Never realized there was so much controversy over brake bleeding! Might as well add my fuel to the fire. First, a disclaimer: I have not yet used this procedure on my Mercedes, I've only had it 6 months and the pads are still good, but I haven't had a problem with anything else in the last 15 years. That said, I'm a fan of gravity bleeding. No pumping, just let if flow. The theory is that if the system won't flow well enough to gravity bleed, there is another problem. If I don't get a nice steady drip at each bleeder, I start looking for that problem. I learned this method from a professional mechanic, and it has worked for me.

As always, when in doubt follow your FSM, kids! Just 'cause some hack on the internet says it works for him is no guarantee! (...says some hack on the internet)

__________________
'82 300SD - Somewhere over 220k - Becoming reliable...