Brake Malfunction warning?

[hchays]

I'd rather get a brake warning when the fluid started going down, but the brakes still worked, than having nanny tell me there is a brake failure as I put my foot on the brake . . . and they don't work . . . just my opinion

I agree, but not when it's only down a two tablespoons. That would be like your low fuel light in your car coming on as soon as the gauge goes off of full.

[crazyspyder]

I'd rather get a brake warning when the fluid started going down, but the brakes still worked, than having nanny tell me there is a brake failure as I put my foot on the brake . . . and they don't work . . . just my opinion

I think the point I was trying to get across is that the sensors are toooo far up my reservoir still looked full and see fluid by the cap neck and it took 2 table spoons to over flow it..you kno!
that was my rant anyways but- you are right on the warning , just too soon to lit up!

[Michael211_2000]

Well mine's starting to do it again... saw the brake malfunction red light come on and the Brake Failure message started to scroll for just a second this afternoon.

What is really troubling me though is this: brake fluid is definitely being forced out of the fluid reservoir caps when it's filled up far enough to keep the sensors happy and brake fluid is both highly corrosive (once exposed to oxygen in the air) and flammable (exposed to heat it has a very low flash point). This fluid is starting to show up as a dirty light film along the top of my rear shock (clearly working it's way down from the hole the shock goes thru in the body above), and appears to even be making it to the exhaust pipes now.

I started my RS yesterday and was letting it idle for a bit (after being parked for a couple bad weather days), this time I didn't just take-off riding like I usually do, and as the pipes heated up I noticed smoke coming out from under the machine! Got down on knees and looked under to see where the smoke was coming from and it was the exhaust pipes smoking like there was some kind of oily residue on them burning off and I'd bet it's brake fluid (last oil change was over 1000 miles ago so that had nothing to do with this smoke); a little goes a long long way.

After about 2 minutes the smoke stopped. If I'd immediately gone riding before the exhaust got heated up I would never have known it was doing this though.

I'm worried now about corrosion setting in on the frame rear shock/coil and of course the exhaust pipes directly below could easily become a fire hazard. I'm not at all sure what this fluid might be doing to any wiring in the area back there under the reservoir. This is a rather series design flaw IMHO. And I'm not spilling the fluid when I add it, it's just oozing out from under the caps on it's own.

Does anybody know of a good solution (short of disconnecting the sensors completely or overfilling the fluid reservoir to keep these sensors happy)? Cold brake fluid doesn't take up as much space in the system as warm brake fluid, and those darned sensors are so close to the top you have to fill it up almost to the caps to keep the sensors from triggering the brake failure warning!

BRP aught to be aware of this issue... or is a YouTube video required? IDK.

This cannot be good for the machine and seems very unsafe IMHO. I still have extended BEST warranty on this machine but not sure there's any point taking it to a dealership if this is a known problem with no solution...

- Michael

[DrewNJ]

Seriously, pull the sensors, lower your fluid level, and ride on. Its a stupid setup to begin with. There is no reason to have it that full. If you have a leak in your system its either going to be so large that your loosing brake pressure way before that message will be of any help, or the periodic drip that you really should notice on the garage floor just before pulling out for a ride.

Most bikes don't even have a low level sensor to begin with and most other bikes have WAY smaller reservoirs.....

[Cruzr Joe]

I had the same "brake failure" flashing on my screen. I looked at the brake fluid and it looked fine, everything check out fine. So I added about 2 tablespoons of brake fluid and it went away.

Just my thoughts here, if you added two tablespoons ..................... you were low, remember that as you go up and down hills and stop and go the fluid may move away from the sensor for just a second and that may trigger the BRAKE FAILURE notice. I always keep the brake reservoir full.

Disabling the sensor is not a good idea under any circumstance, also be sure that when you put the cap back on that it is tight and there is a little symbol on the cap that shows which end is up.


These bikes require a little maintenance, check your fluids (all of them) regularly



Cruzr Joe

[DrewNJ]

Disabling the sensor is not a good idea under any circumstance....




Cruzr Joe

Please elaborate as to why....

[DrewNJ]

I highly doubt he was even close to being low enough to allow air to be drawn in the system. No way. A few teaspoons is pointless.
Common sense would be checking the fluid once in awhile.

The only way for the fluid to be truly low is a leak, and it would have to be a good one too. Check and maintain your machine regularly and there will be no issue and one less useless idiot light needed.

[DrewNJ]

Again, most motorcycles don't have low brake fluid sensors. They are even more pointless than tpms systems.

[Cruzr Joe]

Again, most motorcycles don't have low brake fluid sensors. They are even more pointless than tpms systems.

I would not be comfortable telling someone to disconnect the sensors when they are asking for advice, as he was.

I would be more comfortable trying to explain why he was getting the signals he was getting, and .................. The Spyder is not like most motorcycles.

Cruzr Joe

[DrewNJ]

Whatever you say cruzer Joe......[emoji57] [emoji107]

[Cruzr Joe]

Whatever you say cruzer Joe......[emoji57] [emoji107]

It's Cruzr Joe

[DrewNJ]

Either way, its still [emoji107]

[DrewNJ]

Not arguing about anything, and care even less. So Again, whatever you say crusty Joe...

[DrewNJ]

And its still [emoji107] [emoji38]

[DrewNJ]

You must be a blast to hang out with. [emoji57]

[DrewNJ]

Why would I care where your from?

[DrewNJ]

Nah, it would be rude to ignore all the old people. Old people are fun to watch. Like kids that aren't your own. Always trying to prove that they are smarter than everyone else in the room, most times by putting others down. You really try hard at that, but it's all good.

[Highwayman2013]

[Bob Denman]

Wow... I thought that I had stepped in it, "Big Time" this morning!
Drew,
As I recall; you said that unhooking all of those sensors on your bike for a track day, didn't make it all that friendly when it was back on the street...
Or am I remembering something incorrectly?
Like it or not; if these bikes get about 6 drops low on brake fluid, they get upset... It's the nature of the Beast, and you either learn to live with it, or get a different bike.
And disconnecting sensors from a brake system; NEVER a good idea... for a plethora of good reasons!

[DrewNJ]

Wow... I thought that I had stepped in it, "Big Time" this morning!
Drew,
As I recall; you said that unhooking all of those sensors on your bike for a track day, didn't make it all that friendly when it was back on the street...
Or am I remembering something incorrectly?
Like it or not; if these bikes get about 6 drops low on brake fluid, they get upset... It's the nature of the Beast, and you either learn to live with it, or get a different bike.
And disconnecting sensors from a brake system; NEVER a good idea... for a plethora of good reasons!

Different sensors Bob.
The low brake fluid sensor has nothing to do with how the bike handles.
Having a sensor to monitor the brake fluid level is only necessary for those that rely on idiot lights to monitor fluid levels. It would be like having a low oil sensor, low clutch fluid sensor, low tire sensors, etc etc.
The brake system holds a lot of fluid in the reservoir and the lines down to the master are really long.
Brake fluid loss is either immediate or very slow. Immediate loss of fluid the idiot light isn't going to help, and the very slow loss of fluid "should" be checked either visually by drops on the garage floor or noticed by a periodic fluid check.
however, according to Mr bad ass Bronx cruiser joe, I'm wrong all the time, so people should do whatever works for them.
The people that understand the system, and how it works, are the people who get it. The others can feel safe having the brake fluid topped off to the max, idiot light/message off, and wonder whether the fluid weeping from the caps is going drip down onto the frame and ruin the frame.
Best of luck everyone![emoji106]

[DrewNJ]

Never name called you cruszer joe. Those are all self proclaimed. Remember, us nj folk aren't as smart as you folk...wherever your from.
Also, didn't you say you were done with this thread?....memory isn't as good as it used to be , huh?

[Dan McNally]

. . . and it takes quite a while to get even a little low on brake fluid . . . I had the first issue as I was nearing the 10,000 mile mark . . . added a tiny bit of fluid and it hasn't happened again, yet.

Of all the things to worry about in life, this warning isn't one of them . . . if I get it once a year and it goes away with a tiny bit of fluid, who cares.

As for name calling, it seems to be on the rise, here, and certainly indicates a lack of maturity . . . the emotional kind, not the age-related version. I stopped calling others names when I was in elementary school . . .

[bikeguy]

Believe it or not, all this "discussion" is a good reason to check out Spyderlovers if you ride a Spyder. The first time the "brake failure" warning came on my 2010 RT, I was coming down the mountain just south of Sipapu, NM in a thick fog. That could have been really scary if I hadn't known, from reading Spyderlovers, that this could happen if the brake fluid was the slightest bit low. I did check the brakes to be sure they felt good and then I concentrated on keeping my wife, who was on the back, from seeing the warning message when it came on. That would have meant stopping immediately when there was no reason to do so. Once down on the flats and into warmer weather, the failure warning stopped coming on. I probably put two teaspoons of fluid in the master cylinder after we got home.

By the way, it's not necessary to have a leak for the fluid level to get low enough to bring the warning on. As the brake pads wear, the system volume naturally enlarges and the same volume of fluid is no longer sufficient to completely fill the system. As DrewNJ said, the sensors are way too sensitive. I don't advocate disabling them, though. Just fill the reservoir, and the warnings go away. Better still, think of the warning as a good reason to check and, probably, replace your brake pads because, absent a fluid leak, the pads are probably worn enough to warrant replacing.

Cotton

[Cruzr Joe]

Believe it or not, all this "discussion" is a good reason to check out Spyderlovers if you ride a Spyder. The first time the "brake failure" warning came on my 2010 RT, I was coming down the mountain just south of Sipapu, NM in a thick fog. That could have been really scary if I hadn't known, from reading Spyderlovers, that this could happen if the brake fluid was the slightest bit low. I did check the brakes to be sure they felt good and then I concentrated on keeping my wife, who was on the back, from seeing the warning message when it came on. That would have meant stopping immediately when there was no reason to do so. Once down on the flats and into warmer weather, the failure warning stopped coming on. I probably put two teaspoons of fluid in the master cylinder after we got home.

By the way, it's not necessary to have a leak for the fluid level to get low enough to bring the warning on. As the brake pads wear, the system volume naturally enlarges and the same volume of fluid is no longer sufficient to completely fill the system. As DrewNJ said, the sensors are way too sensitive. I don't advocate disabling them, though. Just fill the reservoir, and the warnings go away. Better still, think of the warning as a good reason to check and, probably, replace your brake pads because, absent a fluid leak, the pads are probably worn enough to warrant replacing.

Cotton

, that was how i learned about the fluid being a little low, coming down a mountain in Hot Springs, I was very concerned, I now check my brake fluid as I check all the other fluids.

Cruzr joe

[ARtraveler]

, that was how i learned about the fluid being a little low, coming down a mountain in Hot Springs, I was very concerned, I now check my brake fluid as I check all the other fluids.

Cruzr joe

And then there is the famous Hatcher Pass downhill. Thirteen miles or so. Yee Haaaaaa! Have had brake failure about three times on that one.