taylorhunt•4d agoProlific Poster

That cheap brake bleeder kit cost me an extra 3 hours on a simple job

I bought one of those plastic brake bleeder kits from the auto parts store for like 15 bucks. Figured it would save time on a brake fluid flush I was doing last Thursday on a 2015 Civic. Well, the check valve failed on the second caliper and just sucked air back into the line. Then the little cup cracked and dumped dirty fluid all over the garage floor. Ended up having to bench bleed the master cylinder and do the whole job over manually. Has anyone else had luck with the pneumatic bleeders or are they all junk too?

3 comments

3 Comments

amyh214d ago

My Motive bleeder worked awesome on my 2010 Accord after I replaced the plastic hose with a rubber one lol.

keithharris3d ago

I read somewhere that those plastic hoses are ALWAYS the weak link on those Motive bleeders. Pretty sure it was on a Honda forum where a guy said his basically exploded on the second use. Smart move swapping it for rubber. My buddy tried using the stock plastic one on his CR-V and it cracked right at the fitting. Had brake fluid EVERYWHERE in his garage. Rubber hose is like $5 at the hardware store and saves you from that mess.

theawest3d ago

@keithharris is spot on about those plastic hoses. Same exact thing happened to me with my old Subaru. First use was fine, second time I tried bleeding the brakes the hose split right at the fitting. Brake fluid went everywhere in my driveway and I had to order a new bleeder. Swapped to a rubber hose after that and it's been solid for years now. These Motive kits are great once you ditch the cheap plastic line they ship with. Rubber hose is way more forgiving and handles the pressure better. Not worth risking the mess or having to stop mid job.