Brake Fluid Rant

[Polo08816]

many fluid changes are not needed and overkill. Not saying it not good to NOT change the fluid as there may be benefits but I have had fleets of vehicles for businesses with 300K+ and 10 to 20 year old vehicles. Never changed the brake fluid or diff and zero issues.

The only time I will change the brake fluid is if it was overheated (which you would have warped vibrating rotors) or the pedal was mushy or a caliper needed replacment, etc.

Take the transmission, there are stories left and right that after someone performed preventative maint and flushed the fluid the transmission failed shorty after. Experts cite when you flush you can un-lodge big chunks of particles that would have normally been no issue.

Most people aren't going to be able to perform a "flush" but rather a drain and fill. You're usually not able to get all the ATF out in a single drain and fill procedure. However, where most people go wrong is not filling the transmission with enough ATF. A lot of these new transmissions don't have dip sticks and require additional steps to ensure enough ATF is in the transmission.

 

[Utah Driver]

Changing brake fluid is overkill. I had a 30 yr old enduro that had original fluid. A 20 yr old Durango 200,000 miles, a Neon with 280,000 miles, etc etc. I've been a mechanic for around 30 yrs. Never seen anything 5yrs old that needed brake fluid. Transmissions are sealed now because they don't need fluid changes under normal driving conditions. I work on trucks. The service interval on gear oil is 250,000 miles. That is why a car is considered lifetime on gear oil because most cars will never make that 250,000. I do know that people who live in wet environments might have issues with condensation but I live in Utah and rain is rare here. Cheers