Hey guys,

I recently changed my front pads and rotors; but at one point ( after siphoning some of the fluid out of the reservoir) i left the cap on the reservoir off for a prolonged period. Now, after putting everything back together, when i press on the brakes it doesn't seem to be as tight. I

I'm sure this could be to a number of different reasons but I have heard of brake fluid going bad if air gets into it. Is this true, and if so, what is the best way to go abt changing the fluid?

Any help on this would be greatly appreciated!

2000 A6 4.2L

 

Brake fluid does not absorb air, it absorbs water and once it does it can boil if it gets too hot, that will make the pedal feel soft. If the pedal feels soft when the car is cold it could just be that your pads need to bed into the rotors. I would recommend driving the car for a couple of weeks and see how it feels.

It is also possible that you need to bleed the brakes.

 

thanks for the reply. I've been driving it around and it seems to be fine now.

Thanks again

 

It is possible for an air bubble to manifest itself at the worst of times, like when you need to brake heavily to avoid an accident. Personally, I would bleed the brakes for peace of mind. At a minimum, I would probably want to do a couple of *hard* stops where the ABS engaged and make sure that it doesn't do anything funky. Obviously, do this on public roads at your own risk.