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My neighbour’s daughter has been billed for a brake fluid change on her Defender. It’s two years old and only done 6000 miles.
The service was undertaken by the dealer to preserve her warranty.
Would a fluid change be necessary on a Defender that has only been lightly used? It’s never towed a trailer or been abused.
When I had Land Rovers I seem to remember the schedule was 24months/24000 miles so on that basis, although it is a very low mileage, the 24 months would be on the dealer schedule.
That’s normal. Brake fluid absorbs moisture over time and will need replacing. 2 yrs is standard fare.
3k a year? Would a fat bike not be more appropriate....?
wrong thread - ignore
It's time not use which does for brake fluid - as above, it absorbs moisture. I do much longer intervals on brake fluid on my car, but there will be some slight measurable degredation in performance which justified manufacturers changing it every 2 years.
not using something doesnt make the oil in either the engine or the brakes last longer.
its not time OR milage based its WHICH ever comes first.
Its bollox.... usually, but this is a Defender that is ancient even new.
I did it myself on my cars after 3 years, then another 3 years, and to be frank, on modern systems it's not going to need doing that often ever.
Modern Land Rovers are a bag of poop, but being a new 'old car' then possibly yes, get the fluid changed.
"The service was undertaken by the dealer to preserve her warranty"
That's the critical thing here. If the manufacturer's service schedule says change at 24 months then doing that preserves the warranty. Whether it needs to be changed or not is an entirely different debate!
What’s different between a defender and other modern cars that affect how the fluid may or may not absorb water ?
What’s different between a defender and other modern cars that affect how the fluid may or may not absorb water ?
A Defender has special ports to allow any fluid (that should be held captive by any other car) to drain out, this also allows air in.
Unfortunately they can't even get the roof watertight so thinking an engine or braking system will be is just wishful thinking 🙂
You're supposed to change it? I thought the soft brake pedal feel was a feature! 😉
Two years is standard for most cars. Mine is supposed to be more frequently than that if driven hard.
My comment was aimed at fossy , as I can see my 110 from my chair I’m more than aware of the water ingress and other special extras defenders come with.
As a slight aside this is old but still very useful
it is questionable if is NEEDED doing
I remember with a mitsubishi l200, they replaced the rocker cover gasket at the second service, i questioned why this was needed at that time
just to be told it was the service schedule
defenders are quite high in service costs, despite their basic functions and trim levels
brake fluid deteriorates with both time and use. time allows water to get in and be absorbed hence a 2 year limit and use wears brakes causing tiny wear particles to build up in the fluid.
It's specified because of the Defender's incredible ability to let any fluid that shouldn't be in, in and let any fluid that should be in, out.
I thought the soft brake pedal feel was a feature!
A devotee of the Land Rover Hurtle. Every ride a white-knuckle one.
It’s specified on defenders as well as other car manufacturers regular maintenance schedule because dealerships like to rip people off and get cars through the shop by the numbers by mechanics carrying out standardised maintenance schedule. The defender may very well have a crappy brake system that allows contamination more than other cars, but any garage worth their salt will have one of those things that measures the water content of the fluid and replaces the fluid when needed (can’t remember the name of them now). The garage I use does that and my average 10k or so a year motoring certainly doesn’t require the brake fluid to be changed every 2 years on any car i’ve ever owned.
anyway, a spongy pedal is air in the system not water. Water is not compressible in liquid form so works quite well as a brake fluid. The problem with water in the fluid is when things get hot after hard repetitive braking and the water boils and turns into steam, which is compressible. For normal road driving your brake temps are not going to get that high as you don’t tend to do hard repetitive braking, unless you live in the Alps perhaps.
if you’re a farmer wading through rivers every day then you probably need the fluid changing more frequently, or if it’s a track day car or race car and you don’t want any water in the fluid you’ll probably change the fluid every few weeks or so. But for a normal road car doing normal road car duties, two years is probably way too frequent and unnecessary.
unfortunately the warranty requires the OEM service schedule to be maintained so your neighbour is screwed, but doesn’t require the servicing to be carried out by the main dealer. The best thing your neighbour can do is ditch main dealer servicing and go with a decent specialist or local mechanic so they can get a better service and advice once the warranty expires.
Brake fluid is also changed to help prevent corrosion.
"any garage worth their salt will have one of those things that measures the water content of the fluid"
Water isn't the only contaminant.
Nothing quite like some rubber particles from your master cylinder seal clogging up your abs module.
Quite expensive compared to a fluid swap over.
Well Im just v chuffed with myself having just put the engine back in mine after a clutch kit replacement and engine front gasket change.
Pleasing to see that the clutch was ****** and the thrust bearing had seized having opened up the bell housing. Dont want to do all that work and find it's all fine in there! 😀
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The defender may very well have a crappy brake system that allows contamination more than other cars, but any garage worth their salt will have one of those things that measures the water content of the fluid and replaces the fluid when needed (can’t remember the name of them now). The garage I use does that and my average 10k or so a year motoring certainly doesn’t require the brake fluid to be changed every 2 years on any car i’ve ever owned.
Except that water is heavier that brake fluid, so ends up at the lowest point, causing
1, corrosion of the internals of the caliper and piston, leading to leaks.
2, the caliper gets hot, hotter than the boiling point of water, causing a very soggy brake pedal and reduced braking effort just when you really don't want it!!!!
The water in the fluid is not water in liquid form leaking in - its from atmospheric water vapour combining with the hygroscopic fluid