Another braking system question

P5freek

Member
:
2002 Protege5
My Brakes have not been changed yet, but I am getting a new issue. When breaking hard I get my Brake light on in the Dash, I checked the fuild (its very brown, im going to remove the old fluid and put in new fluid) its above the Min line in the reservoir. is this a faulty sensor some where or should I be looking for something else?

Also its a 5 speed where is the Cluitch reservoir, or does it run off the brake system?
 
The clutch and brakes use the same reservoir.

Refilling your reservoir and getting it closer to the full line will probably stop the flickering brake light.

Bleeding your brakes would be a good idea to flush out the old brake fluid but the bleeder screws on the calipers like to break off, then you've gotta buy new calipers.
 
When you put on new brake pads you'll need to push the brake pistons in to make room for the thicker new pads. That will raise the fluid level in the reservoir and it will overflow the reservoir if the fluid level starts off near the full line.
But you don't have to mess with the bleeder screws to change your pads or rotors.
 
I understand. i don't have time to do the brakes right now, Ill remove some fluid from the res before i compress the calipers
 
Mine just started doing this thanks for starting a thread, my ebrake currently doesn't work so I was really confused when the light popped on XD
 
Do not refill the reservoir all the way unless you are doing a proper brake fluid bleed and changing the brakes. I recommend you just do it all at once.
 
Once the brake fluid level drops far enough to get your brake light to start flickering, it pretty much means the brake pads need replacing. (as long as you don't have a leak)

I'm pretty sure it was designed that way on purpose.
 
Brown brake fluid is no bueno - brake fluid absorbs water over time, and the brown indicates corrosion in your brake system.
 
Brown brake fluid is no bueno - brake fluid absorbs water over time, and the brown indicates corrosion in your brake system.

Yep another thing the previous owner never fixed. When i do the brakes ill do a complete brake system bleed and replace all the fluid and look for brake lines that need to be replaced.
 
You might want to start the job by loosening all the bleeder screws first just so you know here you stand.

You can still bleed the others if one breaks but keep a really close eye on the fluid level. If a bubble gets in the system you pretty much have to bleed all the calipers.

Don't forget to bleed the clutch... Mine felt completely different after I bleed it... Way smoother.

 
I would highly recommend picking up a vacuum brake bleeder. Something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/ (commissions earned)

I can personally vouch for that one being very good, but it's a little pricey. There are others that are off brand for $20 range.

You'll thank yourself for spending a couple bucks on the tool when you have all 4 brakes bled and running clear in 20 minutes with no "pump and hold" or messing with it. Only thing you have to keep in mind is that you have to keep the reservoir full. I like to take the brake fluid bottle and once the reservoir is 75% full, turn the fluid bottle upside down and set the top in the reservoir. That gives you a LOT more capacity so you don't have to keep going back every 10 seconds and refilling it to keep it from running dry. As the fluid goes down it will keep it full and doesn't spill or make a mess.

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And just as a side note, there's a vacuum tool for filling the cooling system with antifreeze too that is amazing. Called an airlift. I bought this one years ago and fell in love with it. https://www.amazon.com/dp/ (commissions earned)

It's great because it pulls the entire cooling system into a vacuum (kinda cool watching the rad hoses collapse). So you're essentially checking for leaks at the same time you fill it. (if you have a leak in the cooling system, it won't pull and hold in a vacuum). Then you dip the other hose into a jug of premix coolant, flip a lever and watch it do its magic. It will completely fill the entire cooling system with coolant and have zero air pockets. Takes about 30 seconds to pull it into a vacuum, then about 2 minutes or so to refill with coolant. Even works amazing on cars like a Toyota MR2 (ANYONE who has EVER tried to refill the cooling system in one of these knows what i'm talking about!!!).
 
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