Brake fluid DIY replacement

**Frey7190** · 01-02-2009 05:08 PM

Alright you guys, has anyone made a DIY on replacing the brake fluid from our B6's yet?? Mine is all green moldy looking and my brakes feel a bit spongy, and the moment I put more than 1/2 the resivour with fluid, it spills all over the brake booster and the black paint falls off....

Can someone direct me to a DIY or a detailed how to? (pics would be great!)

ALSO ECS has those stainless steel lines, what do I gain by getting those and replacing what is currently on my car??

My current setup is:

Drilled/Slotted with OEM calipers on the back
Front is 100% stock til march, when I buy the Drilled and slotted rotors for the front too...

**downhillracer** · 01-02-2009 05:14 PM

You need a power bleeder pumped up to 2 bars pressure for brakes. Remember it is a weird sequence listed also. It is closest to furthest in blead order on our cars. Left Fr, Right Fr, Left Rr, Right Rr.

For clutch, the pressure is a little higher, at 2.5 bar, and be sure to bleed out at least 100cm3 of fluid from the slave cylinder nipple.

All from Bentley.

**doublezero30** · 01-02-2009 07:08 PM

^you dont have to do the clutch too if you do a brake flush do you? and do you 100% need a "power bleeder"?

OP, i believe the stainless lines are stronger and somehow help braking performance. i read in another thread that the ECS "direct fit" lines are not direct fit and the user had to drill something out to fit them right.

also, since downhillracer didnt mention it...each caliper has a bleeder screw you have to open then hook the power bleeder/bleeder catch bottle up to. going in the order he mentioned, you pump the brakes until the fluid coming out it new. remember to fill the brake resivior constantly so you get no air in the lines. thats bad and you will have to start all over.

**ziggituning** · 01-02-2009 07:29 PM

The SS lines are more to increase brake pedal feel and eliminate any spongy feel, since it does not expand under high pressure (because of the braiding), the next thing you can do is upgrade you brake fluid to a high quality higher temp fluid, this type of race fluid will have a higher boiling point and thus allow you to brake harde and longer before you get any fade (unless you run cheap pads), the downside is it is recomended to flush the race fluids more often than the reg fluids.

As for the power bleeding the opinions vary, I have done both and have not seen any major diff, in both cases you will need to loosen the bleeder valves on each caliper one at a time, run the fluid until the new fluid comes thru.

Key points:
-make sure the reservoir is always full
-be careful, brake fluid is highly corrosive, IT EATS PAINT, as you have seen, so keep lots of brake cleaner spray and towels handy.
-use a small clear tube you put on the bleeder valve to see when all the air is out of the system on each caliper, and when the nes fluid has come thru.

make sure everything is as clean as possible and try to not get any brake fluid anywhere but in the reservoir.

to bleed the brakes without a pressure bleeder, fill the res, close it, pump the brakes (car off), then hold the pedal down to the floor, open the bleeder on the first caliper, wait until the fluid stops running out, close the bleeder, repeat until the new fluid has come thru, close the bleeder, remove the clear hose, clean and move to the next one, repeat for all 4 wheels, remember tyo keep the res full, and the cap on.

Hope this helps.

**BOPOH** · 07-28-2009 05:18 PM

i apologize for reviving this thread, but i got few questions.

1. run the fluid until the new fluid comes thru. when you add new fluid to reservoir isnt it gonna mix with old, thus making it hard to tell where is new fluid?

2. need to loosen the bleeder valves on each caliper one at a time. that's where the order of bleeding is applied, but can you open bleeder valve connect clear tube and then pump and hold brake pedal down?

TIA

**pondside36** · 07-28-2009 05:31 PM

You will add the new fluid on top of the old and then bleed the old first on each caliper and corresponding brake line.

You want to build a pressure in the line and caliper before you open the bleeder screw. With out a power bleeder two people will make the process easier.

**old guy** · 07-28-2009 06:01 PM

Get a power bleeder. Much easier. Fill the power bleeder with your brake fluid of choice. Connect the power bleeder to the brake fluid reservoir and pump it up. The Bentley recommends 2 bar. Actually anything over 15psi works fine. Hook up a catch can to the front left caliper bleed valve. A section of clear hose and a jar will suffice. Open the bleeder and let it run until you see a color change in the fluid. Close the valve. Repeat the procedure on the right front, left rear and right rear.

Check the pressure on the power bleeder after each caliper and pump it back up as needed to stay around 15 to 20 psi.

After you bleed all four calipers hook up the catch can to the bleeder valve on the clutch slave cylinder. It draws fluid from the same reservoir as the brakes so it is a good idea to go ahead and bleed it at the same time. You will need to pump the power bleeder up to around 30 to 35psi to bleed the slave cylinder.

After you finish bleeding the slave cylinder you are going to want to remove the power bleeder without getting brake fluid all over the place. Very simple. Go back to the front left caliper and hook up the catch can. Tip the power bleeder on its side so you are no longer pumping the brake fluid. Open the bleeder valve on the caliper and bleed the fluid long enough to see that the line from the power bleeder going into the brake fluid reservoir is clear. Now you can slowly open the cap and depressurize the power bleeder.

All done! Takes one person and about 45 minutes to complete the job.

Have fun!

**pondside36** · 07-28-2009 06:27 PM

The OP started this thread in January but BOPOH brought it back with some additional questions.

**BOPOH** · 07-28-2009 06:35 PM

Thanks guys!!
mrbacardi35 if it was directed to me then - i live in South Carolina, just on the other side of the country

but thanks for trying to help!!!

IF NOT, good on you for helping others!

**SlickFix** · 11-22-2011 07:39 AM

Originally Posted by downhillracer

You need a power bleeder pumped up to 2 bars pressure for brakes. Remember it is a weird sequence listed also. It is closest to furthest in blead order on our cars. Left Fr, Right Fr, Left Rr, Right Rr.

Can someone confirm this is the correct order in which to bleed the brakes on the B6? Everything I've ever read is that you always start at the BACK, farthest away from the reservoir. But this seems to indicate that for the B6 you should start in the FRONT.

**EErie B6** · 11-22-2011 08:43 AM

Power Bleeder = closest to farthest
Manual Bleed = farthest to closest

**old guy** · 11-22-2011 08:53 AM

The Bentley recommends closest to furthest using a power bleeder but honestly it really won't make any significant difference whichever way you choose to do it.

**EErie B6** · 11-22-2011 09:01 AM

^ I wondered how important that really was. Thinking about it i couldn't see why it mattered. Last time i did mine i did it manually and it was a PITA, but it got done... It also sold me a power bleeder I have not tried it out yet.

**Audi Team Steeg** · 11-24-2011 11:28 AM

Hey guys

Silly question! I've followed many instructions but cant find the clutch bleed screw.
Anyone with an idea??
I have a right hand car, that could be the reason I'm not finding it easily.

Any ideas
Karl

**old guy** · 11-24-2011 03:32 PM

Originally Posted by Audi Team Steeg

Hey guys

Silly question! I've followed many instructions but cant find the clutch bleed screw.
Anyone with an idea??
I have a right hand car, that could be the reason I'm not finding it easily.

Any ideas
Karl

The bleeder is on the slave cylinder which is mounted on the drivers side of the transmission. You can use this DIY to locate the bleeder screw. Clicky click

**aalipio** · 03-18-2012 03:35 PM

Originally Posted by old guy

The bleeder is on the slave cylinder which is mounted on the drivers side of the transmission. You can use this DIY to locate the bleeder screw. Clicky click

heeelp! just did front and rear brakes right now. hooked up the motive power bleeder which worked great. did all four corners until nice new fluid came out, did in order and call all the bubbles come out. finished it all up and even did the clutch... went to bed the brakes and pedal feels mushy. any help?! kinda stuck right now...should i get more fluid and repeat the process again?

thank you!!!

**old guy** · 03-18-2012 03:54 PM

I assume new pads along with the fluid change. Sometimes new pads will feel a little mushy until fully broken in. does the pedal go uncomfortably low or just not feel as stiff as you would like?

**aalipio** · 03-18-2012 04:01 PM

Originally Posted by old guy

I assume new pads along with the fluid change. Sometimes new pads will feel a little mushy until fully broken in. does the pedal go uncomfortably low or just not feel as stiff as you would like?

pedal seems to go pretty low. new Ate solid rotors front and rear and stop tech front pads/axxis rear pads. and a fresh fluid change. pedal feels softer than normal. did a fresh flush until fluid was noticeably a cleaner color. would it be firm right off the bat? it seems like it goes pretty low but i went for a quick bed run and it wasn't hitting the floor but felt soft.

**aalipio** · 03-18-2012 04:02 PM

im letting the brakes cool and eating some lunch. ill attempt to go for another bed run... any suggestions? will the pedal firm its self up?

**old guy** · 03-18-2012 04:07 PM

Unless you let the power bleeder go dry and pump air into the reservoir you shouldn't have introduced any air into the hydraulic system. Take a really close look at all of your bleeder screws to make sure you don't have any leakage. If you turn the motor off and press the pedal several times does it still go low or does it firm up near the top?

**aalipio** · 03-18-2012 04:11 PM

just checked. when the car is off and pedal is pumped, it firms up towards the top...

**old guy** · 03-18-2012 04:14 PM

Originally Posted by aalipio

just checked. when the car is off and pedal is pumped, it firms up towards the top...

I would just drive the car normally then. I suspect the pedal will firm up as the pads wear to the rotors. If you had air in the hydraulic system the pedal would still be low after turning the car off and pumping the pedal a few times to dissipate the vacuum in the brake booster.

**aalipio** · 03-18-2012 04:16 PM

awesome! thanks again, Old Guy! like i said before, when in vegas, hit me up!!! Lunch on me :)

**aalipio** · 03-25-2012 07:13 PM

Brakes feel great now! Thanks again, OG

**OldmanRacer** · 05-13-2015 05:56 AM

This might be a silly question, but the Auto/Tip transmission doesn't have a clutch slave cylinder, does it?

About to do mine and didn't want to look for something that's not there LOL!!

Originally Posted by old guy

Get a power bleeder. Much easier. Fill the power bleeder with your brake fluid of choice. Connect the power bleeder to the brake fluid reservoir and pump it up. The Bentley recommends 2 bar. Actually anything over 15psi works fine. Hook up a catch can to the front left caliper bleed valve. A section of clear hose and a jar will suffice. Open the bleeder and let it run until you see a color change in the fluid. Close the valve. Repeat the procedure on the right front, left rear and right rear.

Check the pressure on the power bleeder after each caliper and pump it back up as needed to stay around 15 to 20 psi.

After you bleed all four calipers hook up the catch can to the bleeder valve on the clutch slave cylinder. It draws fluid from the same reservoir as the brakes so it is a good idea to go ahead and bleed it at the same time. You will need to pump the power bleeder up to around 30 to 35psi to bleed the slave cylinder.

After you finish bleeding the slave cylinder you are going to want to remove the power bleeder without getting brake fluid all over the place. Very simple. Go back to the front left caliper and hook up the catch can. Tip the power bleeder on its side so you are no longer pumping the brake fluid. Open the bleeder valve on the caliper and bleed the fluid long enough to see that the line from the power bleeder going into the brake fluid reservoir is clear. Now you can slowly open the cap and depressurize the power bleeder.

All done! Takes one person and about 45 minutes to complete the job.

Have fun!