yact: brake warning light comes on AFTER i release the brake???

[JEDI]

i have a 2001 chevy prizm, which is just a rebadged toyota corolla.

it has 60k miles, and i havent changed the brake pads yet. (mostly highway driving.)

recently, after i stop, then gun the acceleration, the brake warning light comes on for a couple of seconds.

i checked the brake fluid resovour, and it was near the low mark.

i remember from auto101 class that brake fluid asorbs moisture rapidly.

to refill the brake fluid, do i just pop the brake fluid resouvour cap under the hood, and fill? then throw away any of the unused the dot3 fluid? or do i need to take more precautions?

thx

 

[OulOat]

Pretty much, that's it. But you should flush the fluid soon.

 

[Evadman]

Obviously, when you are stomping your right foot down, the brake fluid is pooling at the back of the reservoir, which is uncovering the low fluid sensor, which is in the front.

Fill brake fluid reservoir with the recomended fluid (99.9% of the time it is dot 3). You can keep the excess fluid if you have some left over, but keep it in a TIGHTLY sealing container. As you said, brake fluid is hydroscopic, which means it absorbs water right out of the air. As brake fluid absorbs water, it turns darker. The fluid should be a nice golden golor, kinda like applejuice. If it looks like apple cider you have some nice water content.

Do not use old fluid you find in your garage.

 

[Fingers]

Thats all you really need to do. I dot 4 or dot 5 will not absorb as much water but it's not required.

It's normal for the fluid to be low especially at 60,000 miles with no brake job done yet. Doesn't mean you have a leak anyware just when the pads wear out the pistons are press further out and the brake fluid fills the space in the hydraulic line.

Having said all that if you hear any squealing then don't even bother adding fluid as new pads and cranking down the piston will alleviate the problem.

 

[T2T III]

Anything special to add brake fluid?

I'm kind of partial to adding syrup. Even the free stuff from McDonalds works.

😉

 

[Evadman]

Originally posted by: Fingers
Thats all you really need to do. I dot 4 or dot 5 will not absorb as much water but it's not required.

DOT 5 is silicone, and is not comatable with dot 3 or 4. Dot 5 is not used on the streat very mcuh, as it was formulated for a higher heat rating, which is only really needed in motorsports.

 

[Fingers]

Originally posted by: Evadman

Originally posted by: Fingers
Thats all you really need to do. I dot 4 or dot 5 will not absorb as much water but it's not required.

DOT 5 is silicone, and is not comatable with dot 3 or 4. Dot 5 is not used on the streat very mcuh, as it was formulated for a higher heat rating, which is only really needed in motorsports.

IT's hard to find, but there are some compatible DOT 5 fluids out there.

I should have mentioned the likelyhood of having one not compatible though, thanks for the catch.

 

[zoiks]

It could be that the switch may be sticking in the reservoir after you apply brakes