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[HoodRichOG]

Anyone had this issue? It's a Ribelle. Go to press my rear brake and it doesn't work at all. Check level and it is empty. No obvious signs of leaks or anything.

[smithy]

Anyone had this issue? It's a Ribelle. Go to press my rear brake and it doesn't work at all. Check level and it is empty. No obvious signs of leaks or anything.

Must be a leak, the fluid has to go somewhere. No indications of leakage etc on the lines back to or on the the ABS module..?? I'd suggest it would be difficult though as fluid doesn't tend to drain "upwards".

Smithy.

[jotjotde]

You are not alone with this issue.

Refer to: https://www.electricmotorcycleforum.com/boards/index.php?topic=12382.0

[jotjotde]

Hers's a screenshot of Big Poppa's.

[Pard]

How is your rear brake pad wear?  It is possible that the brake pads have worn down enough causing the caliper pistons to extend far enough out to use up all the volume of fluid in the reservoir.

[HoodRichOG]

The bike is a 2022 with less than 5000 miles.

I called the dealer and he said it was normal because of the small rear brake reservoir.

Doesn't make sense to me. Scheduled service.

[Pard]

5k miles (on a 600 pound bike) is enough to wear out front and rear brake pads.

Have them check the front pad wear as well.  I expect they will.

Heavy bike, heavy wear on the pads, the reservoir will drop faster than one might expect.

Personally, with spirited riding, I go through a set of front and rear pads in about 5k miles on ICE sport bikes.

Good find and helpful so folks can know to keep an eye on their fluid levels.

[Specter]

Well.  Im not doing a ton of spirited riding, but with the regen, I rarely use the rear brake TBH.  Only when I need to stop pretty fast will I hit it, or  maybe the last few feet of a normal stop for stability and to keep from rolling at the intersection.  It doesn't get that much wear, even with a small reservoir it should not dump that much.   There's not a lot of 'stuff' involved in the rear brake like the front so less places for it to go really, might want to check connections, seals for any signs of leaking.

Being it is oily, if it was leaking, Id think it'd trap dirt on it and you should be able to see it was there at one point if it is dripping??

Let us know what you find.

Myself, im kind of paranoid on brakes and tires tbh.   You blow out on in a truck, or lose brakes, you got a ton of metal, a dozen airbags, seat belts, and everything else yanking you down into a foamy chair to get ready for any impact.  You lose it on a bike and you got your pecker to give you a 0.00034 ms warning before you impact the wall.

Aaron

[BigPoppa]

My missing brake fluid issue turned out to be a bad Rizoma reservoir (front). Reading reviews of the reservoir on Revzilla there seems to be a 50/50 rate of leaks. Mine was just slow enough that the brake fluid evaporated before reaching body work or any front end components. Putting the OEM reservoir back on has solved the leaking issue.

I did just order replacement components for my Rizoma reservoir so I can replace the rubber bits and try using it again…likely on my next scheduled service.

I would imagine your rear is experiencing a similar slow leak and probably needs to be replaced.

[Pard]

Another source of fluid loss to look for is the bleeder valve nipple.  They can create an imperfect seal and  fluid past the threads.  Teflon tape on the threads can help prevent slow leaks.  Not easily detected if the leak/weep is slow, and it could drain the reservoir over time, front or back.

You see the front reservoir every time you ride, so that is less of a worry.

After changing the fluid on my front brakes I noticed a slow weep from one of the front calipers around the bleeder nipple threads.  Sometimes they are not perfect from the factory.

If you do you own brake work.  Some options to consider:

https://www.probolt-usa.com/titanium-bleed-nipple-m8-rear-brake-master-cylinder/

https://store-speedbleeder-com.3dcartstores.com/SB8125L-SS-9405-H9405-9422-H9422-Speed-Bleeder_p_51.html

[smithy]

5k miles (on a 600 pound bike) is enough to wear out front and rear brake pads.

Have them check the front pad wear as well.  I expect they will.

Heavy bike, heavy wear on the pads, the reservoir will drop faster than one might expect.

Personally, with spirited riding, I go through a set of front and rear pads in about 5k miles on ICE sport bikes.

Good find and helpful so folks can know to keep an eye on their fluid levels.

Don't agree with this...most use regen to slow down. My Experia front and rear rotors still have the machining marks on them after nearly 5000km. I rarely use the brakes unless pushing on, even then not much.

Smithy.

[Pard]

"Don't agree with this...most use regen to slow down. My Experia front and rear rotors still have the machining marks on them after nearly 5000km. I rarely use the brakes unless pushing on, even then not much.

Smithy."

Understood. 

Totally depends on how and where you ride.  Same with tire wear.  I am getting less than 1500 miles on my Rebelle rear tire before the SIDES wear out.  Some can get 10K before the center gets worn.  My tires and brake pads get heavy wear.





@HoodRichOG  , any definitive diagnosis from the service technician yet?

[smithy]

"Don't agree with this...most use regen to slow down. My Experia front and rear rotors still have the machining marks on them after nearly 5000km. I rarely use the brakes unless pushing on, even then not much.

Smithy."

Understood. 

Totally depends on how and where you ride.  Same with tire wear.  I am getting less than 1500 miles on my Rebelle rear tire before the SIDES wear out.  Some can get 10K before the center gets worn.  My tires and brake pads get heavy wear.

@HoodRichOG  , any definitive diagnosis from the service technician yet?

Fair call.!

I'm not a hard rider so my tyres and brakes last well. My '17 model BMW S1000XR has near 60k km and is still on the original brake pads.

Smithy.

[HoodRichOG]

Yep I had a S1000XR prior to this and I didn't change my pads at all until I crashed the bike at around 20K miles.

Also the Energica has mostly been a commute bike with the rear brake being used mostly in turn situations at slow speeds, so the pads are near new condition.

My dealer appointment is next month, I'll keep everyone updated.

[HoodRichOG]

I was blind, I checked and the fill level is full.

So I guess I have a lot of air in the system.

Can I just use an 8mm bleeder on the rear brake or do I need to bring it in because of the ABS system that needs to be put in some special bleeding mode?