Brakes seem to be my subject this evening.
The attached is an intresting article on the quality of brakes and fluid recently inspected.
www.carpages.co.uk/news/brakes-09-11-06.asp
It does lead me to ask a question though.
I did have a saab once where the dealer stated 'dirty brake fluid' on the service schedule sheet.
The fluid was 12 months old.
Does dirty brake fluid actually reduce it's effectiveness ?
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i take that link with a pinch of salt,you could make any brake fluid fail that test if you want to
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I agree - especially when you consider who was doing the testing - Comma - nothing against them but as a manufacturer of brake fluid it's in their interest to promote changing regularly - as you should anyway.
Any views on the dirty brake fluid though ?
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Definite scare mongering ! But I do agree brake fluid isnt changed asoften as it should be. Even a simple thing like a brake pad change should at least have the fluid expelled to retract the calipers and have at least a little fresh in when its done. And its surprising how many gargaes dont do this!
However, far more likely to cause brake fade is cheap, perfectly legal, brake pads and shoes that will give the same problems as boiled fluid. i.e. no effective braking even though the pressure is applied (when the brakes are hot but is ok when cooled down).
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Generally you should change the brake fluid every 2 years, unless you manage to boil the fluid in which case you should change it straight away!
I'm sure most cars go at least double this interval between changes with not much apparent harm to braking performance, but it does help to keep rust out of the system.
Let's be fair, who's going to do an emergency stop every year and measure the braking distance, then analyse tyre wear, brake pad / disc surfaces, shock absorber performance, roundness tolerance of the drums.....?
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Generally you should change the brake fluid every 2 years, unless you manage to boil the fluid in which case you should change it straight away! I'm sure most cars go at least double this interval between changes with not much apparent harm to braking performance, but it does help to keep rust out of the system.
The previous Ford main dealer I used to go to had an instrument that measured the boling point of the fluid in the brake fluid reservoir. They did the test in your presence as part of a free pre-service inspection/advice session. With their approval I let my last car go 5 years before the fluid was changed.
P.S. And I hope this helps to dispel the popular myth that all main dealers are money-grabbing shysters.
--
L\'escargot.
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A brake fluid change at 2 years on a new car is excessive by any standards. My Audi dealer nagged me about it at my recent service and I said no. The fact that they wanted £71 + Vat to do it is suspicious enough in itself to say that many people less confident in their understanding of car mechanics may do it just to be on the safe side. I may consider changing the fluid myself at 3 years.
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Surely if this were the case, Car manufacturers would have revised there service schedules?
I mean how long have cars been using Brake fluid...Also unless it was a sudden contamination, would not
you notice that the brakes were feeling soft?
However it is better to check fluid quality at least every year than not....surely some one could invent something like a litmus paper which changes colour if the water content of the fluid exceeds safe amounts?
It is like the headline 1 in 3 cars have been involved in an accident, maybe but the check only reveals write offs
which is much less than 1 in 3...
IF Comma believe there is a geniune concern maybe they should speak to the Vehicle inspectorate about changing the MOT test....
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I've said this before, so I'll say it again, if moisture getting into the brake fluid is the problem, causing loss of efficiency and corrosion, why on earth don't they have a simple system for stopping moisture-carrying air entering in the first place? Desiccant filter, some other kind of modern breathable barrier, or just route an air entry pipe near to a source of dry air - eg over the exhaust manifold? It can't be all that difficult - there is only one entry point.
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