THSCC Forums

For the Brits out there it might be humorous. "Bleeder" is a derogatory term in merry old England.

Anyway...

I'm helping my son do some maintenance on his newly acquired 1991 BMW 318 is. We decided to replace his brake fluid - the old stuff looks like bile. Got all the wheels, it's up on jack stands in my garage, we sucked out as much of the old fluid from the reservoir and topped it up with fresh.

But we can't open the right-rear bleeder. It's stuck solid. We're soaking it overnight with WD40 but I don't know if that will help.

1. What is the proper size wrench we need for the bleeder? None of my ring or open end wrenches are small enough and we've torn up the bleeder a bit using a Vice Grip to no avail.

2. Does anyone have any suggestions or tips for us?

3. Anyone have any spare parts for his vehicle? He's playing the starving student for a bit.

Thanks.

Simon

Could try heating up the valve. BUT...be careful with the WD40 you've used, it's probably flammable. Also, I'm not sure if some localized heating would ruin any seals in the caliper. It's a thought, but maybe reserved for a last resort. There are better penetrating oils than WD40 out there (PB blaster, mouse milk) if you want to try that route.

good luck simon...

_________________
www.ncvw.org
1993 VW Corrado VR6 - DSP15 (RIP)
1986 MB 190E 2.3L 16v - STX (SOLD)
1997 BMW M3 3.2L - BS for now

Simon,

I've been lucky (so far) and never actually had a completely stuck bleeder. However, here are a few ideas (which you probably know already): Liquid wrench "may" be more effective than WD 40. Can you get a six point socket on to the hex (some cleanup with a file may help)? What is the material of the caliper? If aluminum a little heat from a propane torch should make the hole (in the caliper) id bigger. If cast iron heat and/or vibration from "tapping" may help the WD 40 or Liquid wrench work. Good luck!

_________________
Dick Rasmussen

FS 50 2018 Mustang GT

The last car I had with stuck bleeders was delt with two different ways:

1) don't bleed the brakes.

2) for fun, shear bleeder screw off and then replace the calipers. It turns out new calipers were $15 each (Pontiac Sunbird), so it wasn't worth drilling out the old bleeder to save the caliper.

My old Celica has 3 sizes: 8mm, 9mm and 10mm

Scott

Yeah, you could always get a remanned unit if all else fails from Adam Ligon. Email him and see what he can get you.

_________________
www.ncvw.org
1993 VW Corrado VR6 - DSP15 (RIP)
1986 MB 190E 2.3L 16v - STX (SOLD)
1997 BMW M3 3.2L - BS for now

Zep 45 and needle nose vicegrips work wonders on German engineering

_________________
beware of EV powered Ford EXP's they are quiet and come for you when you least expect it... hide behind an aluminum light pole...... ya that will help

I think the brake bleeder screws are 7mm. The clutch slave bleeder screw is 9mm iirc. While I don't claim to be any sort of expert on the subject, the clutch hydraulics run off the same fluid reservoir as the brakes, so you might want to consider bleeding the clutch slave if youve got it up on the stands anyway. Chances are it's probably never been done if the brake fluid has been neglected.

7mm is correct.. i've got a few extra bmw bleeder screws if you want one to replace it once you get it out.. i'm in north raleigh.. just let me know

_________________
'88 bmw 535is
'98 honda civic ex

Thanks for all the help guys.

I'll post a progress report tomorrow.

Simon

If it's that stuck, and assuming you didn't mangle the threads with the Vice-grip (that's a no-no!), be sure to use a good 6-point wrench or socket on it. Chances are the wrench would break before the screw head mangles.

I second the recommendation for PB Blaster. It's amazing the stuff that it will loosen up overnight. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it myself. Standard fare for me these days if I am going to be working on something difficult is to spray stuff down the day before I want to start work.

I would be really leery of using a torch around flammable brake fluid and sensitive seals.

First try PB blaster overnight and any available 7mm wrench IFF it fits well on the screw. Only use moderate pressure. If that doesn't work do a second night of PB and go to sears to get a deep 7mm 6-point socket.

Last resort, call Steve D'Gelormo at The Ultimate Garage and get a new/remanned caliper. Don't bother going anywhere else for BMW hard parts. The dealer is great in a pinch too (10% BMWCCA discount). Autozone/Advance seem pretty worthless for a lot of BMW hard parts - when they have it the supplier is junk and it's usually overpriced.

But what do I know?

_________________
Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

steve at ultimate garage is definately good to deal with.. best place to buy caliper rebuild kits.. the kits for the 8 calipers i rebuilt came from him..

_________________
'88 bmw 535is
'98 honda civic ex

I had the same issue with the Impala. One bleeder screw was was not going to come out. That is what happens on northern cars...I hate working on northern cars.

I took the caliper to a machine shop and they could drill and tap it for a new screw. But they said it was tough and would cost about $100. They then recommended going to Pep Boys and picking up a new caliper for $15.

I thought no way a new caliper for an SS for $15. I was right, it was $12. I love working on Chevolets

You might want to touch base with a machine shop and see if they can drill it out. Might be cheaper than the BMW parts.

_________________
Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

I don't see why you'd pay a machine shop to do it...

If it's like every other bleeder screw I've seen, once you snap it off flush to the caliper, you end up with a nice pilot hole in the middle, pretty darn easy to drill it out, or use an easy out when you have a pilot hole already there!

Scott

I take back some of what I said earlier!

UltGar only has new calipers for !! $145 !!, almost double the front price.
http://www.ultimategarage.com/brakeprc.html

Autozone has remanned calipers for $40. Dunno if this will display right: link

Wagner's in RTP has used ones off of an 87 e for $25: [url=http://www.car-part.com/cgi-bin/search.cgi?userSearch=exact&userPID=1000&userLocation=North+Carolina&userIMS=&userInterchange=[|{r&userSide=&userDate=1987&userDate2=1991&dbModel=9.8&userModel=BMW%20318i&dbPart=536.1&userPart=Caliper&sessionID=512&userUID=0&userBroker=&userPreference=&userPage=2]link[/url]

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Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

Well, we've soaked it in PB Blaster and given it another go and, based on the assumption that I can get a new bleeder valve from Matthew, gave it a good tug. Well, it moved but I'm afraid I may have sheared it. It looks a little crooked.

I'm reluctant to turn it some more until I have a new bleeder valve in hand so that I don't drain all the fluid out if I have. So, I'm waiting on Matthew to return my email - does anyone have his number?

May end up going to Wagner's tomorrow morning for a replacement caliper. Do they come with a bleeder valve?

All the other bleeder valves open like a charm.

Mike: Can you tell me how to bleed the clutch hydraulics?

Simon

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