Fiat Grande Punto brake bleeding

agw_01

agw_01

agw_01

Soldato
Joined
11 Apr 2004
Posts
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Hi guys,

Whilst looking for the windscreen washer bottle, my girlfriend's Mum somehow managed to put washer fluid into the brake reservoir. As soon as I saw the colour of the fluid I did a little facepalm and told her it needed draining ASAP.

Apparently, this was my way of saying "I'll do it" and so I've been roped into giving it a mini service at the same time.

I've already posted on a Fiat forum and am waiting for a reply but thought I'd ask on here as I know there are a few Punto owners who may be able to help.

I'm looking for the brake bleeding order/method and if anyone has one, a service manual (preferably in PDF format) for a 58 plate 1.3 Multijet.

Cheers.
 
Erm, it's in warranty, just get it down to Fiat for the service, unless of course she doesn't want her warranty anymore?

Just do the bare minimum to sort the braking system out again.
 
The standard rule of starting the with wheel furthest from the master cylinder usually works fine IME. Obviously you need to drain the reservoir completely prior to bleeding rather than flush the screenwash through.

I hope you stressed just what a serious mistake this was though, she sounds like the sort of person that shouldn't be entrusted to lift the bonnet under any circumstances.
 
Would it not be better to extract the contents of the reservoir first rather than bleeding the washer fluid through the system? You'll obviously need to bleed anyway but I doubt washer fluid will be beneficial for the braking system.
 
paradigm said:
Erm, it's in warranty, just get it down to Fiat for the service, unless of course she doesn't want her warranty anymore?

Just do the bare minimum to sort the braking system out again.
Click to expand...

Don't worry, I told her to take it to Fiat as me doing the work may well incur a charge when she takes the car back (it's a lease car which she's thinking of buying out anyway) and she wouldn't listen.

I'll speak to her again later and try to convince her as tbh, I really cba with it. It's too cold to be working on cars.

Dogbreath, I was going to syphon as much I could out of the res before I started. Oh yeah, I couldn't believe it when I saw it. She was also telling me that she had to get the AA out when the in-car display flashed up a warning about a blown number plate bulb :(
 
Fill reservoir with good fluid.

Using the bleed nipple on the calipers (or the drum for the back if it has them):
Open -> pedal down -> close -> pedal up

Repeat until you think you've pushed enough through. for each corner, never heard of doing the furthest one 1st as suggested above, but it certainly can't hurt. Remember to keep topping up the reservoir.

Discard anything that comes out the bottom because water does mix with this type of brake fluid.

Simple really, I rate this method above pressure/vacuum bleeders which only complicate the process.



Edit:
And yes, one or more (possibly all) the brakes would have completely failed if she'd driven it.
Water in the caliper flash boils when you release the pedal shooting all the break fluid out of the system.
 
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How do pressure/vacuum bleeders complicate anything?

You connect it, you undo the bleed valve, wait for bubbles to disappear and tighten again. I cannot think of anything easier, and it can be done without a helper.
 
Can't say I've seen a "professional" mechanic bleed manually for a long time. In fact, I'm pretty sure every mechanic at my mate's garage has a vacuum bleeder.

What is this "reason", anyway?
 
I've never seen a professional use one, Dad certainly always throws the apprentice in the car for 10 minutes to push the pedal.

They are very good at not pushing out air on long pipes, they're not so hot at getting air out of servos, some can mask the amount of fluid you're really pulling through. When I've tried them I've always not been able to get the pedal hard, then reverted to the old way and done it 1st time. Don't bother with them now, though my own is made out of a VW Beetle windscreen washer bottle, so I didn't spend any money on it in the 1st place.
 
Plus a helper costs less than a bleeding kit.

Maybe also worth giving the hoses a wrigle/hit and tap the caliper with the handle of a hammer. There will be friction between bubbles and the hose/caliper internals, so a bit of light bashing can help them shift.

Also taking the car for a drive then bleeding again should be even better, but will obviously use plenty more fluid :p
 
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