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What's the best Brake Fluids that you use???

1783 Views 14 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  PT
I just wanna know whats the best brake fluid to use?? Please reply. Thanks!

Ray
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Motul 600 .....
Motul if u can afford it. non-Drag racing (hot lap, open track, auto x) guys use that. Redline if u can't afford motul.
jay
Isn't that Motul 600 is Dot 4? According to my owners manual of my Altima is that I will use Dot 3. Can I still use Motul 600? How about the Motul Dot 5.1 <--- I think that's the new one. Please advice. thanks!

Ray
If you upgrade to a higher DOT-level brake fluid, you need to make sure that your brake lines/joints can handle it... if not, you might bust a brake line under heavy breaking... this would mean that you would have serious braking power, and then SNAP!!! You will have NO braking power... and you would hopefully still be able to E-Brake to a stop. All modern cars are designed with redundant brake systems, so at most, you will lose only 2-brakes at a time... but nonetheless, busting a brake line is a bad thing.

Higher DOT fluid compresses less and can withstand higher temperatures without losing their compression propertires. Higher DOT fluids thereby increase braking power and brake feel (unless you have brake-by-wire which Altimas don't). Stock Altimas come with DOT-3 fluid, and can safely handle DOT-4... but I wouldn't go with DOT-5 unless you plan to replace your rubber brake lines with steel-braided lines as well. The solid-pipe lines under the car and in the engine-bay should be OK, but I'd make sure that the joints are still sealed well.
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Now I'm planning to use Motul 600 Dot 4. Should I wash out my Dot 3 first or just mix Motul 600 to Dot 3?
PT said:
If you upgrade to a higher DOT-level brake fluid, you need to make sure that your brake lines/joints can handle it... if not, you might bust a brake line under heavy breaking... this would mean that you would have serious braking power, and then SNAP!!! You will have NO braking power... and you would hopefully still be able to E-Brake to a stop. All modern cars are designed with redundant brake systems, so at most, you will lose only 2-brakes at a time... but nonetheless, busting a brake line is a bad thing.

Higher DOT fluid compresses less and can withstand higher temperatures without losing their compression propertires. Higher DOT fluids thereby increase braking power and brake feel (unless you have brake-by-wire which Altimas don't). Stock Altimas come with DOT-3 fluid, and can safely handle DOT-4... but I wouldn't go with DOT-5 unless you plan to replace your rubber brake lines with steel-braided lines as well. The solid-pipe lines under the car and in the engine-bay should be OK, but I'd make sure that the joints are still sealed well.
:eek: well said I learn more and more on this site everyday
ribita said:
Now I'm planning to use Motul 600 Dot 4. Should I wash out my Dot 3 first or just mix Motul 600 to Dot 3?
I would do a full brake flush , remove all of the old fluid from the master cylinder , add the Motul , then bleed the heck out of the brakes , make sure you have to refill th Master cylinder at least once per wheel .....
yeah, it's a good idea to just flush the whole system when you're changing to dot4. i hear you're not supposed to go backwards Dot wise
Jay
Yeah, mixing brake fluids is a bad thing because they have the DOT-# ratings for a reason. The DOT rating includes how much the fluid will compress under hydraulic pressure, with higher DOT-numbers compressing less. So mixing the DOT-3 and DOT-4 fluids would give you a very strange pedal feel, because depending on how much 3 and how much 4 was in your brake lines at the time, you will get a different brake feel, and a different brake-pressure applied to the brake pads/shoes. Worst-case scenario, you would lock up on one side (the side with more DOT-4), and the other side would not be braking very much (the side with DOT-3). You would have the weirdest experiences because as the two fluids circulate in your brake system, they would feel different every time. :p

So I guess what I'm trying to say is: BLEED/FLUSH the entire brake system.
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I did the steel lines, motul, and speed bleeders all at the same time....Made my life much easier. I drained alot of the fluid, then kept pumping and refilling with motul to be sure all the old was out. I used one bottle just to flush the system.

Speed bleeders make the job soooo much easier.
What about if my brake line is not steel. I think it's still rubber. Does my brake line can handle Motul 600 or do I need to upgrade to aluminum stell lines?
ribita said:
What about if my brake line is not steel. I think it's still rubber. Does my brake line can handle Motul 600 or do I need to upgrade to aluminum stell lines?
If Motul 600 is DOT-4, then it should be OK. I've been using DOT-4 brake-fluid with the stock rubber hoses and I haven't had any problems yet... I can't use braided brake-lines because that modification is not allowed in my car-class... otherwise I would.
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