Brake Maintenance After Flood fording

[number001]

What kind of maintenance are needed to be performed to the brakes (ie. brake cleaning ? ) after crossing flood waters ?

After crossing the flood yesterday, immediately experienced some metallic noise which promptly disappeared after pumping the brakes repeatedly to dry it out.

This morning, about to drive out, when the brakes made some audible noise like "grrggghh, grrrghhh " . Disappeared again once I drove out. Just this lunch, the brake seemed nervous, shaking. and now I'm hearing some metallic again.

Note none of these happened before yesterday's flood crossing. and Note most of these noise manifestations occurred during initial brake use only.

Will brake cleaning/lubrication cure these noises ?

Thanks!

[mda]

Check to see if any debris was caught between the caliper/pad and the rotor.

This could very well be a possibility if the brakes feel odd.

Pansin ko sa brakes namin especially during the rainy season, the brakes make initial sounds when natalsikan ng tubig and a slight coat of rust develops on the disc rotors (madalas mapansin when left overnight). Nawawala naman after initial use though.

[vinj]

Could be some stuck foreign objects. For starters, you can buy some 3M brake cleaner, open up your brakes and give them a nice cleaning.

In your next service stop, drain and then put in some fresh fluid.

[crazy_boy]

Could be some stuck foreign objects. For starters, you can buy some 3M brake cleaner, open up your brakes and give them a nice cleaning.

In your next service stop, drain and then put in some fresh fluid.

Vinj, what brand of brake fluid would you recommend?

[vinj]

There's always good 'ol Prestone for everyday use. Just go with regular DOT3 unless you're the type who's into track days. It's more important to change and flush every so often, especially if you wade floods (i do my brake system flushes every 20,000kms).

The branded brake fluids i see are Motul and RP. Pricier though.

If you can find the Bendix fluid, that seems okay too (i'm using this on my 9th gen Altis now). I bought mine at the Motorshow last year.

[number001]

If its the disc brakes in front, I dont see any debris stuck.

Probably it got submerged, moisture retention and lost some lubrication.

As for vinj's suggestion of DIY brake cleaning, I think thats way beyond my skill set. I'll probably have to turn to a shop do this (ie. speedyfix).

Also I haven't changed brake fluids since new. The fort is 6 yrs and its a low mileage weekend/coding vehicle. 13,6xx kms only. I'm worried about the fluid change is that not all shops are competent enough in doing the change without allowing pocket of air to be stuck in the brake lines.

When I used to bring it to Toyota casa, the SA use to " insert " the brake cleaning services in the PMS. They would remove the cover on the drum brakes at the rear and spray lots brake cleaner on the springs, brake shoes, etc...

My question is, is brake cleaning a necessary preventative maintenance or is it about as useful as engine flushing, diesel fuel treatment , as well as other casa hokus pokus, etc

[Retz]

There's always good 'ol Prestone for everyday use. Just go with regular DOT3 unless you're the type who's into track days. It's more important to change and flush every so often, especially if you wade floods (i do my brake system flushes every 20,000kms).

The branded brake fluids i see are Motul and RP. Pricier though.

If you can find the Bendix fluid, that seems okay too (i'm using this on my 9th gen Altis now). I bought mine at the Motorshow last year.

Sir Vinj, okay rin ba ang Mag1?

[Retz]

If its the disc brakes in front, I dont see any debris stuck.

Probably it got submerged, moisture retention and lost some lubrication.

As for vinj's suggestion of DIY brake cleaning, I think thats way beyond my skill set. I'll probably have to turn to a shop do this (ie. speedyfix).

Also I haven't changed brake fluids since new. The fort is 6 yrs and its a low mileage weekend/coding vehicle. 13,6xx kms only. I'm worried about the fluid change is that not all shops are competent enough in doing the change without allowing pocket of air to be stuck in the brake lines.

When I used to bring it to Toyota casa, the SA use to " insert " the brake cleaning services in the PMS. They would remove the cover on the drum brakes at the rear and spray lots brake cleaner on the springs, brake shoes, etc...

My question is, is brake cleaning a necessary preventative maintenance or is it about as useful as engine flushing, diesel fuel treatment , as well as other casa hokus pokus, etc

In my case, when I do tyre rotation every 10k, kasama na ung pag check ng disc brake pads including the brake shoe and they would clean it as part of pm. mura lang naman kaya hinayaan ko na lang.

[vinj]

The hardest part of brake cleaning is lifting the car and removing the tires actually. You can bring it to the gas station with a lifter and have them mount your car, remove the tires, pads/drum cover tapos ikaw mag spray ng brake cleaner. It's nice watching all the dirt go down.

Havent tried mag1 but i guess it should be okay for the daily grind. The usual thing people should watch for in brake fluid is it's hygroscopic properties. Some fluid types can be more hygroscopic then others so to keep your brake system clean, you'd have to change more often to get rid of corrosion inducing and brake feel lessening moisture buildup.

[weisshorn]

Madali lang yang cleaning & change fluid basta handa ka dumihan ang iyong kamay. Bleeding air thoroughly from the brake hydraulic system is not a hard thing to do. all you need is guts, tools & correct procedure to do this thing. no need to go to fancy auto shop. It is recommended to clean the calipers & brake cylinders day after ka lumusong sa baha para hindi kalawangin & stuck up ang preno especially kung hindi mo gagamitin ang car for few days there after.