How Long Can You Drive Without Brake Fluid? [Answered]

Hydraulic fluid, otherwise known as brake makes sure the smooth brake paddle performance whenever you apply pressure in the vehicle. Most of the vehicles such as cars, motorbikes, and everything that has a brake hydraulic fluid are much needed.

Therefore the availability of brake fluid maximizes the braking force and works more like a lubricant and keeps off corrosion, hence it enhances performance.

Now, how long can you drive without brake fluid comes as the major question keeping in mind the benefits of hydraulic fluid for any vehicle!

Although you can drive without brake fluid as long as you want, stopping the vehicle with no brake fluid will be challenging and cause brake failure at times. This is because the fluid makes smoothness around and if you don’t have the fluid, the roughness in the paddle damages the components, clippers and rotors for obvious reasons.

In other words, you should not drive with no brake fluid because stopping the vehicle would be dangerous. With no brake fluid here won’t be any pressure on the pedal and it won’t work. So driving without brake fluid means the brake paddle with no function.

What happens if you run out of brake fluid?

So while you should not drive without brake fluid, the next question automate becomes what happens if you run out of brake fluid suddenly. Is it dangerous or what should you do if that happens?

To understand it better you need to know how brake fluid works. Each time you press the brake paddle, the brake fluid gets pressurized and it moves through the brake lines towards the calipers and applies the force to the brake pads against rotors.

So this promotes friction against the wheels of the vehicle and it stops. Naturally, when you run out of brake fluid the car won’t stop smoothly. Also, if you run out of brake fluid, the brakes can even fail.

Low brake fluid – Few Common Indications

Luckily, there are few indications or signs that tell you your car is about to run out of brake fluid. Here are the common indications:

Problematic pedal

If the brake pedals are stiff, faulty or not working the smooth way, there can be another sign of low brake fluid. If you have to apply too much force to press the pedal check for the brake fluid, it can be low. Also it can be the indication that brake fluid has become contaminated or it has air trapped within.

Fluid in one or more ire of the vehicle

If the fluid is in one and more than one wheels of the car it can be due to leakage. So this can be another sign that the brake fluid parameter is faulty for some reason. Get it repaired as soon as possible.

Dashboard lights

Dashboard has lights and dictators on it for a reason. The brake lights on the dashboard will lit if it’s having some problems. If that happens firstly check for the fluid level. So if you notice any of these indications get the brake paddle fixed right then.

Low brake fluid symptoms

Usually, the brake fluid in the car does not demand regular changing. Therefore, you don’t have to change it as you replace other fluids in the vehicle. However, if you do have to top up the brake fluid there can be due to leakage.

The brake fluid comes in brown, yellow, or clear color with slick viscosity. It looks more like a vegetable oil. So if you spot any leakage in the paddle or wheel area, you know what to do. The common symptoms of the low brake fluid are:

If the brake fluid appears low, dirty, or discolored
If the dashboard lights are illuminated
If the brake paddles are harder than normal
If the car or vehicle takes more time to stop

Hidden symptoms

But sometimes you don’t see any apparent symptom of fluid leakage or being low. So here is what tells you that brake fluid is running low;

The worn out or damaged brake pads means more fluid can be stored into the caliper. It can be due to less brake fluid in the master cylinder
The internal leakage into the brake booster and damage of brake booster

How Long Can You Drive Without Brake Fluid