[Mark66]

I plan on buying a Motive Brake Bleeder to use on my big 1966 Pontiacs. It appears that the correct choice is bleeder unit 0105 and adapter 1105. All cars have the original oval Delco Moraine single cylinder unit that cam stand for power brakes. Can anyone confirm that the part number I mention are correct?

I have emailed Motive to confirm that these are the correct part numbers but no response yet. Also tried calling but no luck.

[Goatracer1]

Can’t you just do it by hand? I either gravity bleed mine or have someone pump and I work bleeders.

[Mark66]

I have used the gravity method for years and it did work well. I have 3 cars to bleed now and think it would save time by using a Motive unit. And given the relatively low cost (under $100) it seems like a good time to try something new and different. Now if I could convince my wife to pump the car brakes.............. that would be a good solution as well.

[Goatracer1]

Have any kids? I taught my kids young how to help dad with small stuff. Having 5 kids came in handy.

[misterp266]

I have alway gravity bled brakes on all cars with no issues. KISS, ever heard of that before?

[mgarblik]

I am just going to throw this out there, and of course the decision is yours. The Motive brake bleeder is a pressure bleeder, which sounds great on the surface. But here is the down side. As a pressure bleeder, it going to make a BIG mess when you use it, just no way around it. You have to have a 100% prefect seal at the master cylinder cover, any tiny leak and paint removing brake fluid will be all over the place under the hood. Then there is the issue of the brake fluid itself. It's going to need a 1/2 gallon of brake fluid put in the reservoir. That fluid will be contaminated as soon as you pour it in and begin absorbing moisture. The hand bug sprayer pump pushes more moisture laden air into the container to make matters worse. The quick disconnects on the hose and adapters have to leak at least some fluid when you attach and detach the hose. Overall, to me, it looks like a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. I have never used this exact brand, but looking at the design, how it functions, and other similar ones I have used, this is my observation. A "real" power bleeder with an electric pump, has a bladder and separate chambers for fluid and air, to keep the brake fluid fresh.
If I didn't have a helper to manual bleed, I would consider a vacuum bleeder instead. Much cleaner in operation with any spills outside the engine compartment. No contaminated fluid to worry about. Vacula, and many other vendors sell them, even Harbor Freight. Finally, for old muscle cars and any vehicle without ABS, good old reliable and free gravity bleeding never fails to work every single time. Sometimes with ABS cars and their tiny intricate passages, a vacuum bleeder really helps speed the process. I work by myself and gravity bleed 90% of the brake jobs I do. That would be about 2-3 jobs a week for more years than I can remember. If you end up buying the Motive Bleeder, report back how well it does for you.

[ZeGermanHam]

I have the Motive pressure bleeder which I have used for years to perform annual brake fluid flushes on my BMW track car. I'm not sure why you'd need to use a half-gallon of brake fluid as stated above. That seems excessive to me. Modern cars with ABS pumps typically use significantly less than a liter of fluid, and an old car is going to use less fluid than a modern car. For my BMW, I just pour a liter of fluid in the bleeder, run almost all of it through the system, then discard any remaining fluid since it won't be kept anyway due to air/moisture contamination.

My experience with the Motive pressure bleeder has been mostly positive, although I've only used it on my BMW where I can screw it onto the master cylinder reservoir and get a good seal. Never had any problems with leaks or making a mess. Not sure how well the adapters work with the reservoirs on older cars, though. That might be a very different scenario.

Either way, I wouldn't say it's life changing.

[Mark66]

mgarblik - Thanks for your input. it is clear that I will have to be careful when using the unit. I can well imagine the mess if the cap does not seal 100% to the master cylinder. I will probably use the Motive unit in conjunction with speed bleeders although that may be overkill.

[mgarblik]

I hope it works well. Metal master cylinders will probably seal better than the plastic reservoir ones. 15 lbs or so pressure should be plenty to get the job done. Let us know how it works.