methodical.
 
Scarsman

Scarsman

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Messages
1,561
Location
Monroe, WA
There are a few important steps in bleeding. First is make sure the res is full and stays full. If you look at your calipers you will see a small fitting on it somewhere sort of like a nipple fitting. It may have a little rubber cap on it. This will be your bleeder and is where the air will come out. If you only loosened one of the brake lines you can probably get away with just bleeding that one. If you feel you need to do them all, start with the one furthest from the res and work your way to the closest. This will be a two person job, so if you get your wife to help you, explain it clearly and calmly first, and use lots of pleases and thank yous. Ask me how I know! :emb:

1.
Top off res and set lid on.

2.
Find the bleeder on the caliper. If you have a length of clear tubing that will fit over the bleeder, it will keep it from spraying brake fluid all over. You want it to be clear though, so you can see when the bubbles stop.

3.
Have your wife pump the pedal slow and steady until it "pumps up" and feels as firm as it will get. (At first it may not feel normal, just get it as good as you can. It will get firmer as you get the air out.)

4.
When it is pumped up, have her hold the pedal down while you crack the bleeder open with a wrench, watching for air bubbles. When you do this she will feel the pedal lower to the floor. It is very important that she NOT RELEASE THE PEDAL UNTIL YOU CLOSE THE BLEEDER. If she does, it will suck more air back in the bleeder. Once you snug the bleeder then she can release and pump it up again. Repeat until there are no more bubbles.

You should agree on a set of words ahead of time to communicate. Here is a common way, with you at the calipers and her at the pedal, starting with you ready with the bleeder closed. Your words are in blue, hers are in purple:

"PUMP!"

She pumps until firm and holds. "UP!"

You crack the bleeder watching for air and she feels the pedal go to the floor. "DOWN!"

You tighten the bleeder. "PUMP!"

She pumps until firm and holds. "UP!"

You crack the bleeder watching for air and she feels the pedal go to the floor. "DOWN!"

Repeat the same procedure for each caliper until you see no air bubbles. Don't forget to check the res and top it off as you go! If it sucks air you then have to bleed the entire system.

I promise, if you stick to using the communication format above, it will go smoothly. Just make sure ahead of time she understands to NOT LET UP UNTIL YOU SAY PUMP.


Hope this helps.
 
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Griff22usmc

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Messages
41
Location
Wilmington NC
Hey thanks for the help everyone. Turns out I actually had a one way bleeder cup, left over from the father-son teaching days. I bled just the one and everything is perfect. Ill double check tomorrow after a short commute, but extensive test drives are successful. Now im about to post my next f up.

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk
 
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Dennis

Guest
I bled my brakes in the past just to purge fresh fluid through and about to do it again with a complete brake job (Rotors and Pads)...During the process I noticed I needed to have the engine running in order to do the back ones..anyone else experience this?
 
alrock

alrock

El Diablo
Staff member
Messages
10,677
Location
Scottsdale
Dennis said:
I bled my brakes in the past just to purge fresh fluid through and about to do it again with a complete brake job (Rotors and Pads)...During the process I noticed I needed to have the engine running in order to do the back ones..anyone else experience this?
Click to expand...
Yes, same thing. I could bleed the front w/o the engine but I couldn't do the rears w/o running the engine.
 
alrock

alrock

El Diablo
Staff member
Messages
10,677
Location
Scottsdale
cgalpha08 said:
Really? i didnt know this, because my friend and i bled his '02 blazer w/o the engine running at all.
Click to expand...
Weird, because that's like a whole different truck! :whaa: Pointless (and friendly) sarcasm aside, it would seem that the rears should be able to be bled w/o running the engine. Thought I was doing something wrong (again) when I couldn't build up pressure on the brake pedal w/o using the engine. It's an electric booster and can run without the engine being on.
 
4speedfunk

4speedfunk

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,250
Location
Tardville
You guys are all phartin around. If you want to do it right...you need to reverse-bleed it (add fluid from the lowest point). No pedal pumping. No engine running. No 2-man job.

Air-bubbles naturally travel to the highest point, (your master cylinder). By bleeding from the master cylinder you are trying to force the bubbles down and out thru the bleeder at the caliper...which sits much lower than the master cylinder. The pause between pedal pumps gives the bubbles time to climb back up to where they were at the last pump. Removing all of the air is next to impossible using the traditional method. So next time...use a reverse-bleeder, and pump fluid in thru the caliper bleeder. This forces the air out in the natural direction it is already seeking, and it makes for an absolutely "100% air-free" brake line. They are very inexpensive, and if you cannot find one...you can make your own with a large syringe and a piece of aquarium hose. You simply fill the syringe with fluid...purge the air out of it (like a junky)...put the hose on the bleeder valve...and pump it in the caliper. All of the bubbles will be forced upward and into the master cylinder. I actually use the syringe to suck fluid out of the master cylinder...and pump the same fluid back into the caliper. This prevents over-flowing the master and making a mess.

Try reverse bleeding....you'll never go back.
 
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