Solid, simple, straightforward tutorial. You simplified a process i was hating... having someone sit INSIDE the car and pump the brakes. Gravity bleeding is the way to go.
Excellent video! You can’t imagine how many times I’ve bled brakes the old pump, pump method. My wife is tired of being “the leg” for these projects. The gravity bleed worked brilliantly! Cheers, you’ve made my life a lot easier for the annual brake flush too. 72 Corvette Stingray and 56 Chevy . Thanks, Hop!
I saw my mechanic did that, four brakes at the same time. I was shocked. Never knew it could be this ez, no special tool or yelling down and ups. I could do it myself!
When you have newer cars with ABS that air can cause a problem and would need a scan tool to cycle the pump. It is avoidable if you just keep an eye on it and add fluid.
Great video. For the first time, I paid a brake shop do my brakes, which the pedal has gone down. They replaced the m/c and booster. What a mistake. I haven’t driven the car in a month. The pedal slowly went to the floor. I have speed bleeders that are 15 years old. Maybe they leak? I’ll replace them with standard bleeders. I’m going to do the bleeding like you did. I don’t want to take it back to that shop. I’ll do it myself.
as always hop, a clear well presented and instructional video, all meat and no filler..my son and i will be using this method on our 74 c3 this afternoon..thankyou for this brilliant channel...
Hi Hop! 😀 Thanks so much for sharing this great and helpful info! Question: How do you know when each cylinder has completely drained the air...? Or, how long should I allow each cylinder/caliper to drain? Thanks again! 👍
Didn’t the factory have a sequence as to which bleeder to start with, for example the bleeder furthest from the inlet hose working your way to the other bleeder on the same caliper on the same side as the inlet hose? That is the specific wheel sequence as opposed to the general sequence which is further for the master cylinder working your way in.
Quick question for you..I have an old ford transit with a brake servo. The brakes do not work unless the engine is running..do I need to have the engine running to gravity bleed the brakes?
I have never tried this, I get my wife to press on the brake pedal, even though I have speed bleeders like you showed. why not use a 5 mm silicone hose connected to your bleed screw and the other end to your tray, nothing to clean after bleeding. Also use a turkey baster to remove the old brake fluid from the reservoir and fill with new brake fluid before doing the bleeding, also use a spanner or special spanner for bleed screws and that way no chance of breaking one.
You stated you can do all four lines at once! If you have the front jacked higher then the rear you can still keep it that way to bleed the front too? Thanks for the video I was looking to do it myself! I also have the same car, same color too!
Yes, that is correct. I find it better to have the rear brakes/Wheels lower that the front for bleeding. Also, if the fluid does not flow when you open the bleed valve close the bleed valve and pump the brakes. Then return to the bleed valve and open again for the fluid to flow (make 100 percent sure that bleed valve is closed when pumping the brakes). I would recommend you do one brake at a time if this is your first time. Start with the right rear, then left rear, front right and then front left. Keep fluid in the master cylinder at all times. Remember, do not get any fluid on the paint. You can also use a clear tube on the bleed valves so fluid does not get on your brakes/rotors. I hope it all works out. Please feel free to ask any other questions.
Yes, it does. I would not recommend this with ABS brakes. Also, use a clear hose to attach to the bleed valve so the fluid can flow in a jar and not be so messy.
Thanks for the video. Know you comment on using hoses to manage the fluid coming out, but you may have got brake fluid on the pads, which would be hard/impossible to clean it off if absorbed into the pad. Would you not want to check your pads for brake fluid contamination?
Sure. Always good to clean the pads after maintenance. After I did breaks in the video I cleaned them off. I now have been using the same brake pads for several years with no problem. I do not drive the classic car that much (maybe 6,000 a year) but this brakes are still very strong and solid. Thank you for the input.
