ABS brake bleed

Jeep2010

New member
Is there any way to do an abs brake bleed without taking it to a dealership? I have a very soft pedal and it's annoying me lol. Bled the brakes numerous times, the linkage is fine and fluid levels are at the top. I thought about checking the brake booster and master cylinder but figured I'd start small before getting new parts so quick. Any advice helps! Thank you.
 
Is there any way to do an abs brake bleed without taking it to a dealership? I have a very soft pedal and it's annoying me lol. Bled the brakes numerous times, the linkage is fine and fluid levels are at the top. I thought about checking the brake booster and master cylinder but figured I'd start small before getting new parts so quick. Any advice helps! Thank you.

Has the soft pedal been there all along? Or did you do some work on the Jeep and have the soft pedal afterward? I don't think on the JKs that the ABS can be bled without a scan tool though.
 
as mentioned, bleeding the ABS requires a scan tool.

Do your brakes get firm after a hard stop or a couple of pumps? if so you still have air in your system. My brakes got a little soft after the extended brake lines and while they still worked, it wasn't until I used the motive to get the last little bit of air out that they felt firm like stock.

you can try to activate the ABS and bleed immediately after but it may take several tries and you have to make sure your fluid level is always full between hard stops - bleed the rear 1st, passenger side then driver, do another series of hard stops and bleed the front same order, another hard stops and then bleed all once more. important to make sure the fluid level is full after each bleeding and before you take off to make hard stops. this process is a PIA and not everyone gets good results

I can tell you from experience the push/pull bleeders do not work and will introduce more air into the system.

I've had the best results with the Motive pressure bleeder.
 
Has the soft pedal been there all along? Or did you do some work on the Jeep and have the soft pedal afterward? I don't think on the JKs that the ABS can be bled without a scan tool though.

It has almost always been stock feeling. I went wheeling a couple weekends ago and it started then. So I just figured there was air in the system. I've bled the system about 3 times and nothing has helped. I figured the abs would be better to try before getting a new master cylinder and dealing with that.
 
It has almost always been stock feeling. I went wheeling a couple weekends ago and it started then. So I just figured there was air in the system. I've bled the system about 3 times and nothing has helped. I figured the abs would be better to try before getting a new master cylinder and dealing with that.

If this occurred wheeling, I highly doubt bleeding the ABS would do anything. It's VERY unlikely that air would get in the system especially near the ABS HCU. I also highly doubt that air got in the system. It's 100% impossible to get air in the system unless the system is somehow opened/breached or if you run out of brake fluid. I would check for mud/debris/crap built up around rotors and backing plates etc. It's strange how sometimes a mechanical problem in your brakes can create a different pedal feel, and not just a hydraulic problem. I also would ensure that you have no fluid leaks anywhere. Check around all bleeders and banjo bolts to ensure there is no chance something snagged and somehow loosened a bleeder or banjo bolt. Lastly I would check to ensure there is no dirt/debris in any of the hardware on the caliper brackets. You're more than welcome to have a dealer bleed the ABS, but I don't think it will help. Also, a booster concern will generally create a hard pedal not a soft one. My gut feeling is that mechanically, something has changed the way the pads connect to the rotors even if it is just dirt/debris.

You could also drive this thing around about 20 miles or so and when you get back home, use a laser thermometer on the rotors to see if one rotor is extremely hotter than the other indicating something wrong with a caliper. This usually won't create a soft pedal, but could be something worth looking at just to eliminate a binding caliper.
 
If this occurred wheeling, I highly doubt bleeding the ABS would do anything. It's VERY unlikely that air would get in the system especially near the ABS HCU. I also highly doubt that air got in the system. It's 100% impossible to get air in the system unless the system is somehow opened/breached or if you run out of brake fluid. I would check for mud/debris/crap built up around rotors and backing plates etc. It's strange how sometimes a mechanical problem in your brakes can create a different pedal feel, and not just a hydraulic problem. I also would ensure that you have no fluid leaks anywhere. Check around all bleeders and banjo bolts to ensure there is no chance something snagged and somehow loosened a bleeder or banjo bolt. Lastly I would check to ensure there is no dirt/debris in any of the hardware on the caliper brackets. You're more than welcome to have a dealer bleed the ABS, but I don't think it will help. Also, a booster concern will generally create a hard pedal not a soft one. My gut feeling is that mechanically, something has changed the way the pads connect to the rotors even if it is just dirt/debris.

You could also drive this thing around about 20 miles or so and when you get back home, use a laser thermometer on the rotors to see if one rotor is extremely hotter than the other indicating something wrong with a caliper. This usually won't create a soft pedal, but could be something worth looking at just to eliminate a binding caliper.

I checked the rotors and caliber. Took it apart and cleaned them. That was the first thing I did. I was in mud up to the top of my 35s and felt like I needed to. But it's all clean front and rear, no leaks, and have bled the brakes 3 or so times and it's bleeding without air bubbles coming out. The only thing that's left is the master cylinder and abs. It's like a puzzle I can't figure out lol.
 
I checked the rotors and caliber. Took it apart and cleaned them. That was the first thing I did. I was in mud up to the top of my 35s and felt like I needed to. But it's all clean front and rear, no leaks, and have bled the brakes 3 or so times and it's bleeding without air bubbles coming out. The only thing that's left is the master cylinder and abs. It's like a puzzle I can't figure out lol.

Unless for some strange reason water/mud got inside the calipers past the dust boot and that's causing a problem. :idontknow: You could also have mud inside your ebrake area, but on your model Jeep, that shouldn't affect the pedal feeling at all. Sure seems strange. If you have the time, for kicks, take your pads out and hit them with some 220 grit sand paper and clean them up. Not sure if that will help, but may clean any debris out of pad surface.
 
So are YOU going to replace it or are you having a dealer do it?
Reason I ask is due to the brake bleed part.

When I did my suspension package I added the longer brake hoses, I used a vacuum bleed setup and was sure I got all the air out.
However every once in a while on a sort of hard stop, I get the BRRRRR sound and vibration feeling of my ABS kicking in. No lights come on that I have noticed.:doh:

If you do it yourself please let us know how you bled the air out and if it worked good.
 
So are YOU going to replace it or are you having a dealer do it?
Reason I ask is due to the brake bleed part.

When I did my suspension package I added the longer brake hoses, I used a vacuum bleed setup and was sure I got all the air out.
However every once in a while on a sort of hard stop, I get the BRRRRR sound and vibration feeling of my ABS kicking in. No lights come on that I have noticed.:doh:

If you do it yourself please let us know how you bled the air out and if it worked good.

a hard stop even a short one will cause the ABS to kick in, it's doing it's thing - that's a good sign :thumb:
 
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