007_e350

ok so it was easy on 3 wheels but front passenger side took in air .. I did it the conventional way. Had a one-man bleeding kit from Autozone. And I pumped the brake & kept filling the brake fluid (MB brake fluid dot4). Here are some questions now:

1- when I pumped the brake, only a certain amount of fluid is forced out - not everything in the master cylinder (like I thought). Probably its the amount of fluid in that line. Is this true ?

2- The SBC buzz became little fast paced (bzzzzz) verses before bleeding (bz zz z z z) so I assume the clean fluid kicked in a bit - But sometimes the Buzz is very long, never before did I ever get long buzzes .... Is this because there's still some air trapped on the passenger side front ?

pls advise, I'm freakin out

paulv

That's your problem -- those "one-man" kits are no good for these cars -- I used a Motive pressure bleeder with no problems. Anytime you step on the brakes with the SBC, the unit will start pumping, so a person can't do that to bleed out the system.

Regards,
paul...

vettdvr

Paul I read somewhere the motive doesn't have enough pressure to bleed/flush the sbc system. I was getting ready to buy one to do all my vehicles. How did it work out for you? vettdvr

paulv

Hi vettdvr,

Can't bleed the SBC because the Star Diags tool is needed to exercise the valves inside it -- all we can do is perform a conventional bleed on the rest of the lines/calipers. I've performed this twice on the E320 and also on my Boxster (which has an ABS that requires the factory scan tool) to bleed but provides instructions to bleed the rest of the system since they only say to bleed the ABS pump if it's been replaced/fixed) and haven't any issues with the brakes. I saw a tool to work the SBC for brake fluid flushes that was made in Taiwan but they wanted about $500US for the tool. I just unplug the SBC and do the bleed, then reconnect the SBC and drive away.

I think the SBC needs about ~3 bar of pressure (~45 psi) and you're right -- the Motive unit doesn't go that high. Drivbiwire on the other forum did a nice write-up about bleeding the brakes with the Motive unit and not bothering with the SBC.

Considering that the brake fluid required is DOT 4+, changing it every 2 yrs like the service info dictates should keep it OK -- the fluid in the SBC will probably mix with the new fluid, so you will get it next time.

Regards,
paul...

m4coyote

Vettdvr,

I have a Motive pressure bleeder, and it works great for my E500. You won't believe how easy it is to bleed the brakes on your E with one of these!

007_e350

Guys, I think I have a problem with SBC unit ever since I bled the brakes..

Remember when you unlock the car we always hear the SBC buzz ... Well now my car doesn;t do that - I do hear two clicks from the SBC unit (I observed with the hood open) and it appears as if it tried but couldn't buzz ... Now when the engine is running its fine - I hear the buzzes and brakes work normal ... Do I need to take it in for a check ? .. Are these early warnings for sbc failure ? Any info is greatly appreciated

vettdvr

Make sure it is plugged in. Verify you have no FSS warnings. If no warnings try the brakes to see how they work. You might be ok.

m4coyote

My E500 does not "buzz" every time I unlock the door. Sometimes it buzzes, and sometimes it doesn't. I do regularly hear it while I am driving. If the brakes are working well, then all is probably OK.

Once, while bleeding the brakes, I ran the brake fluid reservoir dry, and this did make the SBC unit sound very different. It would run for a longer than usual time, and finally give me the red brake warnings. I then ordered the Motive Power Bleeder, and rebled the system. All was well after that.

007_e350

My car had ALWAYS buzzed when unlocked, do you hear the 2 clicks from SBC pump at the time of unlocking the car ? If not, you shd be fine ... I hear the clicks as if it tried to buzz but couldn't ... This started happening right after I bled the brakes w/o disconnecting the SBC pump..