sothpaw2

Just wondering if I can get away with NOT changing my fluid.

I have a track day coming soon. I put new hi temp fluid in it 2 years ago and have put about 10-12 k on it since. Will it be ok? What I don't want is to boil the brake fluid from too many high speed turns.

runner140*

One of the best ways to see if it needs to be changed is to look at the color, and when it was changed last. If it is darkish in color or even worse,brownish or black, its time to change. Its real cheap and make sure to use a good synthetic, you will be able to tell the difference fast.

nel

If you're at all concerned, it's not a lot of trouble to change out brake fluid. I use a Motive Pressure Bleeder and can swap the fluid out in less than 20 minutes. http://www.motiveproducts.com/

I don't know if Chevy has a recommended interval. My wife has a BMW, and that manufacturer recommends every two years. And, most folks recommend changing the fluid after every major track event--although that may be overdoing it.

BTW, if you want to get really technical, try out this article: http://www.babcox.com/editorial/bf/bf50412.htm

It turns out that water absorption is not the problem with brake fluids; rather, corrosion results from the depletion of corrosion inhibitors in the fluid. A key indicator of this is the level of copper, which may now be tested with simple test kits such as found here:
http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/PS-FASCAR1100.html

This is probably more info than you needed, but it's great to see C4 owners keeping their cars alive and healthy!

h rocks

Not a good idea at all...2 year old fluid may have as much as a couple of percent of water in it. Water boils at 212*, your hi temp stuff probably has a dry boiling point of 500*+. If you look at the "wet" boiling point, that's where you are today. Bottom line is, if you are going to track the car, flush all you fluids at least once per season. (Engine oil of course, more frequently)
BTW, brake fluid doesn't boil because of high speed turns, it boils at the end of the long straight leading to it. If your pedal has never gone to the floor after you have reached your terminal velocity at the end of a long straight, there is NO description that you could appreciate! Take care of your braking system!!

dndrsn

You may want to check out this thread.



http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...rd+brake+fluid

aklim

I believe MB recommends a change every 2 years. I go by every year for my Firebird and now my Vette.

sothpaw2

[QUOTE=nel]If you're at all concerned, it's not a lot of trouble to change out brake fluid. I use a Motive Pressure Bleeder and can swap the fluid out in less than 20 minutes. http://www.motiveproducts.com/

How does that Gizmo work? To dump the old fluid out, what hose does one usually disconnect? And then, do you have to bleed all 4 wheels or just one?

I read my Haynes manual over the weekend, it talked about bleeding the system at each wheel but did not say how you would get the fluid out if your goal was just to change fluid. It did say that, depending on where you introduce air, you might have to bleed one or more wheels.

Thanks. Sounds like a good tool.

jabez

After reading this thread I decided to give a look at my Brake fluid.
Pitch Black.
I guess i have another project to take care of.

1987C4

Don't feel alone Jabez, I just discovered that I'm right there with you! Wow! Just buy a car and spend the next few months discovering all the things that the previous owner DIDN'T do! Yipeee!

chucks88

You guys should do yourself a favor and buy speed bleeders for your calipers too. Makes flushing it a one man job. I have them on my 'Vette, Dodge Ram and they will soon be going on my Altima.

JrRifleCoach

IMHO I'd change that fluid before heading out to the track. The worst thing to happen on the track is to loose your brakes. The easiest maintenance step is to change the brake fluid. So I gotta ask the question, "Are you going to change the engine oil?" "Why bother if it only has a 1000 miles on it?"

Change the brake fluid at least once a year. Or more if your putting alot of heat stress on the calipers. (auto-xing or mountian roads)

-JRC-

SilverBeast

You've convinced me. I'm going to check mine this afternoon.

wildman378

Checked mine looks 100% clear nearly which made me feel good! had a brake job done a little over a year ago I assume they changed it then....it looks like they did....and It's only saw about 2k miles since then so I'm good to go!

nel

sothpaw2, sorry it took me so long to reply back to you.

The pressure bleeder is really a simple device--like one of those garden pressure sprayers for insecticide, weed killer, etc. Instead of spraying, it has an adapter that goes on top of the master cylinder/brake fluid reservoir. You put new brake fluid into the bleeder;mount it on your car (after you've removed as much of the old fluid out of the reservoir and replaced it with new fluid); pump the bleeder up to a few psi and then go around to each caliper and open up the bleed valve. If the old fluid is bad, it's very obvious when the new fluid starts flowing out of the caliper.

I learned about this device after working on my wife's BMW. Her car has a screw top on the reservoir so the pressure bleeder works great. It's a little more of a hassle getting the adapter to seal on the Corvette.

96GS#007

I bleed mine before every event. It's cheap insurance.

FWIW, most if not all the schools run by the various PCA and BMW CCA chapters require you to sign a Tech Form that says the fluid is less than 90 days old. Some tracks do this as part of their tech inspection if you're running an open track day with no club affiliation.

FWIW I alternate between ATE Super Blue and ATE Gold. Same specs but the different colors leaves no doubt as to when new fluid has made its way through the system.

96GS#007

Brake fluid quality is not a function of mileage. It's a function of heat and time. Just because it looks good doesn't mean it hasn't sucked up moisture simply from sitting...especially in the case of a car that sees limited miles.

If it's a year old, I wouldn't go anywhere near a track with it. Probably be ok for auto-x as that doesn't stress the brakes like a road course, but why risk it?

A liter of ATE brake fluid is $15 and at most an hour of time. Is it worth risking a car (and if on the track, your life) over $15? I would think not.

mikey whipreck

You guys got me to check my brake fluid- something i hadn't done since i bought the car. It's a dark brown... guess it's time for a change.

sothpaw2

I'm having mine done at the shop as I'm busy now with a new baby (literally). But I think you have an excellent point--someone on the other forum mentioned--if you live in a humid climate, the fluid is no good after 1 year of change. I never had a problem with it for auto-x, but then when I'm on the road course, I'm sooo much harder on the brakes.

LT4fun

As someone who has boiled their brake fluid at the end of a 115 mph straightaway and ended up in the ditch, change the brake fluid before hitting the track!

I knew nothing about changing the brake fluid, and it's not fun to boil the fluid. The pedal goes to the floor meaning you lose your brakes!

Oh well, that's what you get for going to an unsupervised track. The owner's manual could at least recommend people to change their brake fluid. Maybe they do now.

Anyone know of the track that used to be on Hutchinson Island on the outskirts of Savannah, GA? Well that's where I boiled my brakes. Later, they put up a wall in front of the ditch I ended up in. I would have preferred that they kept the ditch!

The track in no more now as they've built some sort of hotel/conference center over there.

Anyway, I still have spiderwebed paint on the underside of my bumper from that.

Please change your brake fluid before hitting the track!



edit: I may not have been going 115 mph, but I seem to remember looking down and seeing 111 mph before I braked, and if someone better was driving, I'm sure it' would be a faster straight than that!

And no my brakes didn't boil at 111 mph, more like 25 mph, but it's not fun heading towards a large ditch wondering if your going to total your car and if the air bag is going to go off!

edit2: You know I'm not sure what speed the fluid boiled at. Anyway, I was going too fast to make the turn, yet somehow slowed down enough that I didn't really tear anything up when entering the ditch. Perhaps the brake fluid still had a little braking ability. More likely though it was someone looking out for me!

madmike

I change the brake fluid gradually. When replacing the brake pads, I open the bleeder and squeeze the old fluid out when retracting the brake pistons. Close the bleeder and refill the reservoir. You will be constantly renewing your fluid.