ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I dont dispute the facts but how is water getting into a closed brake fluid system? I flush the fluid when the pads / rotors are changed, ie when the system is opened up. Opening it up just for the sake of flushing is why I lol'd. ...
You're right, doing a flush when other service is performed might be all you need - brake pads are replaced fairly often (maybe not in a hybrid/EV?)
I'm not sure how water gets into the system, as others said, it might be open to adjust to pressure changes? I'd have to research that, but I tend to go by the owner's manual anyway, figuring they have done the research. Though looking around a bit, I was surprised at the different recs across different mfg. Are their systems that different? Their analysis, level of caution that different? I don't know.
If you are heating up the brakes enough to boil the fluid, thats driving like a Nascar driver.
Not at all. Your brakes go way over boiling temps with routine driving - though some of that is dissipated before getting to the hydraulic fluid. If what you say was true, we'd probably just use radiator coolant in your brakes, and only NASCAR drivers would use a special oil.
Which brings up a question for the car guys/gals:
So why do we have special brake fluid? Why not just motor oil? And what is it about using a fluid that is hygroscopic? What is so special about the needs of brake fluid that it seems the only thing that works is something with the really bad property of absorbing water? No alternatives? Why?
-ERD50