I usually do it every 3-4 yrs as I find the fluid gets pretty dark by then. The brake pedal feels great afterwards.

 

Couldn't agree more. I only changed mine recently (after 138K miles and 15+ yrs) and it made a huge difference. Brakes are now much more responsive and no mushiness.

 

I got my car two years ago, but I just changed it about a month ago. I haven't noticed any obvious difference in braking, but it's definitely something that should probably be done on an annual or biannual basis.

 

Probably the majority doesn't, but @ every 3 years rule of thumb to keep the condensation at a minimum.

 

I'm the second owner from like 05 I think and the fluid has never been changed.
Just added when doing the brakes.

Recently I've been doing allot of maintenence cuz I guess at about 200,000 everything
starts to need replacing... everything...

Anyway didn't feel anything I'm not racing so the fluid isn't boiling it's not going to feel any firmer just by changing it but it's good to keep your system from rusting.

Check it the old fluid.

 

The problem with old brake fluid is that it eats up your seals. That's why it's pertinent to change it. If you get a lot of moisture in it, then it can start eating metal and with ABS that's a real big no no.

 

What seals? Near the caliper? I didn't change my brake fluid until 235k (at 244k now) and when done I didn't notice any difference in braking; fluid wasn't even that dark before. Never had any leaks/brake problems but I was asking so I stay aware of potential trouble spots. Thanks.

 

^ i didn't change mine until 216k, i only changed it because my rear piston seals died and started leaking all my fluid lol

 

ABS unit seals and master cylinder, which is most prone to failure from old fluid.

Hwy miles are easy on brakes, no doubt, but most people's fluid is black (I don't mean dark brown) by 100k+ and is just doing damage.

I haven't seen anything ever get so bad that it ruins ABS or master cylinder, but I've read plenty of stories about the master failing with really old fluid still in there (particularly when bleeding the brakes and fully depressing the pedal).
It's another thing that should just be done as cheap insurance. Sure, you don't have to change your PS steering or tranny fluid, either, but what do you think the wise decision is lol

 

The biggest problem I've found with "old" fluid is contamination at the calipers, and the end result is a bore that is rusty/corroded and then sticking caliper piston(s). Because condensation resides in the lower portion of the brake system/caliper, with a 4 piston caliper, the lowers will stick first.

One practice I recommend is that when pads are replaced, when pushing/turning the pistons into the caliper, rather than pushing the fluid back to the master cylinder, undo the bleeder and let the fluid exit via the bleeder. Naturally, all the fluid in the caliper isn't expelled, but at least it will alleviate most of the contaminated fluid and no air will enter the system.

For those that don't want to jump in and do a flush, the brake fluid can be tested. For a reasonable price @ $7, brake fluid test strips can be purchased:
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/psl-3003

 

And shoving the dirty fluid through the ABS can cause big pressure problems. I've witnessed it twice, now. I'm not going to be lazy anymore lol

 

I change mine every three years, however, I have trouble bleeding that sucker, when I drain it all out, and realized I need to bleed out the air and it takes forever, til I found out about the Reverse brake bleeding by Phoenix system, which really took out a lot of the hassle.

 

Maybe it's just me, but you're not supposed to drain it all out lol. Pump until the resovoir is low, fill it up, then pump until fresh fluid comes out of the bleeder (always topping off before it gets low). After that you simply move on to the other wheels. The entire system has fresh fluid and no air is introduced.

 

Get one of these.
Super ez and fast.