one man brake bleeding diy

[Big Sky WRX]

don't have someone to help bleed brakes, no problem- Motive brake bleeder is all you need

specifically this one (Ford three prong) Motive Products 0107 - Motive Products Power Bleeder Kits
get one of these while your at it

Motive Products 1820 - Motive Products Brake Pressure Bleeding Catch Bottle Kits

this is really easy, the Motive is also very effective- more effective than the typical two man bleed as you can get long bleeds and pesky pockets you might not have got w/ the two man method

first loosen all four corner lug nuts, jack up the front and put jack stands (I have always used the pinch welds for stands), repeat in the rear- remove the wheels/tires

pop the hood, connect the bleeder adapter to the master cylinder- pump the bleeder (empty) till you hit 10 psi (clearly marked on the dial)- this is just to insure there are no leaks, if no leaks slowly (slowly) remove pump top till all the pressure is relieved (don't remove it at the master cylinder under pressure)



now your ready for your fluid- I like ATE as it comes in two colors, has a high operating temp (wet and dry) and is reasonably priced- the tow colors allow you to alternate between the two- this way insuring a full flush.

one quart should do the trick, but it's always worth having a second on hand- just don't open the second till needed (once opened the fluid absorbs moisture)



with the bleeder filled w/ fluid, pump it up to 15psi- it doesn't need to be any higher. It's time to move to the brakes- the bleed order for the WRX is Front Right, Rear Left, Front Left and Rear Right- use this order and no other- this is what the FSM calls for- it's a little odd, but the WRX uses a diagonal system

remove the rubber cap on the bleeder (don't lose it ), then get a 10mm wrench to crack the bleeder w/- put the wrench on nipple and before cracking it the bleed tube- use the wire to hang the bottle so there is no weight on the tube (lest it pull off and brake fluid goes all over the joint!)



crack the nipple, let the fluid flow- watch for the color change (it'll be gradual- let it get good and blue)- when your satisfied, tighten the bleed screw (snug- don't get carried away or you'll twist it off!) remove the drain tube and bottle, replace the rubber cover and move to the next caliper and repeat- it's that easy

when you all done w/ all four corners- slowly remove the pressure by unscrewing the pump cover, once relieved you can remove the cap from the master cylinder insure to drain all fluid out of the bleeder

start the car up and insure everything is working properly (not driving 75mph down the interstate!) after driving for a bit, check the level of the master cylinder- if it's not to the max line add a little fluid, if it's over take a dropper (clean one) and remove enough fluid to be at the max line

that's it- easy/schmeasy


found a video that might help too

YouTube - Do it yourself brake bleeding

[mycologist]

Nice write up! I did this a couple of weeks ago, definately prefer it to the speedbleeders.

[Tinywagon]

thanks big sky, this'll come in handy for my big ol' brake swap this weekend.

[motherboyxx]

Thanks doing that tomorrow, just found out i need to change my fluid every so often (i am one of those dot 3ers who leaves it in for a decade).

[DUB]

Nice work Big Sky. Thanks.

[Sinister]

sweeeeet

[Big Sky WRX]

once you use this system you probably won't use anything else- makes bleeding easy and is more efficient than the old two man system

[Sinister]

once you use this system you probably won't use anything else- makes bleeding easy and is more efficient than the old two man system

I'm getting my whole brake setup changed out here in the next month.. so I'll probably pick one of them up.

(sorry... PM is coming )

[Shiggity]

I know this is the WRX forum... but anyone know if the order is the same for the 2.5i?

[Big Sky WRX]

I know this is the WRX forum... but anyone know if the order is the same for the 2.5i?

same- they use the same diagonal brake system

[dagger108]

I'm getting my whole brake setup changed out here in the next month.. so I'll probably pick one of them up.

Rebirth! I'm finishing a big rebuild/line replacement, and wish I'd have found this before I bought the HF pump. Only got half way before it started to rain. Was thinking it would be nice to be able to connect a liter bottle of fluid to the reservoir to start. Doooh.

[Heide264]

Do you have any suggestions on modifying the adapter? The adapter on mine is a pain to get on, and I chew up my master cylinder a little bit each time.

+1 on changing brake fluid colors each flush. That's huge.

[Big Sky WRX]

check w/ Motive, they may possible have a better adapter at this point- I can see photobucket did a wonderful job preserving all their photos when they moved to their new version- what a bunch of a$$ hats!

[Rodman]

Thanks for the info.

[Heide264]

check w/ Motive, they may possible have a better adapter at this point- I can see photobucket did a wonderful job preserving all their photos when they moved to their new version- what a bunch of a$$ hats!

I doubt it honestly. I will check though - it'd be worth the cash. Otherwise, I have thought about just getting a spare 3 pronger and cutting it back a bit to have it resemble the stock master cylinder lid more.