So, your Volvo buddy....has he had many customers die in horrible fiery accidents caused by failed brakes?

Brake fluid absorbs water over time and will eventually become more susceptible to boiling under very hard braking. It's probably a good idea to bleed the brakes every few years, or as a rough guide, whenever you're replacing the rear rotors. (The rears often last two to three times as long as the fronts...)

Get a Haynes manual, a PowerBleeder, some good syn brake fluid and DIY it one afternoon....

 

In addition to the very excellent points raised by the redoubtable Mr. Saunders, have you priced any of the delicate ABS components lately. These little fellas absolutely hate crud and moisture and usually react by quitting on the job. So, if you like knowing that you have ABS and want to keep it, change out your fluid per the recommended service intervals, at a minimum. If you spend the 35.00 USD or so for the power bleeder, it makes the process quick and painless and doable as part of your ANNUAL maintenance routine.

 

Many auto manufacturers do not recommend flushing or bleeding the brake system on a scheduled basis, unless the system has been opened or exposed. It's a closed system, and unless there's been air or moisture that has entered the system, it should last a very long time.

If your brake is working well and the fluid dosn't look that bad, I would leave it alone.

Having said that, I bleed my system every 2 or 3 years.

 

Thanks for the excellent suggestions mike saunders & saaboheme. I really appreciate that. I was just looking for the Haynes manual over the internet actually. It seems to be little hard to find one of those copies in the US, but I'll find it.

So, your Volvo buddy....has he had many customers die in horrible fiery accidents caused by failed brakes?

Actually, maybe 6 or 7 years ago, that happened to my friends 240 wagon. They missed two stop signs. Fortunately, it didn't hit anything.

 

Many auto manufacturers do not recommend flushing or bleeding the brake system on a scheduled basis, unless the system has been opened or exposed. It's a closed system, and unless there's been air or moisture that has entered the system, it should last a very long time.

If your brake is working well and the fluid dosn't look that bad, I would leave it alone.

Having said that, I bleed my system every 2 or 3 years.

Thanks for the excellent information rotate. I think it has been 4-5 years since the last brake flush.

 

NG 900 Recommended Service Schedule:

Brake fluid renewal - The interval for this service item is based on time and mileage. It must be carried out every two years or 24,000 miles, whichever comes sooner.

 

NG 900 Recommended Service Schedule:

Brake fluid renewal - The interval for this service item is based on time and mileage. It must be carried out every two years or 24,000 miles, whichever comes sooner.

IMO, this is far too often - there is such a thing as "over-maintenance"..
Saab/GM should know better....Even here, I'll bet few follow this - and for what ????

Other manufacturers may specify this and that for themselves....and that is as far as it goes...

 

Two years might be too often, but never is too long.

I last bled my brakes a couple of years ago when I bought the car and the fluid was totally dark and looked like 30-weight oil. I did my wife's a few months ago when I did a 4-wheel brake job, and her fluid looked better -- like used cooking oil -- because her brakes had been bled in 2003.

With a PowerBleeder, the job takes maybe 45 minutes to an hour, so there's really no reason not to do it every couple of years.

 

I have to change my brake fluid after every trackday; I boil it whilst on the circuit and it never recovers.
2 year interval for fluid change is based on exhaustive testing, it is not excessively frequent. Once an easi-bleed kit has been bought the fluid's cheap enough so why not annually?

 

Ragtop: 2 year interval for fluid change is based on exhaustive testing, it is not excessively frequent. Once an easi-bleed kit has been bought the fluid's cheap enough so why not annually?

I could not possibly agree more. Fresh clean fluid annually is very cheap insurance to guarantee that your system is moisture, dirt and corrosion free. I know a lot of people think we don't really need brakes since they only slow us down, but hey, every once in a great while we do have to stop.

 

I know a lot of people think we don't really need brakes since they only slow us down, but hey, every once in a great while we do have to stop.

Isn't that what trees and rock walls are for? And if you carom carefully off parked cars, any corner is a breeze. Just add a cow-catcher, like the old locomotives used to have, and you won't have to worry about any stray livestock or the odd pedestrian.....

I agree with the semi-frequent brake bleeding. After seeing the difference between my nasty brake fluid and my wife's semi-clean stuff, I'm going to do hers every two years. Not every year because last time, I bled the system and replaced with what I had on hand -- the ATE Super Blue I was saving for myself ;oops:

 

I have to change my brake fluid after every trackday; I boil it whilst on the circuit and it never recovers.
2 year interval for fluid change is based on exhaustive testing, it is not excessively frequent. Once an easi-bleed kit has been bought the fluid's cheap enough so why not annually?

What fluid are you boiling?

 

What fluid are you boiling?

DOT 5.1.

I only do it on the track. I've not tested my new brakes yet, that was with the 308mm 'Viggen' brakes and uprated pads.

 

Thanks for all the info! I'll do it sometime next week!