replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

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sjacoby
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replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by sjacoby »

Hello, looking for some info, I have just replaced my front drivers rubber brake line and also the metal line that leads to the master cylinder. I bled the line at the caliper extensively while topping up my fluid. I am left with extremely poor performing brakes. All pads and rotors are brand new and were working great before my repair. (I only bled the front drivers side caliper) What is my next step? In addition, I have been running without my abs without an issue for some time now as my abs sensor line is severed on the passenger hub. Thanks
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HenryJ
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by HenryJ »

To properly bleed the brakes you need to bleed them all. Brake fluid is hygroscopic and the water content affects the hydraulic properties of the fluid. Even if you had the air out , the new fluid to that one wheel might differ from the fluid to they others?
Start from the farthest and take your time to get clean fluid to that wheel. Start at the right rear. Then move to the Left rear. Once those are done, move to the right front and finish at the left front. You will need to use ,at the very least, a pint of new fluid. As much as a quart could be required to get the fluid to flush clean. Take a long time to do the right side. Those are sending fresh fluid all the way from the master cylinder. The left side cleans up a little faster since new fluid is already in the lines now.

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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by killian96ss »

Did you have someone helping you bleed the brakes? If not, you should, because unless you have a pressure bleeder, vacuum bleeder, or speed bleeder valves, you won't get all the air out by yourself. Those cheap one man bleeders don't work very well because air gets sucked back in through the threads on the bleeder valves when you release the brake pedal.
Follow the procedure above and get a friend to help you. Slowly start to push the pedal down and simultaneously open the bleeder valve. Before the pedal bottoms out close the bleeder valve. This will prevent air from getting sucked back in.
When you replaced the master cylinder line, did the fluid in the reservoir ever get too low? If any air got sucked into the reservoir, you will need to remove it and manually bench bleed it. That is the only way to get air out of the master cylinder.

Steve
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by sjacoby »

When I took off the line to the master cylinder, I wasn't getting fluid running out of the master cylinder...does this mean I will have air in it? The reservoir was lower than the min line. As well, I did a 2 person bleed.
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by sjacoby »

what is a bench bleed? Is this just disconnecting the lines off the master cylinder one by one and bleeding them while pushing the pedal? Thank you so much for your help
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by killian96ss »

To bench bleed a master cylinder you have to remove it from the vehicle, put in in a vise, run lines from the 2 outlet ports so that they dump fluid back into the reservoir, and then manually push the cylinder in and out until no more air bubbles come out of the 2 outlets. It helps to use clear hose so you can see the bubbles. While bleeding the master use a rubber mallet and tap on the housing. This helps remove trapped air bubbles. All of these steps should be done with the master cylinder sitting level. Most parts stores sell cheap kits that include fittings and hose to make this process easier.
I use Speed Bleeders on all my vehicles to help bleed the brakes. They are basically spring loaded one way check valves that replace the stock bleeder valves. You just open them 1/4 turn, pump the brakes, close them, and your done! They don't let any air back in and you can easily bleed the brakes by yourself.

Steve
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by HenryJ »

Another idea for "bench bleeding" would be to run the hose from the outlet back into the reservoir while still mounted on the vehicle. Have a friend pump the pedal to purge the air.

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killian96ss
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by killian96ss »

HenryJ wrote:Another idea for "bench bleeding" would be to run the hose from the outlet back into the reservoir while still mounted on the vehicle. Have a friend pump the pedal to purge the air.
If you do it this way, you need to jack up the rear of the truck high enough to make the master cylinder level. If its not level, you won't get all of the air out. It's also much easier to buy the cheap bench bleed kit (usually like $5) than to disconnect the factory lines and try and make them work.

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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by ApproachMedium »

I highly recommend doing the full bleed. When my rear brakes were messed up with the slide pins my fluid had gone bad from the overheating of the calipers. We used my dads suction tool he uses for the boat to change the oil remove the fluid and gunk from the master cylinder and filled it with fresh fluid and then bled the system. Put a whole bottle thru the system and now my brakes work incredibly good for a GM car.

Interesting side note: Both VWs I have owned recommend replacing the brake fluid every 2 years in the scheduled maintenance. I don't recall seeing this in the owners manual for the CC, maybe in the service manuals? All I know is with all new fluid my truck stopped a lot better. My previous truck, a 1990 suburban had a lot of brake issues also and with bleeding and replacing the fluid completely in the truck gave me a great increase in brake performance. Just my :2:
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by rlrnr53 »

two years is the recommended service interval that I have seen in more than one manual. It seems to be the Industry standard.
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by ApproachMedium »

Awesome thanks for confirming that. You would be surprised I have told some friends/people/mechanics that and they look at me like I am nuts.
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by rlrnr53 »

I've had the same looks, most people don't or won't understand why.
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Re: replaced metal and rubber front drivers brake line

Post by ApproachMedium »

Usually I get. "well i never did that to any of my cars, and they work fine." Sure they do...... and I am sure if they did it the brakes would work so much better they might just believe me lol.
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