How to bleed brakes—plus extra tips & tricks to make it easier | Hagerty DIY

Bleeding brakes is one of the easiest ways you can work on your own car in the comfort of your own garage or driveway. It requires simple tools that most of us already have in our toolbox. Follow along as Hagerty’s Davin Reckow gives you a step-by-step guide (as well as a few handy tips/tricks) on how to get the air bubbles out of your brake lines and get your brake system performing like new.

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[plymouthduster]

Just bled the brakes on my 1973 Duster the other day. Working on restoring it. Was my first car that I drove to high school and college.

[mikehemen]

This may have been the best explanation of the bleeding process I've ever seen. Great job!

[chevyjennings]

Just finishing up on my 47 cj2a disk brake conversion. Had to replace the mc (what a job) and now grabbing the wife to bleed the system. This is the best video I have found in regards to bleeding an older rig. I subscribed and thanks so much.

[georgestringam]

Well done, Davin and Jordan! I retired last year 47+ years in the repair trade. Interesting that there's always something new to learn. The Teflon tape around the bleed screw is one. I was taught to bleed brakes a little differently; I was told to open the bleed screw WHILE the pedal was being pushed down. Close the screw, let the pedal up and carry on. Obviously it works both ways because I've never had a brake system fail except when the 4x4 drove out across a pasture and snagged a piece of barbed wire which wrapped the rear axle and ripped open the brake line. I might add that was on my Dad's truck...

[BuzzEquipped]

One tip: If you have to do it by yourself, use something sturdy, and wedge it between the pedal and the dash to hold the brake pedal down ( I use the handle from a small bottle jack). Then you can loosen the bleeder as usual. Release the pedal, check the master cylinder, fill it if needed, then repeat. Takes awhile having to go back and forth, but will get the job done.

[chrismcgowan]

I like these videos with Davin, no BS

[ZippoVarga]

A few ideas for those youngsters who are spoiled by EFI systems and Electronic spark control would be how to properly tune carburetors and how to properly set a Distributor timing, dwell and point gap. Also, most older vehicles, even well maintained older vehicles will have some slop on the steering gear box. Showing how to properly set the gear lash in the box as well as inspecting rag joints etc. would be invaluable to them as well. We, the older generation, have seen our fair share of hunt and peck steering to stay between the lines. Cheers Davin! Thanks for keeping things very easy to understand for even the most challenged of aspiring home do it your self types. Zip!

[lucaalfredo]

I already know how to bleed brakes, yet I watch a 20 minute video on how to do it

[BWGPEI]

I used to do it your way, but found the vacuum pump trick works for me alone and saves hassles with my wife who has not the patience to help. And in our northern area yearly brake fluid changes allow me to keep brake slave cylinders like new for 10 - 12 years which far exceeds the life of those who get no love. Very well done presentation and Thank You!

[Tmrfe]

Thank you for this reality check. I have been banging my head with a replacement on my 914…jeeze. A good explanation is so very important in a procedure like this.

[davidgagnon]

When I was a kid, my older brother had me help him do this all the time. He taught me several things about cars.

[cintocrunch]

Just went through this a couple years ago on my '61 Impala with all new brake lines, brakes, master cylinder, etc. We let it gravity bleed for most of a day checking and topping off the master cylinder as needed. This was my grandfather's trick and it made the bleeding much easier.


Thanks for the videos, I'd love to see a Chevy W motor rebuild and have a motor you can use for it if you want!

[rdyer]

Back in the 70s I had a 64 GTO. I did everything to that car from rebuilding the transmission to the engine. The one thing I hated was brake work. It's the only repair I let others do for me. Maybe if I'd had a lift instead of laying on the ground, I wouldn't have minded so much. Having a KNOWLEDGEABLE fried to help also would have been a good thing!

Another great video.

[ZippoVarga]

Moisture probes are available to test the amount of water in brake fluid. I use one religiously on all of my vintage motorcycles. Thanks for all of the great tips! Cheers! Zip~

[michaelimmell]

Love this video. My dad had a 49 Chevy dump truck on our farm and one of my earliest jobs working with him was running the brake while he bled.

We did the pump 2 to 3 time methods, loved that Davin addressed the different approaches. K

Keep up the great content!

[hdbikerdave]

Thank you for sharing. I’ve flushed my 2018 Harley Davidson motorcycle and have my 2013 Jeep Wrangler to do next. I validated the need for changing those by using a brake fluid tester. My 2016 Chev Silverado doesn’t need changing yet. Appreciate your videos greatly.

[armchairtin-kicker]

I love the Allstar Performance ALL11017 Bleeder Bottle. Besides the magnet that you mention, it also has a check valve, enabling one man operations.

[AmraphelofShinar]

There's no difference between a single and a dual master except that they're different. I love this guy.

[Linkziz]

I work on cars for a living and I've been doing it for a long time. I'm still amazed at how many guys will start with bleeding the front brakes when doing a master cylinder. I can't believe how many don't know the rule of starting with the furtherest away from the master.

[blanchae]

Modern cars have ABS which requires bleeding the ABS unit which will not bleed using standard bleeding techniques. First method: you can purchase an OBD2 reader ($$$) which will do an auto-bleed. Second method: bleed normally (brakes will be soft) then drive the vehicle up and down the back alleys hammering the brakes to get the ABS to turn on, wash, rinse and repeat until brakes are firm. I did the second method but kept getting car sick and it is a lot of work! The third method is to bleed the brakes, jack up the rear wheels, turn on the engine, put it in gear and hit the brakes, wash rinse and repeat until firm. The ABS will turn on - basically you've tricked the car into thinking you are driving and you aren't jacking the car up and down all the time. This is the better method which I found out later.