The condition I describe would be impossible to see without negative pressure being applied to the line while viewing.
I just really don't want to spend the 70 bucks on the flex lines and have it be the wrong part.
It’s very likely that you damaged the lines by clamping them. They should be replaced, even if they’re not the root cause of the problem. This is a good lesson - don’t clamp hoses on cars. Fortunately, it’s only a $70 lesson. I’ve learned some much more expensive “lessons” over the years 
Interesting thread. Let us know what the result was OP.
Well this weekend I bled the brakes for about half an hour, getting good fluid coming out of the bleeders the whole time. I didn’t have the time to mess around with it too much more and I’m getting sick of this car taking up my garage. I’m at a loss. I hate having to do it but I dropped it off at a shop last night. Hopefully it’s really just that scan tool that will do the trick. Then I won’t feel so defeated. Thanks for the help guys, I’ll let you know what happens.
I looked up the brake bleeding procedure for my Corolla – I mean the version of the procedure if it had the ABS option – and Toyota’s recommended brake bleeding procedure is much different with the ABS option than without (like my own 92 Corolla, which is simple to bleed). With ABS, it requires a scan tool (Tech 1 or Tech 100) to electronically actuate the necessary the ABS bleeding functions in the prescribed sequence.
It sounds like you are pretty frustrated. I can see why you would be. Bleeding brakes isn’t supposed to be rocket science. In my opinion it should be possible for car owners to bleed their brakes without needing expensive electronic tools to do it. There’s no reason that I can see why a method to control the ABS system for owner-brake-bleeding couldn’t be provided by the manufacturers using some combination of dash-board and/or under-hood controls. And whether or not it is possible to bleed your car’s brakes in your driveway without needing expensive electronic gadgets — that’s a decision factor I’d consider high on the list when purchasing a new car.
My daughter bought a Toyota. The more I work in it, the more I scratch my head wondering what the designers was thinking.
That clamping of the brake lines would really concern me, unless they’re replaced, no matter what the end result is here.
I’ve done hundreds of brake fluid flushes over the years, on various ABS vehicles . . . including Toyota . . . using the diaphragm brake bleeder and the proper adapters
And I’ve not had to use the scan tool to get a proper pedal
Sensotronic Brake Control on the Mercedes-Benz vehicles is the one exception that comes to mind.
As you couldn’t even do the flush without the scan tool, or an aftermarket equivalent.
I’m not saying other methods are incorrect
I’m just speaking from personal experience
And yes, I bench bleed brake masters if they’re replaced/removed
These people are bleeding brakes in the manner before ABS’s. And on some ABS’s you can get away with that.
But some ABS’s require that the system be either be pressure or vacuum bled without stepping on the brake pedal.
That’s why you don’t have a problem with the ABS when pressure bleeding the brake system.
Tester
Agreed
For a DIY’er, it’s six of one, half dozen of the other. Bleeding econobox brakes shouldn’t present a big, expensive problem for a DIY’er car owner. Econobox cars w/ABS could be designed so that the brakes can be bled without needing either an expensive ABS scan tool, nor specialized pressure bleed equipment.
George,
It’s not the size of the vehicle that determines how the brakes should be bled when it has ABS, it’s the ABS system that the manufacturer decided to install in all it’s vehicles.
Tester
You don’t need the scan tool
And a diaphragm brake bleeder can be had for relatively reasonable price
I have one in my garage that looks like this
http://www.autotoolworld.com/product.asp?itemid=130857&gclid=CNrrmcvj8L4CFc1lfgodtCoA4Q
All you need to do is buy the appropriate adapter, made by Power Probe
I wasn’t clear. I realize the size of the vehicle isn’t a factor. What I’m saying is that the manufacturer should be able to design their cars so that a diy’er can bleed the brakes without needing ABS control scanner equipment or pressure bleeders. If there’s a need to set the ABS in a special mode when doing a manual “push the pedal” bleeding procedure, so be it. All I’m saying is that the manufacturer should then supply a simple method for the diy’er to cause the ABS to go into that mode. A switch under the hood for example.
Maybe it was my reference to “econobox”. By this I mean while high-end cars like Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, Lexus, etc might not be geared to diy’er, and so may reasonably require special equipment only shops would own to bleed the brakes on those cars, an econobox should be fixable by a diy’er owner, and so in my opinion it should be possible to bleed the brakes without needing special equipment.
Here’s the brake bleeder I use.
http://branick.com/products-brake-bleeder.php
I’ve had this bleeder for 30 years.
This is a diaphram type brake bleeder. This means the air never touches the brake fluid.
With the pump type brake bleeder, you pump ambient air into the tank to pressurize it along with the moisture in the air. So under high RH conditions you can be contaminating the brake fluid with moisture.
Tester
I’ve used those Branick type brake bleeders
Most shops seem to have one somewhere
I hated them right from the start, and I’ll hate them until my dying day
Filling them is a major PITA, in my opinion
This is the absolute king of brake bleeders, as far as I’m concerned
http://www.powerprobe.com/stbb.php
It’s very expensive, but some dealers have them. I believe it’s actually considered an essential tool by some manufacturers. Thus, some dealers are supposed to have them.
The dealer where I was at, we had this model. When it showed up, the Branick brake bleeder was soon forgotten and started gathering dust. Some sleazeball actually stole the old Branick. I can’t stand thieves, by the way. They’re right down there with pond scum, as far as I’m concerned
That’s all fancy. But too many parts can go wrong.
It’s much easier to apply air to one side of a diaphram and let it push the fluid out.
Tester
But adding fluid is still a pain
Remove the schrader valve
Turn the wing nut counterclockwise
Fiddle with that contraption, pull the rubber stopper out
Push the diaphragm back down
Use a funnel to add brake fluid . . . unless you’ve got excellent aim
Put the schrader valve back
Put that rubber stopper back
Turn the fitting 1/4 turn
Tighten the wingnut
Pressurize the brake bleeder using the tire inflator
Purge air
Not my idea of fun
Fancy is sometimes a good thing, if it saves time and frustration
For instance, I’d much rather service an ac system with an automatic recover, evacuate and recharge machine, versus vacuum pump, scale and cans
Well the shop used the scan tool and it didn’t help. Then they removed the master cylinder again to bench bleed it and they said that solved the problem. I don’t know if they used the tool again afterwards. My friend took the car back last night. After driving to work this morning, she says the brakes feel intermittent, fine sometimes and soft other times.
The only thing I could think is a bad ABS unit. But that’s beyond my expertise.
As for this interesting discussion, George, I completely agree. This is enough to put a bad taste in my mouth about that generation of Toyota’s. Also I do maybe two or three brake jobs a year for friends/family and of course my own from time to time. I rent an apartment in Chicago so I get weary about buying expensive equipment that can be rolled out of my garage and stolen. I can’t justify buying a $150 power bleeder for the occasional brake job that can’t be done using normal procedures. Especially since this is the first time I’ve ran into this problem. Maybe I’ll have start looking up brake bleeding procedures before diving in to them. Although that seems a little ridiculous.
“Hey can you bleed my brakes?”
“Hold on, I need to make sure I don’t need a computer to do it.”
Jeff you do not have a shop and may not have the proper tools so why would you even consider putting your self in a position to be sued for the lousy few dollars you might get paid for messing with someone"s brakes?