Nobody likes a soft pedal. Especially when we’re talking about brakes. Bleeding the brakes on your car or truck, whether you are starting with a completely new system or are just doing routine maintenance is a critical step to enjoying the car and getting the most out of your brakes. If you bleed your brakes the right way and then bed the pads correctly you’ll have a brake system that gives you the performance you paid good money for.

One of the most common mistakes people make is to put a new master cylinder in a not bench bleed it. I know, because I’ve done it myself. And so have you, so don’t lie to us and tell us you always bench bleed the master, because we know that it’s not true. Bench bleeding is stupid easy, and insures that you aren’t just pumping more and more air into the system from the start.

This video from AFCO on how to bleed your brake system is a good one for newbies and veterans alike. And if you think that it’s a do it once and forget it kind of thing, keep in mind that the fast guys on the autocross, roadcourse, circle track, or dragstrip are doing it pretty regularly. In fact, at most Pro Touring events you’ll find guys bleeding the brakes all over the pits. The smallest air bubble becomes much bigger with extreme heat that gets brake fluid close to boiling. That results in a soft or spongy pedal and that’s just no damn good.

Watch this video and learn how to do it right.