# Brake Light on/Brake Fluid low



## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

so yeah, my brake light stays on even after i take the e brake off. i did a search and found out that that means the brake fluid is low and sure enough i looked under the hood and it was.

so i need to know if its ok just to add new dot 3 fluid to the reservoir. is it ok to mix new and old? i kinda dont have the money or the know how to bleed them and such. hell i dont even have the money to buy fluid right now. but i just need to know if its ok just to add to whats in there now.


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## azkicker0027 (May 31, 2002)

just to add for the meantime, it's cool, but also check the pads and/or shoes, cause low fluid means more hydraulic piston travel, also meaning low pads and/or shoes. Rule of thumb: replace brake fluid every 2 years, but just adding is harmless with the same DOT rating.


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## Wont Be Beat (Sep 20, 2002)

It will cost you $8 to bleed your system. Do it.

:fluffy:


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

Wont Be Beat said:


> It will cost you $8 to bleed your system. Do it.
> 
> :fluffy:


where? and how? if you mean $8 to do it myself, then negative

no tools, no mechanical know-how


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

McLaren F1 2003 said:


> where? and how? if you mean $8 to do it myself, then negative
> 
> no tools, no mechanical know-how


In that case, it will cost $23. $8 for the brake fluid, $15 for jack stands. You should at least have a monkey wrench so you can turn the bleeder screws. The mechanical know-how required for the procedure is next to nothing. There are plenty of brake bleeding how-tos online, most complete with photographs.

$23 is a hell of a lot less than you will have to pay should your brakes fail and cause you to hit something/someone.


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

ReVerm said:


> In that case, it will cost $23. $8 for the brake fluid, $15 for jack stands. You should at least have a monkey wrench so you can turn the bleeder screws. The mechanical know-how required for the procedure is next to nothing. There are plenty of brake bleeding how-tos online, most complete with photographs.
> 
> $23 is a hell of a lot less than you will have to pay should your brakes fail and cause you to hit something/someone.


thats true, but dont you have to take off the rotors and calipers and stuff just to bleed them?

if so, like i said, no tools, no jack or jackstands, no money. i already have to come up with $901 dollars this month, and i only make $235 bi-weekly. and dont ask me to ask my parents, cause i already owe them $350


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

McLaren F1 2003 said:


> thats true, but dont you have to take off the rotors and calipers and stuff just to bleed them?


Who told you that? We aren't flush cleaning air brakes on a bus here. You loosen the lugs, jack up the car, stick it on stands, take off the wheels, and bleed. It is a two man operation, but mechanically it's incredibly simplistic.

As for the bleeding procedure itself, make sure you can communicate with whoever you have pressing down on the brake pedal, and make sure they do so SLOWLY and with their HAND (not their foot). The rest of the procedure you can find anywhere on the web.


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## McLaren F1 2003 (Jan 2, 2003)

ok, what about the gravity method that ive been reading about?

do you need 4 jack stands or can i just use 2? cause i _might_ be able to use my friends

also how much fluid do i need and which dot rating? 3, 4, or 5.1. some people say dont use dot 5, but i found a thread on here that says its ok


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## azkicker0027 (May 31, 2002)

5.1 is silicone and for abs equipped systems and other specified by manufacturer, and NEVER mix 5.1 with 3 or 4, but 3 or 4 alone is okay to mix, but just add the fluid for now, and get it over with, if you can't really spend that much for now.


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## Wont Be Beat (Sep 20, 2002)

Get Valvoline Synpower Synthetic at any Pepboys or autozone. $4 a bottle. Get 2 bottles. 

You can even use a good rolling jack and not stands, just be carefull.

I use my foot, work ok.

Open the cap on the master cylinder.

Pressurize the system by pumping the brakes.

Start from farthest wheel from master cylinder and work your way closer.

Get a glass bottle and a small clear tube that will fit on the bleeder.

Fill bottle with a little fluid.

Pressure, quickly loosen bleeder and then close. Plessure, losen, tighten. Keep doing it until you see clear fluid coming out of the clear hose. 

Apply same proceedure to the other wheels.


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

azkicker0027 said:


> 5.1 is silicone and for abs equipped systems and other specified by manufacturer, and NEVER mix 5.1 with 3 or 4, but 3 or 4 alone is okay to mix, but just add the fluid for now, and get it over with, if you can't really spend that much for now.


That is incorrect.
DOT 5 is silicone based. DOT 5.1 is similar to DOT 4 but with higher boiling points. There is no problem with mixing DOT 5.1 and DOT 3/4, but you should never mix DOT 5 with anything but itself.


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

Wont Be Beat said:


> I use my foot, work ok.


The reason I said "use your hand" is because most people don't have the sensitivity to smoothly and slowly press down on the brake pedal during the bleeding procedure. A lot of people manage to do little but get more air into their system because they jab the brake pedal or they bring it down too quickly.


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## ReVerm (Jan 13, 2003)

McLaren F1 2003 said:


> ok, what about the gravity method that ive been reading about?
> 
> do you need 4 jack stands or can i just use 2? cause i _might_ be able to use my friends


The gravity bleed method works, but in order for it to work well you need 4 jack stands. The reason for that is that the brake master cylinder needs to be significantly higher up than the corner you are working on. So if you have the rear elevated too much, the brakes will either bleed too slowly (allowing air to get back into the system) or not at all.

Personally, I'd opt to just borrow his jack stands, then borrow him for a quick two-man job. Bribe him with lunch or something.


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## Wont Be Beat (Sep 20, 2002)

At no time during the bleed should the bleeders be open while your foot/hand is not firmly on the brake. I always just leave me foot burried in the brakes, loosen quickly then tighten. Burry foot, loosen, tighten. Works like a charm. Make sure you tighten before the brake hits the floor.


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