Bedifferent
Old man on a bike
Mine too, so I need to find out more about the whole ABS thing.
Mine too, so I need to find out more about the whole ABS thing.
rocketjohn
Top Fuel
I think the main risk is if air gets trapped in the modulator, it may determine a need to start pumping the brakes, and having air, it will just bounce it around and not modulate the brake fluid pressure, and the whole role of ABS is obviated. Your bike would be at risk for lockup just as if I was not equipped with ABS. Who knows what else might happen, but hopefully a code would be thrown, prompting investigation.
Nat67
Rockgoblin
The ABS system is electronic valves controlled by sensors on the rotor via the ECU . At 6mph and above the sensors detect if the wheel has locked up and opens a valve in the ABS module , this momentarily relieves the pressure in the brake system unlocking the wheel . The valve then shuts returning pressure to the system . This happens many times a second giving the characteristic graunge you feel through the brake lever . When the bike is at a standstill the ABS valves are shut and so caliper removal or localised brake bleeding can be carried out .
If changing the fluid through the entire system , ie front or rear , the diagnostic tool would be needed to hold the ABS valves open in order to purge and refill !
This is my understanding of the ABS system on the r3 please correct me if I am wrong , but I do remove and strip my calibres on a yearly basis with no diagnostic tool and thus far , no ill effects !
If changing the fluid through the entire system , ie front or rear , the diagnostic tool would be needed to hold the ABS valves open in order to purge and refill !
This is my understanding of the ABS system on the r3 please correct me if I am wrong , but I do remove and strip my calibres on a yearly basis with no diagnostic tool and thus far , no ill effects !
Bedifferent
Old man on a bike
Thanks for the informative explanation. So basically from what I said and what you have said, the vast majority of the brake system can be exchange in a normal manner with the exception of ABS modulator.
One of reasons for bleeding the lines to begin with is because of the high brake fluid temperatures affecting the fluid itself, but more importantly the fact that the fluid takes on moisture over time which can damage the brake components like the calipers. From my perspective, why even worry about the small amount of fluid in the ABS modulator (unless there is air in it). With some simple bleeding tools I could easily exchange the fluid on my bike with some high quality fluid each year to prevent the damage caused by moisture. I would still be renewing the vast majority of the fluid. It's like doing a oil change, do you ever really drain all of the old oil out of your engine before putting in new. If I'm wrong in my thinking, convince me otherwise.
Nat67
Rockgoblin
I don't believe you are wrong at all ! This was the point I was trying to make in a long winded sort of way . Ideally , fluid should be changed every 2 years for the reasons you mention and the majority is replaced without opening the valves , although I would not condone never opening the valves to replace the fluid in the ABS module and lines , I would not put off bleeding of brakes and maintenance of calibres because I didn't have the service tool !
