Just a quick question. I’m being told by my dealership that I need a brake fluid change as it is suggested by Honda that it is needed every year with these new civics. Is this true and is it needed immediately?
Brake Fluid Change /dealership
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RJcivicExL
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Just a quick question. I’m being told by my dealership that I need a brake fluid change as it is suggested by Honda that it is needed every year with these new civics. Is this true and is it needed immediately?
First I've heard every year. Dig into your owner's manual or whatever book the put the maintenance schedules and see what letter/number code it's listed under.
For what it's worth I try to do mine every 2-3 years. I'm pretty sure I safe saying most never do it at all.
For what it's worth I try to do mine every 2-3 years. I'm pretty sure I safe saying most never do it at all.
I've never heard of anyone pushing for brake fluid change EVERY YEAR.
General recommendation is every 2 years, because the fluid will absorb water from atmosphere, and cause corrosion and lowered boiling points. Depending on climate, even every 3 years is perfectly fine.
Now, if you race the car, you should probably change it right before you take it to the track. Some even change it afterwards.
General recommendation is every 2 years, because the fluid will absorb water from atmosphere, and cause corrosion and lowered boiling points. Depending on climate, even every 3 years is perfectly fine.
Now, if you race the car, you should probably change it right before you take it to the track. Some even change it afterwards.
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last time i was at the dealer my service advisor said they recommended every 30k. not sure if they are just trying to oversell me or if these advanced stability control systems are more sensitive to dirty fluid and require more maintenance.
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It's generally every 36 months, or when the maintenance minder alerts, according to the Honda maintenance schedule but that can be different depending on where you are in the world and if you are towing stuff or carrying 5 obese adults in city driving (sarcasm)
Code 7 on the MM is for a brake fluid change. Also, a note in the manual- "*6: If a Maintenance Minder message does not appear more than 36 months after the display for item 7 is reset, change the brake fluid every 3 years."
You can also buy a fluid tester
You can also buy a fluid tester
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what? no. not every year.
i will be straight here and tell you guys i have never had my brake fluid changed. ever. on any car. and my dad also reports the same thing: you only need brake fluid if it's leaked out or got water in it.
this is a super wasteful practice, overall, that the industry pushes for all this endless production and dumping of brake fluid.
now i am not telling you you should do something foolish like just hope for the best. a brake fluid tester costs like $15, which is even less than your time spent talking to the dealer service desk much less paying for annual changes. it's the size of a pen. you can keep it in your car and only get the fluid changed when the moisture level goes from 0% to 1% ... which could take years.
i will be straight here and tell you guys i have never had my brake fluid changed. ever. on any car. and my dad also reports the same thing: you only need brake fluid if it's leaked out or got water in it.
this is a super wasteful practice, overall, that the industry pushes for all this endless production and dumping of brake fluid.
now i am not telling you you should do something foolish like just hope for the best. a brake fluid tester costs like $15, which is even less than your time spent talking to the dealer service desk much less paying for annual changes. it's the size of a pen. you can keep it in your car and only get the fluid changed when the moisture level goes from 0% to 1% ... which could take years.
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Mine came up on the maintenance minder at around 20k miles. I'm driving less than 800 miles a month, but in South Florida. I also never even heard of changing the brake fluid, but it was there at the dealer for service and while I'm not rich, I could afford it so I said go on and do it.
I am at 3 years and 37k and I have not seen the code for brake bleeding come up yet.
Why?
Replacing brake fluid is part of the bleeding process whenever you put new pads in or open up the brake system for any purpose. You can replace the fluid in the reservoir with the fluid bled off but most don't bother. There is no code for bleeding brakes just for replacing fluid - but if done properly involves bleeding which removes all fluid from the lines up to the calipers. Although I have seen some sloppy "mechanics" replace just the fluid in the reservoir. Also if dot 4 fluid is used the recommended change interval is usually shorter.
I mean I understand why it makes practical sense to bleed the brakes and replace the fluid when you replace the brake pads, it's just not what a shop would do unless you pay for both jobs.
No. Just wait till it comes up on your Maitenance minder. I got mine done around 20k (car was around 2.5 year old) and was covered along with oil change and tire rotation (A17 MM code) as part of the 4 year Honda care maintenance package I bought.
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In total agreement that is an UPSELL for another possibly unneeded service(s) another stealership revenue stream. I contacted Honda once about stealership continually pushing "fuel system cleaning." They told me go by your owner's manual. Makes sense to me...Go on Amazon or local auto parts store you can buy an electronic tool (sub $30) to check your brake fluid condition. Or you can buy the test strips although a little more costly around $1 a strip.
I have had my Civic for 2 years now. It has done 56,000 km. There is a lot of empty travel on the brake pedal compared to 2 years ago. So I bleed the brake today. If you feel there are more empty travel on the pedal. You can do so. If not, DOT3 typically lasts 2-3 years. Also, you can check the colour of your brake fluid through the reservoir.
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