Does anyone flush their brake fluid each year?

[BMWR1150GS]

Yes. My BMW motorcycle gets a flush of the front and rear systems annually along with the clutch circuit. These motorcycle systems are limited in their volume (only a few hundred milliliters each) and can collect considerable junk and water. Also, the ABS system on the BMW notorcycles can fail if the DOT 4 is not clean and changed rountinely. A new ABS pump for the BMW motorcycle is very costly. To my knowledge, they are not repairable.

The cars get DOT 3 replacement every 2-3 years.

 

[Mr.Fork]

Makes sense Dennis - bikes are high performance machines and they have a very limited amount of fluid. But most bikes in North America (especially northern) are driven maybe 5-10000 km a year. I would think maybe every 5 years or 40000km (what every came first).

I will comment however that I never heard of flushing brake fluids until the Japanese started making them mandatory as part of their 'maintenance schedule' back in the early 90's which I still believe is bit of a money grab. Yeah, all fluids should be swapped over time, but I'm surprised no one has ever questioned the practice of every 2-3 years. Does DOT 3 degrade that much over time? My 86 Celebrity says no.

 

[Trucku]

Yes I do, I also do the coolant the same time.

 

[Big Jim]

Quote:

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Makes sense Dennis - bikes are high performance machines and they have a very limited amount of fluid. But most bikes in North America (especially northern) are driven maybe 5-10000 km a year. I would think maybe every 5 years or 40000km (what every came first).

Your Celebrity may say no, but the 86 Toyota belonging to the kid next door says yes. I helped him flush his brake and clutch system last week because he lost the clutch. The fluid was like mud. Although we got the clutch functioning again, I'm picturing that he may very well soon be looking at replacing the clutch master and slave as well as some hydraulic parts. Mud does not = good brakes.

I will comment however that I never heard of flushing brake fluids until the Japanese started making them mandatory as part of their 'maintenance schedule' back in the early 90's which I still believe is bit of a money grab. Yeah, all fluids should be swapped over time, but I'm surprised no one has ever questioned the practice of every 2-3 years. Does DOT 3 degrade that much over time? My 86 Celebrity says no.

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[Big Jim]

For smoe reason my response did not show up on the above post.

Although it is only a sample of one, your Celebrity may say no, the kid next door's 86 Toyota says yes.

I helped him flush his brake and clutch fluid last week because he lost the clutch. His brake and clutch fluid was like mud. Although we got his clutch functioning again from the flush, I suspect that he will soon need to replace the clutch master and slave as well as many brake hydraulic parts. Mud does not = good brake fluid.

 

[Brandon]

I flush my brake fluid once every 2 years or 20K miles. I've installed speed bleeders which makes the job super easy for one person to do alone.

http://www.speedbleeder.com/

 

[Sienna Driver]

Every 3 years or so. I have speed bleeder but still take about 2 hours to do.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Every 2 years - that's what Audi and BMW recommended on my cars.