Hi all. I have been doing a lot of reading and am still confused about a few things...mainly due to conflicting information I've read.

To start off, I have an 07 Civic EX Coupe. I am planning to change rotors and pads on the 4 corners...figure I'd do a full brake flush at the same time. This will be my first attempt at this...but after a lot of reading I am confident I can do it.

Question 1...do I replace the rotor/pads on all 4 corners first and the do a full flush or do I do a full flush and then replace parts. I have read people saying both.

Question 2...which corner do I start with for the flush? I have read to start from the farthest to from the MC...or start from driver front and work clock wise...or do RR, LF, LF, RF. I am confused... Is it even that critical where to start?

 

I am not an expert, but have replaced brake pads, calipers and rotors among other things. Given that, it makes more sense to me to do a brake flush after changing brake pads and rotors, in part because if you find in the process that the calipers need to be replaced, you don't need to bother with bleeding the brakes twice.

When you change the brake pads and rotors, you will need a large c-clamp or similar tool to hold and push in the piston of the caliper. When you do this, the brake fluid in the MC will rise, so it's a good idea to remove some first before starting and keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't spill over. There is some concern about contaminants getting into the master cylinder when bleeding brakes, which could potentially destroy the cylinder. I'm not saying this to scare you, but just so you are aware of it.

Regarding flushing and bleeding brakes, the reason you may see different orders is because it can vary between models and years. Someone should be able to help you find information for your model.

Like I said, I'm not an expert, but there were things I found out after doing brakes the first time that I wished my manual had stated or wished someone had told me. If you have a change, borrow a Hayne's manual from the library or buy one from the auto parts store, used book store or ebay. It's very helpful to have as reference even though you may find it's limited when it comes to certain issues.

 

Thanks for your reply. I think I will go ahead and replace the brakes and then do a complete flush. Hope someone knows the Honda recommended order to do a flush.

 

Doesn't really matter which way you decide to do it. I'm a Honda tech and I do this on the daily. One hint is to suck some of the brake fluid out before the brake job to prevent spillage when you compress the pistons. And when you do the flush go from the side where it's farthest from the brake master then go to the next. Works best and gets the fluids clean if you take more time with it. Hope that helps!