matts6887

How often should this be changed out and do I have to go through the hassle of unscrewing the brake lines at each brake and bleed the system or can i just siphon out the old fluid from the reservoir and refill it and be done with it?

EDIT: I looked in the diy's but did not see any posts on changing out brake fluid.

bob2200

As I recall, Lexus recommends a brake fluid change every 30,000 miles or two years (whichever comes first).

There is nothing special about changing the brake fluid on a RX300. That's probably why you didn't find a RX300 brake fluid change DIY.

With power steering fluid, for example, there is fluid circulation. Not so with brake fluid. Water in the brake fluid lines can boil, causing compressible vapor; not a good thing. Also, water can cause corrosion.

fastnoypi

Here's the diy..ignore the part about replacing the bleeder screw unless you want to use a speed bleeder. Read posts #5-7

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...ement-diy.html

For a full flush, bleed each caliper till the fluid runs clear and top off the master cylinder as needed.

In AZ, i bled brakes every 2 years to keep optimum pedal performance. Just let your shop do it.

matts6887

This may be something i can take care of myself one evening.

fastnoypi

the procedure takes up more space than an oil change. We know your garage space limitations, tools and HOA situation. For the non experienced its a 2 person job. Let your shop do it.

salimshah

This is a wonderful old book. Basic things are the same but most of the things are explained very well. It was my first book on car repairs.

If you aspire to be gear head, you should get it. it is a wonderful coffee table [or bathroom reading] material.

If you dont aspire to be gear head, it gives you insight into cars and you can have a reasonable discussion with a mechanic.



Salim

matts6887

I still think "if push came to shove" so to speak; I still believe I could take care of it myself; or; go to one of the 2 people that I have contact with; mainly my sisters husband who has done plenty of items such as this before; or another contact that works at a local shop. Now; on the other hand; when the time comes; I may just siphon out the old fluid and dump in new stuff even if it means Im not flushing the system. and also its in the interest of saving some $ by doing it myself.

salimshah

Matt:

The DIY instructions for RX vs any other vehicle are the same for brake bleeding. There are plenty of videos which show how.

I highly encourage people to DIY and use the best parts.

One of the things about DIY is the risk/damage during and after the repairs along with availability of space and tools. None of us can say anything about your skills/ability but you have shared the limitations of space and tools.

Just be aware about the risk of a brake job going bad. I personally have experienced a brake failure after a brake job done by 'professionals'. Luckily the speed was so slow that I made 3 turns to be back at the shop and could use the auxiliary brake to come to a long stop.

I would classify myself among enthusiast DIYer but I still make a call that some things I would do myself and few I leave it for mechanic.

Make your choice wisely. Also the videos and DIY's make things look simple and no one posts the things they did wrong.

I hope I did not dampen your enthusiasm.

Salim

PS: There are many thing\s that a DIYer and shade tree mechanics that do wrong as they do not have the right tools. For bleeding, they do not prevent bottoming out of the pedal which ends up compromising master cylinder piston. A skilled dryer/ shade_tree_mehanic would know this. A well equipped shop would use pressure or vacuum to make the repair.

matts6887

Well; I dont think it should cause a problem if Im just siphoning out the old fluid from the reservoir and putting new fluid in would it? I mean It would not be messing with the brake lines or anything of that sort. It would just be getting out as much of the old fluid as I can with a siphon; and just putting in new stuff and be done with it at least for a time,

salimshah

If you siphon out too much, you can introduce air in the system. Introduction of air at the master cylinder is 10 times more difficult to remove than in one of the slaves.

So if you must, then leave bottom 1/4 in there to be safe.

Would it help, not really and not too much, There is no circulation of the fluid (only push to displace and return to release). The lines are not cleared of the old to introduce new fluid. We can get into the discussion of liquid allowing some molecules to travel (obviously the old is darker), but it does not contribute much ... although visually it may appear better in the master cylinder.

Salim

matts6887

well i wont take it to the bottom then. I would just siphon out what I can; leaving some of the old left in there and depress and release the brake pedal several times w the vehicle running so it will hopefully circulate a little by going back and forth between the reservoir and the lines(I think?) so that way there is at least some fresh stuff in the lines.

fastnoypi

+1

Learn from this experience. If you don't know what you are doing, a bad brake service can potentially kill you or severely injure others at speed.


Completely understand how a brake system works and potential risks if steps are not followed.
You do not need to mess with brake lines unless you are replacing them. Siphoning old fluid from the reservoir and replacing with new does not service your brakes in any form unless you are doing a bleed or flush in the process. The new fluid will sit at the top of the master cylinder slowly drawing moisture from the air. Your thought process of how the brake system works and flows is not the same as a power steering system.

matts6887

well; either way its gonna have to be done at some point down the road. Not right now though cause my brakes work just fine thankfully. It probably will end up being a job for strictly a shop that does mostly brakes along with some maintenance items. Even if it does not come cheap to get it done. To me; the 2 most important safety items of a vehicle are brakes and tires and if either one needs "servicing" then its best to do it sooner than later imo.

EDIT: I am gonna go into a brakes plus location tuesday and have them inspect the system and if the fluid needs flushing/changing I will do it then even though its gonna run me a tad over 50 bucks to get it done; imo it is 50 bucks well spent due to it being a major safety issue.

artbuc

The shop can not tell you if fluid needs to be replaced. Only you know that based on how old the current fluid is. Replace fluid if it has been 3 years or more since last service. Ask them what technique they use and inspect bleeders after job to make sure you see signs they have been used. Some shops do unethical stuff like just siphon old fluid out of MC which is pretty much worthless.

matts6887

well the thing is they should know if they have done it before which they have. And I looked through reviews for them and so far I did not see anything drastically bad about them. So I just want to do this for my reassurance so to speak. And if i do decide to get it done then i will make sure they wont get paid for the service unless it is done right.I dont know when it was last changed either as the dealer I got the car from did not have previous service records. So I think its best if i have it at least inspected. And i still think they should be able to tell one way or another if it needs to be flushed/changed.