I've replaced my brake and clutch hydraulic fluid a couple times now... It is quite easy to do, and it was free because I did it by myself.

You simply crack the bleed screw open with a hose on nipple into a bucket, starting with the furthest wheel and while refilling reservoir... If you require instructions and guidance, it is best to have someone who is well equipped and who knows what they're doing to actually perform the work.

I had already upgraded to Motul DOT 5.1. Now I have a quart of Bosch' new ESI 6 brake fluid, which is even better for the clutch and ABS circuits in extreme cold weather.

Brake & Wheel Hub > Fluid / Chemical > Brake Fluid | RockAuto

 

Bosch writes everything but what it is... a DOT4 Class 6 brake fluid, which DOT4 class 6 has been a recent addition into ISO 4925, even though that stuff has been used in German cars for over 15 years now.

 

It's a relatively fast operation in a shop as they use a lift and a hydraulic bleeder, it probably takes around 30-40 minutes in total. A normal price in the US would be around $100, Not the same as you are in canada, but sounds a bit expensive to me.

 

I paid about $50 earlier this year the last time my Corolla was done

 

Labor rate is roughly $120/hr for a genuine Toyota dealer (CAN) - round up the 40 min + fluids + environmental fees etc... sounds right for a st(d)ealership

 

I think $170 CAD is a reasonable dealer price today for a brake fluid flush

Agreed that doing it yourself - if an option - will save you almost all of that money, brake fluid is cheap.

 

I will check my service manual to see if it's a recommended or a mandatory service at 48,000 km. It's expensive.

Good for future knowledge, but useless for this instance, it’s already done. And the price wasn’t bad, for a dealer.

 

I do my own using prestone synthetic dot 5 from walmart. I installed speedbleeder bleed screws ($7 each times 4) so I can bleed the brakes as a one person job. takes about 30 minutes on my own at home.

 

No you don't ... DOT 5 is silicone based and is not compatible with DOT 3, DOT 4, and DOT 5.1.

 

One tip, I went to a dealer and asked for a "Flush" and it cost I think around $100. After the "Flush", I inspected the 4 rubber caps at each wheel and it was obvious non had been removed, they were stuck/frozen hard to the bleeder valve. I questioned the service manager, and was told they only replaced what was in the master cylinder.

 

I want to say that when I change my oil, I also change the brake fluid in the master cylinder reservoir every time. I know this is not a brake flush, but my thought is that if i change master cylinder reservoir 10 times more often than a proper "flush" then I feal that I am good to go. I alwise suspected that service shops dont do a proper flush.

 

Why not do it yourself and save a bundle of cash? It isn't difficult.

First buy one of these for ~$70 USD:

Next buy a set of metric brake bleeder wrenches. These are relatively inexpensive on Amazon:

A floor jack makes it much quicker, but you can easily do it with your car's jack.

A Motive bleeder "catch bottle" helps to keep it from getting messy:

But you can just use the brake fluid bottle to catch the brake fluid. You just need a piece of hose to attach to the bleeder nipple.

Although not required, I recommend you buy a turkey baster to suck some fluid out of the reservoir before you start.

I recommend the larger bottle of brake fluid with this method. It normally ensures the pick up tube in bottom of the Motive bottle stays submerged. If it becomes uncovered, it will suck air into the system, and you'll have to start the procedure over. You'll probably also need another bottle of brake fluid.

Since Toyotas do not have a screw on brake reservoir cap like European vehicles, you'll have to buy a kit with a universal cap that has to be tightened down over the car's reservoir cap. Because of this, recommend not putting any fluid in the bottle until you check to see if it will hold an air tight connection.

Steps:
1. Use the turkey baster to suck out some brake fluid before you start.
2. hook up the Motive bottle, and pressurize it to ~15psi to see if the connection is air tight. If the air bleeds off, re-tighten the universal adapter cap over your car's reservoir again and repeat until it holds that pressure.
3. Once it holds pressure for a minute or so, spin open the cap to release the pressure and pour the brake fluid into the Motive bottle. Close the cap and repressurize it to ~10 psi. You should see some fluid passing through the clear hose towards the reservoir. You are not set to start.
4. Jack up the right rear of your car and remove the RR wheel. Attach the brake bleeder wrench, then the hose to the bleeder bottle. Now open the bleeder. You should see dark fluid and/or air bubbles flowing into the catch bottle. The first wheel takes the longest. Once it's done, close the bleeder, remove the hose, and reattach the wheel. Repeat the job for the left rear, right front, then left front...in that order. You might need to give the bottle a few pumps during this process as the pressure drops during the flush.
5. You are done with the flush. Now twist the cap on the large motive bottle to release the air pressure, then remove the universal cap from your car's reservoir. I generally find the fluid in the car's reservoir to be at the correct height, so you can replace the cap and shut the hood.
6. Pour the fluid left in the bottle back in the brake fluid container, as well as the fluid you pumped through your system. A funnel helps to keep it from getting too messy.
7. Take the used bottle of brake fluid to your recycler. I've found the local car parts stores (like Advance Auto) take used brake fluid.

Unless you have a stable of automobiles that you're constantly bleeding the brakes, don't keep the remaining brake fluid. Brake fluid is hydroscopic, so it absorbs moisture from the air. By the time the average person needs to use it again, it probably has enough moisture to be detrimental to your system.

Generally speaking, people should flush their brake system every 3 years. If you notice your brake fluid has a dark tint, you are overdue for a change...lol

Except for the floor jack, the initial outlay for these parts is less than $100 USD. It more than pays for itself the first time you do it yourself.

Good luck!

 

Why not do it yourself and save a bundle of cash? It isn't difficult.

First buy one of these for ~$70 USD:
View attachment 403547

Next buy a set of metric brake bleeder wrenches. These are relatively inexpensive on Amazon:
View attachment 403548
A floor jack makes it much quicker, but you can easily do it with your car's jack.

A Motive bleeder "catch bottle" helps to keep it from getting messy:
View attachment 403549
But you can just use the brake fluid bottle to catch the brake fluid. You just need a piece of hose to attach to the bleeder nipple.

Although not required, I recommend you buy a turkey baster to suck some fluid out of the reservoir before you start.

I recommend the larger bottle of brake fluid with this method. It normally ensures the pick up tube in bottom of the Motive bottle stays submerged. If it becomes uncovered, it will suck air into the system, and you'll have to start the procedure over. You'll probably also need another bottle of brake fluid.

Since Toyotas do not have a screw on brake reservoir cap like European vehicles, you'll have to buy a kit with a universal cap that has to be tightened down over the car's reservoir cap. Because of this, recommend not putting any fluid in the bottle until you check to see if it will hold an air tight connection.

Steps:
1. Use the turkey baster to suck out some brake fluid before you start.
2. hook up the Motive bottle, and pressurize it to ~15psi to see if the connection is air tight. If the air bleeds off, re-tighten the universal adapter cap over your car's reservoir again and repeat until it holds that pressure.
3. Once it holds pressure for a minute or so, spin open the cap to release the pressure and pour the brake fluid into the Motive bottle. Close the cap and repressurize it to ~10 psi. You should see some fluid passing through the clear hose towards the reservoir. You are not set to start.
4. Jack up the right rear of your car and remove the RR wheel. Attach the brake bleeder wrench, then the hose to the bleeder bottle. Now open the bleeder. You should see dark fluid and/or air bubbles flowing into the catch bottle. The first wheel takes the longest. Once it's done, close the bleeder, remove the hose, and reattach the wheel. Repeat the job for the left rear, right front, then left front...in that order. You might need to give the bottle a few pumps during this process as the pressure drops during the flush.
5. You are done with the flush. Now twist the cap on the large motive bottle to release the air pressure, then remove the universal cap from your car's reservoir. I generally find the fluid in the car's reservoir to be at the correct height, so you can replace the cap and shut the hood.
6. Pour the fluid left in the bottle back in the brake fluid container, as well as the fluid you pumped through your system. A funnel helps to keep it from getting too messy.
7. Take the used bottle of brake fluid to your recycler. I've found the local car parts stores (like Advance Auto) take used brake fluid.

Unless you have a stable of automobiles that you're constantly bleeding the brakes, don't keep the remaining brake fluid. Brake fluid is hydroscopic, so it absorbs moisture from the air. By the time the average person needs to use it again, it probably has enough moisture to be detrimental to your system.

Generally speaking, people should flush their brake system every 3 years. If you notice your brake fluid has a dark tint, you are overdue for a change...lol

Except for the floor jack, the initial outlay for these parts is less than $100 USD. It more than pays for itself the first time you do it yourself.

Good luck!

None of these tools and complications are required... All you need is an 8mm or 10mm closed wrench, and about two feet of hose fitted on bleed nipple to drain brake fluid in a bucket.

 

Excellent instructions Edgeman!

One question: on Step 3, is there any issue with air in the Motive tube being pushed into the master cylinder? Some master cylinders are really tiny and it seems like you could be pushing all of the fluid out of the master cylinder before the tube is filled, and end up with an air pocket filling the lines.

In that case you would just have to "pre-blead" the tube by pumping fluid out before hooking up to Master Cylinder.

 

Not really. Remember air is compressible, but not fluid. The air in the reservoir will be compressed to ~10psi, but the fluid level in the reservoir will not start to drop until you open a bleeder. Since fluid is heavier than the compressed air, the fluid from the Motive bottle will drop to the bottom and be flushed through the system. The only time air is introduced to the system is if the pickup in the Motive bottle is uncovered while you're bleeding the system.

One thing that I encountered the last time I bled my brakes was that I didn't remove any fluid from the car's brake reservoir before I started. I ended up having brake fluid over flow from the top of the reservoir into the engine bay. I pulled out the turkey baster and dropped the level back down between the min and max lines, popped on the cap, then used a garden hose to wash off all of the brake fluid I spilled in the engine compartment. The only other time I've had a spill was when I first started using this on my Tacoma, and I filled the bottle without checking for an air tight connection. As soon as it got about ~5 PSI, brake fluid started spraying out into the engine bay.

So the two basic things I want to emphasize here are to (a) always use a turkey baster to remove some fluid from the reservoir first (I try to pull out about half to 3/4 of the fluid first), then pressurize the bottle's connection BEFORE adding fluid to the Motive bottle.

I also recommend replacing the clear plastic hoses every 8-10 years. I had one crack on me a few years ago. I think the bottle was about 10 years old. If they start getting dingy, just replace them. They are cheap, and it takes <10 minutes to replace them.

What I didn't mention above was the time required to do a brake flush. Using my floor jack, I can probably do the job in 30-45 minutes from walking out the door to closing the hood on my Tacoma. If I nail the air tight connection, ~30 minutes. Fiddling with it might add another 15 minutes. Using your car's jack probably adds ~15 minutes to the job.

 

One thing that I encountered the last time I bled my brakes was that I didn't remove any fluid from the car's brake reservoir before I started. I ended up having brake fluid over flow from the top of the reservoir into the engine bay.

If it's an air tight connection why did it overflow? I'm having trouble picturing this.

 

Thanks for the replies an suggestions.

 

Doing it yourself really isn't difficult.

How to Bleed Brakes By Yourself - YouTube

 

It overflowed when I removed the adapter. No leaks until then.

Normally the pressurized air in the car's brake reservoir will push the fluid in the large Motive bottle's clear hose back into the Motive bottle when you crack open the knob on the top of the bottle (that holds the pump handle) resulting in no drips or leaks, but since there wasn't enough air to push it all back, some of the fluid in the hose ran back down into the reservoir overfilling it. If you remove the fluid from the car's reservoir before you start, it normally leaves you with the correct brake fluid level with no spills after you remove the adapter.

One thing I saw in the video that looked good was to use the drain bottle to suck fluid out of the master cylinder reservoir instead of using a turkey baster. I'll try that next time.

 

That makes sense. There needs to be an air pocket in the master cylinder which is pressurized and pushes fluid in the tube back into the Motive Bottle when you open the knob on the bottle. Otherwise, it could get messy.

From the sounds of it, it seems pretty fool proof (preventing a mess) if you take the steps you outlined, and little to no risk of messing up the brake system unless as you say, "the only time air is introduced to the system is if the pickup in the Motive bottle is uncovered while you're bleeding the system." That would not be good if the ABS controller had air pushed into it. I assume no brake systems could be damaged by 15 psi.

I hear bleeding Hybrid car brakes is a bit more involved, but that's another topic!

 

It really is an easy process. My local chapter of the BMW CCA had a tech session where this was demonstrated. I went home and ordered a Motive bottle as soon as I got home. I initially bought the "European" package, then added additional adapters to do my Honda and Toyota. I added a quick disconnect which I bought from Motive to switch between adapters. The European adapter is much easier to use since it screws down in place of the reservoir cap. The universal has a chain that loops under the brake master, with two "J-hook" screws. You tighten the screws evenly to have even pressure on the Honda or Toyota reservoir. You can skip the pressure check step if you are using the European adapter. Once you screw the cap down it has an air tight seal. Now if you haven't swapped that hose in a few years, you might want to do the pressure check...lol

 

I saw a Utube (I think it was Eric the car guy) demonstrate the J hook/chain style cap and it looked really fidgety to get a tight seal. Too bad all the caps weren't the European screw-on style, it sounds fool proof.

I'm pretty cautious about messing with brake hydraulics, I had a bad experience back in the 80's (when I was less smart ) . I was replacing brake pads and compressed the caliper piston and somehow blew the master cylinder. It's been so long since it happened, but I'm guessing what I did wrong was forget to remove the cap from the master cylinder before compressing the caliper piston - and created too much "back pressure" which distorted the MC seals. I'm extra careful now and not only do I leave the MC cap loose, but I also open the bleeder while compressing the caliper. Some even go so far as to also pinch the flex hose shut while the bleeder is open.

I've also heard you can damage the MC when bleeding with the two man method if the brake pedal is pressed beyond it's typical range. This can damage a MC seal that rubs on a rusty portion of the MC piston.

 

For reference, USD $89.99 at Crown Toyota. I use the two-person manual flush method, about $10 in fluid and some free time.

 

For reference, USD $89.99 at Crown Toyota. I use the two-person manual flush method, about $10 in fluid and some free time.

Wow that is a great deal, assuming they are purging fluid from all 4 calipers and not just doing the turkey baster/master cylinder refill trick.

 

If a dealer isn't flushing the brake fluid out of all bleeders then they aren't doing their job. It's a reason why I like to do it myself with a helper.

That being said, I've seen dealers not doing that. One seemed to flush out of one bleeder, the other didn't touch the rear wheels. That's how the auto service industry got its bad name.

 

I just paid $170 for a brake fluid flush (at 48,000 km)

Wow! I've a 2007 Toyota Tacoma with 128123 KM and added brake fluid to bleed the brakes at about 112654 KM and sold my old (2004) Hyundai Elantra in 2019 with the original factory fluid!

Who sold you on a fluid flush? Were you experiencing issues?

 

Are you located in a dry climate area like Arizona? I flush my brakes every 3 years on my truck with drum brakes and the fluid comes out rusty every time for the first few squirts. The brake cylinders are not that old. I think climate can play a factor.

 

Does anyone know what is involved with a brake fluid flush on a 2021 Corolla L?

Try searching on YouTube - I'd be surprised if you didn't find the answer and a video of how it's done.

Dealers can't be trusted and will do work outside the schedule or w/o checking to see if you approve the BOOK PRICE You should be able to call a dealer and get the BOOK HOURS (thus price) for a brake flush. Note that the BOOK exaggerates the time required and most mechanics regularly 'beat the book' and they and their dealer pocket the difference while the customer always pays the book (sometimes more if they experience 'difficulties') plus a few extra 'shop fees' and recycling fees.

Today 170CN = 125US +/-

 

I used to bleed brakes myself but ABS modules scare me however both of my cars do not have ABS.
Unscrew one bleeder, put a hose on it and drop it into a glass jar, with some fluid in the bottom to keep air out.. Fill the master reservoir.
Pump the pedal slowly, used to do it quick to really blast the lines and crevasses out but the module might not like that.
I understand why people just suck the reservoir almost dry and fill it up, but that is not a brake fluid flush.

 

Interesting info on why brake fluid should at least be tested. Yes I know, consider the source.

Best Brake Bleeding Kit for Your Car | Phoenix Systems

Stop searching! Find comprehensive reviews and comparisons of the best brake bleeding kits for your car. Bleed your brakes like a pro! Shop Now!

www.brakebleeder.com

 

Interesting info on why brake fluid should at least be tested.
Copper Is a Big Problem and a Tell-Tale Indicator
Brake lines have a copper lining that begin a slow corrosion process from the time brake fluid is added during manufacturing. Copper levels can actually predict when more damaging corrosion will occur. It’s like a wear indicator for your brake fluid. Copper plays a vital role in brake system safety. Government studies have proven that copper can actually plate to ABS components causing them not to operate properly resulting in longer stopping distance. In addition, copper can accelerate the corrosion of iron components used in the brake system.

Copper Summary

• Brake lines are lined with copper.
• Copper predicts more damaging corrosion, it’s a wear indicator!
• Copper can damage ABS components.
• Copper accelerates corrosion.
• Proper brake fluid exchange removes copper and replenishes the corrosion inhibitors.

Now, it would seem at first glance that we have an obvious issue here with copper. And, if unspecified 'government studies' have demonstrated that 'copper in solution can actually plate to unspecified ABS components resulting in longer stopping distances,' why plate the fucking lines with copper in the first place?

"Brake lines are lined with copper"

"What material are brake lines made of? There are Only three options that are appropriate—steel (usually with a tin coating to prevent rust), stainless steel (that is often polished), or NiCopp (seamless copper-nickel alloy tubing that is DOT approved for hydraulic brake systems). Jul 27, 2016

Brake lines are made of these.

It would appear the the 'lined with copper' assertion bears investigating. The copper alloy makes sense as it appears teh alloy is in the neighborhood of eighty (80%) percent copper (than would help with all the bending, right?) So, maybe our boys didn't get the Science right. Might be a minor error, but does call into question the comments about the 'Government Studies' having proved this, that or the other as opposed to having demonstrated plating of unspecified ABS components. Why not change the susceptible ABS components if this is an issue?

Of course, who cares? Dealers could hand out these strips - but they don't - 15 Brake Fluid Test Strips $22 Prime

From what I've seen, the 'corrosion' of teh ABS parts is rust. And rust is, guess what? "copper" colored stuff. So, what we may be dealing with is corroded brake lines or brake fluid that did not have the corrosion inhibitors or - more likely - moisture in your lines.

"Pour water IN a brake fluid tank; It will sink to the bottom, and then slowly be absorbed by the alcohol that is in brake fluid. This is bad. It will cause internal corrosion of any ferrous components, and there are many important, polished, ferrous surfaces in a brake system. "

So, get a moisture test pen off eBay for ten bucks? Or borrow one from Advance Auto?

For a video search "Testing your Brake Fluid for Copper?! Faye Hadley" on the YouTube She bought a hundred strips for $75! But also uses the test pen - another video. Caution - she's an earner!

As for the test strips to find copper, googol'ing about found all manner of test strips from fentanyl to pregnancy but only the one (above) to detect copper. Suspicious since the ability to test for the presence of copper in a solution would seem a rather basic chemical task and, if it could be done with a teensy tiny strip of paper - why are there not a plethora of alternatives out there on the eBay?

It seems that "water in the fluid' would be the indicator to trust - but let's hear another opinion.

 

For those that done the brake flush themselves. Did you have to have the car into service mode?

 

What's "service mode?"

It doesn't make any difference the condition of the car's electronic systems. You can probably flush the system with the engine running, or with the battery disconnected and the engine removed...lol, but I just do it with the engine off and the key removed.

All you are doing is replacing the old brake fluid that has absorbed a little water with fresh brake fluid.

 

I think he may be asking about the service mode of the rear brakes. No, you don't need service mode because the brake pads are not going anywhere.

 

"the brake pads are not going anywhere."

Well, the brake pads won't be going anywhere without him.

 

I bought a motive power bleeder and flushed the brake fluid on mine this past weekend. I bought the kit with the universal adapter but decided to make my own adapter for the master cylinder res out of some plumbing and air fittings. Pedal feels the same as it did before the bleeding so it appears to have worked quite well.

My main goal of this task was to improve the clutch pedal feel in the dead of winter. We hit -25C here in the winters so clutch pedals stiffen up pretty bad. Replaced stock fluid with the motul dot 5.1 invader has recommended. Lets hope it works. -25C temps and the clutch was brutal. Also changed the tranny fluid last year but that alone didn't do much

 

I had already upgraded to Motul DOT 5.1. Now I have a quart of Bosch' new ESI 6 brake fluid, which is even better for the clutch and ABS circuits in extreme cold weather.

Brake & Wheel Hub > Fluid / Chemical > Brake Fluid | RockAuto