How to Bleed the Brakes on a 1993 Ford Probe

Brakes provide your car's stopping power. Failing brakes, needless to say, pose a major danger to you and others. If your brakes feel squishy or if you have to pump them a few times to activate them, they need repair. If a physical inspection of the shoes and rotors shows no problems, you may have air in the brake lines. Expelling air from brake lines is a routine maintenance procedure that your mechanic should do every time your brake pads are replaced. But bleeding brakes is a job anyone can do to most cars with a little motivation and a little know-how. Bleeding the 1993 Ford Probe's brakes is a simple process. You will need an assistant.

Instructions

1

Loosen all the lug nuts on the vehicle. Raise each wheel off the ground, one at a time, placing jack stands under the frame rails at each wheel until all four wheels are off the ground. Remove the lug nuts and tires and set them to the side.

2

Depress the Probe's brake pedal several times, with the engine off, to empty any residual vacuum pressure in the lines.

3

Remove the top of the brake fluid reservoir and top off the reservoir with DOT-3 brake fluid.

4

Start with the passenger-side rear tire. Loosen the bleed screw slightly, using a wrench, and make sure you can loosen and tighten the screw readily by hand or with the wrench. Attach the plastic tubing to the bleed screw and lead the tubing into the clear plastic bottle. You will want to have the loose end of the tubing submerged in brake fluid, so add a little DOT-3 brake fluid to the bottle so that the end of the tubing is submerged.

5

Have your helper press the brake pedal firmly to the floor and hold it there. While the pedal is down, loosen the bleed screw so that the pressure on the line pushes brake fluid through your plastic tube. You should notice air bubbling occasionally from the tube end that's submersed in fluid in the clear plastic container. Close the screw once the flow of bubbles and brake fluid stops (it might take a few seconds). Have your helper release pressure on the brake line.

6

Tighten the screw hand-tight and top off the brake fluid reservoir with clean DOT-3 fluid. You aren't finished yet.

7

Repeat steps 5 and 6 until no you no longer see air bubbles coming out of the tube when you loosen the bleed screw. Tighten the bleed screw with the wrench.

8

Repeat steps 4 through 7 until all four tires are complete. For proper bleeding, repeat the process for the driver-side rear brake second, the passenger-side front brake third, and the driver-side front brake last. Make sure the brake reservoir is never less than half-full at any given point.

9

Replace the tires and lug nuts, and tighten the lug nuts hand-tight. Working at one wheel at a time, use the jack to raise the car slightly at each corner so you can remove the at that corner. Lower the wheel to the ground, then repeat on the next corner until all four wheels are on the ground. Tighten all of the lug nuts with the lug nut wrench.

10

Test the brakes. If you notice further issues after successfully bleeding the brakes, you will want to consult a professional.