DIY, Brake fluid flush, 4x4 - TRD Off-Road with Speed Bleeders

I installed these yesterday along with extended brake lines and bleeding was a breeze. Never bled brakes before, so I don't have anything to compare it to, but it was extremely easy using the speed bleeders.

 

Added unnecessary expense. Tube in a bottle of fluid works the same and just as easy. That is unless you just pull in to a field and let the fluid fly.

 

I also did this over the weekend, can confirm sizes listed are good for 05 TRD off-road. Could not find any actual "speed bleeder" brand so went with some by Goodrich. Did the install + bleeding both were super easy. I got an extra for the clutch have not done it yet.

I have done all the variations, and in fact still have & use a Motive pressure bleeder on my 2 other cars. I went with the speed bleeders on the Tacoma because it does not have a threaded cap on the reservoir like my other cars & pressure bleeder do. After doing the Tacoma, frankly the speed bleeders are far easier all around. I also have a few motorcycles and since you can reach the brake lever/pedal easily while opening/closing a bleeder with a wrench, I never thought to put speed bleeders on them. I think I will now. That way you can track reservoir levels much easier while squeezing levers etc.

I hear the clutch on a Tacoma is difficult to bleed, anyone done it yet with a speed bleeder?

 

In principle, yes.

But, you really should watch to ensure fluid is not leaking around the bleeder screws, and that the hose both stays submerged in fluid and does not come off the bleeder screw.

The main concern I have with this method is sucking the air in the tube back into the brake system. I suppose you could fill the tube with fluid before putting it on the bleed screw...

 

Get the right size and first concern is solved. Use a short piece and first pump of pedal pushes all the air out. Never had a jar turn over. I use a glass jar not plastic.

 

To each his own, money well spent IMO. If your happy so be it. SB's are quality bits.

 

It is difficult to bleed all air from the clutch. I tried a SpeedBleeder on the slave, but it didn't work any better than traditional method.

 

OK thanks I'll take a look. Another car I have, the trick is to remove the slave from its mount, and hold it upside down while you bleed it. Don't even know if that is possible with the Tacoma.

 

I don't think that is possible. The problem area is the fluid line inside the engine bay where it makes a sharp upward loop then down, and that is where air gets trapped.

 

Of course not, that would be too easy. I'll take a look next time I'm in there. Thanks.

 

Lots of companies stay in business selling people stuff they really don't need. It is your money and to spend how you want. I prefer to spend mine on things that add real value.

 

Most of the vendors here are selling stuff that peeps dont NEED, but want. The reviews speak for themselves. Thousands of happy customers on all types of vehicles with them. Say what you want but most people that buy them love them.
Also I spent more on dinner last night then on the SB's.

 

Can anyone vouch for these sizes for 3rd gen?

 

sub a dub dub

 

I installed speed bleeders today and bled the brakes. This was my first time bleed8ng brakes and it seemed to go well. One thing I couldn’t figure out was during this step I pushed the brake pedal 20 or more times as instructed by the the owners manual.

After I pushed the brake about 5 times the pedal firmed up and would barely go down. On the next push of the pedal the pressure would completely go away and remain this way for the 15 or so remaining pedal pushes.

Is this step decreasing the pressure in the system limiting fluid loss when you switch bleeder screws?

 

Dot 3 or 4 on the upcoming Valvoline Synthetic Fluid

 

Why do it with truck on?

 

Did this yesterday (2010 TRD Offroad, BTW) and I'm wondering if I did something wrong. I did not use speed bleeders. Instead I was under the truck and my wife was pushing on the brake pedal. It went exactly as described for the rear brakes - the pump pushed the fluid through nicely. However, when I moved to the front I didn't get the same results. When she pushed the brake pedal, I got very little fluid flow and the pump didn't run like it did on the rear. Long story short, I ended up doing the front the old fashioned way (press and hold pedal, open bleeder, close bleeder, release pedal, repeat).

Did I do something wrong or misunderstand the procedure? I warned her about not pushing the pedal too far and possibly hurting the master cylinder seals, so could she have not been pushing far enough? I asked her to push the pedal a little harder/farther a couple of times and it didn't seem to make a difference. While finishing up the fronts, the pump would run for a couple of seconds about every 3rd or 4th bleed cycle, but if you just pushed the pedal and held it, with the bleeder open, the pump wouldn't cycle (~2-3 sec on/2-3 sec off) like it did for the rear.

Ultimately got the job done and I'm happy with the results - ran about a liter and a half through the system. Just looking for some clarification for next time.

 

Clutch = SB1010..........5 spd so I need 5 bleeders

 

Nice write up!