Was wondering if the 2012 Honda Fit has the auto bleed capability for the ABS?

I discovered this video on youtube with the guy using a scan tool that has the capability to auto bleed the ABS.


Product in video on Amazon:
Let me know your guys' thoughts. Thanks!

Edit: Also, I was wondering, out of the DOT3 Brake fluid list here on RockAuto, which brand would you all recommend? I've already purchased three 16 ounce bottles of Honda DOT 3, but it's too expensive to keep purchasing. Would be nice to switch to a third-party, if it won't destroy the brake system, of course..

 

The service manual on our GD Fit doesn't not call for any kind of bleeding of the ABS module. I've changed the fluid quite a few times on ours and even replaced the master cylinder with a larger one. Even with doing that, the air flowed through the ABS module and out at the calipers.

Are you having a brake bleeding issue? If so, make sure you are doing the brakes in the correct sequence and don't have a leak somewhere. I've not heard of issues with these cars otherwise.

For fluid, you can use pretty much any quality DOT3 brake fluid. A cheap and decent fluid you can grab just about anywhere is Valvoline synthetic brake fluid.

 

I know you like learning stuff, so i tried digging around to find a recommendation of fluid for you but couldn't. It's my understanding that for longevity's sake we are supposed to stick with manufacturer's recommended fluids generally because of composition/additives and how it all works with the rubber, plastic, or metals in a system.
I've toyed around with brake fluid a little, tried redline's offering and one from bel ray which is a powersports lube manufacturer.. I certainly haven't noticed any issues (perhaps I wouldn't), just differences in feel. Redline felt the mushiest to me, honda in the middle, bel ray the most positive. been running bel ray for like..a couple years in clutch and brakes.
the general consensus is to use whatever you want so long as its dot 3 or 4. honestly, this topics been a headache. folks say valvoline is good
heres an article covering dot 3 and 4 differences
but it doesnt really cover all concerns. It seems like nobody talks about specific brake fluid properties in regards to specific compitability. Maybe that's telling, in that theres nothin' to tell.

In regards to bleeding abs, ive got zero experience there. I've accidentally popped pistons out of calipers, replaced piston boots and scrubbed said pistons with scuffpads n wd40 to remove corrosion and such n never had to mess with the abs box. I didnt even know what that box of tubes was til recently.. yet i've had no issue getting air outta brake systems, including the one i messed up :\
Its my understanding that higher end scanners can perform the procedure, but i read somewhere that you dont need to unless you replaced the part itself.

not answering any of your questions unfortunately, but i hope it helps
​​​​​​

 

I mentioned Valvoline only because it's supposed to be a pretty good catch all fluid for any vehicle. I ran it many, many years ago.

In my first higher effort vehicle, I ran Motul RBF. It worked, but wasn't cheap. I switched to ATE Typ200 and could not tell a difference between the two. Only brake fluid I've bought in probably 15 years.

Keep in mind, we live in the mountains. When our Fit was brand new we took it on it's first mountain run. Brakes came close to complete failure on the backside of the mountain. Factory fluid couldn't handle the heat. Swapped it to the Typ200 the same weekend and problem completely solved. Went on to change every part of the brake system over the years, but still run the Typ200 fluid. The 1 liter can is enough to fully flush the system with new fluid and have some left so not overly expensive.

 

Wasnt at all trying to be critical of valvoline, just incase it came off that way! 🙂 it was the most common recommendation i could find when trying to dig into brake fluid recommendations across all platforms!You live on a mountain GAFIT? I can't think of a better test of braking systems than a downhill mountain run.
Now I've got follow-up questions for yuh! what method or tool do you use to bleed brakes that you've found most reliable and efficient? How do you know when you're done bleeding a specific caliper or drum assy.?
​​​​​
And to Gemma, I'll try to find the brake fluid capacity and will chime right back in.
Edit: Oki-doki, its not in the service manual and I cant check the owner's manual. taking the tacoma n going out of town for a likely 3-5 days.. Check the back of the owner's manual for that spec! :}

 

Yup, live in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains. Could not ask for better roads/drives.

I have a mighty-vac system, but honestly prefer the old two person method. I bet if I said "push" to my wife while she was asleep, you'd see her foot move. LOL We've done that many brake jobs together.

The Fit has a strange sequence. Normal is furthest from master cylinder to closest. The Fit's sequence is closest to ABS module to furthest. ABS module is located passenger side front.

Used to be really easy to tell when each caliper was done because I alternated between ATE Typ200 Amber and Super Blue. Color change was super easy way to tell. Sadly, the DOT decided brake fluid can't be blue. Why? No idea! Now I just wait till I see perfectly clean fluid. Not as easy, but it does have a color change.

Even if you move way more than is needed, the 1 Liter bottle is enough to do a complete change. Don't know actual quantity needed as I always go past seeing it run clear on each caliper.

Pic of our old Fit with its current brake set up below.

 

Great information, gents. Very helpful!

Which year of the Fit do you have, Gafit? You got rid of the ugly drum brakes and put in the calipers in the rear, aye?

Your Fit looks very nice and shiny in that photo. You're hired!

Oh, also, I was just thinking: which OBD reader would you all recommend that works well for the FIT? I think it would be a good idea to have one.

 

Thanks! It's a 2008 with just a hair under 200k miles. Driven hard, but well cared for. Bought new so that helps maintain the condition.

I bought a cheap OBD2 dongle from Amazon years ago and used it with the Torque app on an Android tablet. That worked for most things and is less expensive than an actual reader. I now have a Hondata for the Fit so I use that instead.

 

Oh, cool. Good to know. Those Hondatas are expensive!

Funny story, just discovered that after doing a brake job, some of the folks at this website said to open the bleeder valve while pressing in the piston, so as not to allow the possibility of old, contaminated brake fluid to go up into the ABS. Moreover, doing so allows for not needing to do a brake bleed afterwards, too.

One gentleman, who had twenty-seven years experience of auto work, said he never did that and it wasn't necessary.

I'm just curious as to what your guys' thoughts are on this. I figured, based off what you guys said on your previous posts, that it's unnecessary for the Fit, but wouldn't hurt doing.

 

Curious, what BMC did you wind up using for your Fit? Retained stock booster? Thanks.

I might as well just ask, what all is your brake setup?

 

Stock brakes on my 2012 Fit.

 

MC from a 1998 Accord 4 cylinder with ABS. Upsizes to a 1" piston and fits perfect, but is a different flare. Had to re-flare the brake lines.

Brake line kit from Fastbrakes.

Front - Integra Type R calipers, Acura TSX pads (Stoptech), Mini Cooper rotors (EBC USR's)
Rear - Acura RSX calipers, RSX pads (Stoptech), Civic Si rotors (EBC USR's), Fastbrake parking brake cable adapter, Scarebird Adapters

Strange mix, but it works.

 

Appreciate the reply.

 

I was wondering: why did you replace your MC with a larger one? Are there benefits to this?

Thanks!

 

No benefit with the factory brakes. I just changed the MC to one that came on a Honda with 4 wheel disc brakes from the factory. My front calipers are larger than stock and the rear calipers hold more fluid than the factory drums so the 1" piston MC makes sense.

In a perfect world, I should also change the brake booster to one sized appropriately for a car with 4 wheel discs, but I don't know of one that is a direct bolt in.

 

Wow. Well, that's amazing you figured that all out!

I was wondering if anyone knows: do the drum brake shoes for the 2012 Fit have a larger and smaller size for the brake pad material?

I purchased the Centric shoes from RockAuto, and compared them to see if there were any differences, but they look to be the same length of brake material, just not glued on 100% perpendicular to each other when holding them side-by-side. Also, I don't remember reading anything about this in the service manual, but wanted to double-check just to be safe.

 

Some older cars had a proportioning valve that you also had to replace if replacing rear drums with discs. Each car is different, need to figure it out before messing with stuff around!

 

Thank you for mentioning that. I learned something new!

I didn't see anything like that written in the service manual for the steps to replace the rear drum brakes, so I am under the impression replacing the proportioning valve is not necessary for the 2012 Fit.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Correct. No proportioning valve in any year Fit. They pretty much went away with the introduction of ABS. Proportioning is now controlled by the ABS module.

 

Oh, wow. Thank you for sharing that information. Very good to know!