Toyota Camry: How to Flush Your Brakes

This article applies to the Toyota Camry (1997-2011).

The hydraulic brake fluid in your Toyota Camry is used to transmit your brake inputs throughout the braking system. Eventually, this fluid gets to the caliper, where the brake pad presses on the rotor which slows down your car. When you have contaminants in your braking system, it will not perform at full efficiency and deposits will form. Eventually, these deposits can cause permanent damage to your braking system which makes for extremely expensive repairs. Instead, proper maintenance of your brake fluid ensures that you can avoid ridiculous repair bills while driving safely for years to come. These procedures can be used on a Camry equipped with four-wheel disk brakes.

Step 1 – Raise and secure rear of vehicle

Raise the rear of your Camry on level ground using a hydraulic jack on the frame of the vehicle. Secure your car in the air using two jack stands on both sides of the car. This will ensure that an accident will not occur if your jack fails. Remove the rear wheels using a 21mm socket on a torque wrench.

(Related Article: How to Jack Up Your Car - Camryforums.com)

Step 2 – Remove brake fluid from master cylinder reservoir

Use your turkey baster to suction out all of the brake fluid in the master cylinder reservoir. Collect your brake fluid in a container, like a plastic bottle so it stays away from your paint since it is extremely corrosive. Refill the master cylinder with new DOT-3 brake fluid so the system can be flushed with new, clean fluid.

Step 3 – Remove brake bleeder screw

Starting on the rear passenger side of the vehicle, loosen the 8mm brake bleeder screw a few turns. Do not loosen all the way as the 3/16" tubing has to be pushed onto the bleeder screw. Put the other end of the tubing into the plastic bottle to begin flushing the system. The setup should look like Figure 3.

Step 4 – Begin bleeding process

It is extremely helpful to have someone assist you with this step. First, put a small brick under the brake pedal so it doesn't compress past what it normally does. This prevents any damage to the hydraulic components like the master cylinder. Next, pump the brake pedal to remove the old fluid from the system. While someone is pumping the pedal, someone else should be watching the brake fluid level in the master cylinder. Refill as necessary to keep the fluid topped off. If no fluid is in the reservoir, air will get trapped into the system and will make this flush useless.

Step 5 – Finish bleeding process

Once you notice clean fluid coming through the tubing, tighten the bleeder screw and remove tubing. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 for the other brake calipers. The order in which you do the bleeding process is as follows:

1. Passenger's Side Rear
2. Driver's Side Rear
3. Passenger's Side Front
4. Driver's Side Front

Step 6 – Clean up

Make sure your brake fluid reservoir is properly filled with clean fluid and cap the reservoir. Lower the car and make sure that your brake pedal is now firm. Take your car for a slow test drive and feel out different braking situations. Go ahead and admire the fact that you saved yourself some cash while knowing your braking system is nice and clean.

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Related Discussion

• Brake Fluid Flush - Camryforums.com