Brake Fluid, How long should it last?

[VJR3]

How long should brake fluid last. I put in fresh Wilwood 600 in in Sept of last year did one track day and maybe 350 miles. So I just bought a brake fluid tester at summit racing the other day just as a precoutionary measure and it tested dangerously bad. What gives?

97 GTS

 

[dave6666]

What does it test for?

 

[Bill Pemberton Woodhouse]

The simple answer is that you have a Gen II. The flow of air around the design of this beautiful body has one flaw, in that very little air gets to the rotors/calipers. Fluid will go bad pretty quickly if you are driving hard. It was not uncommon to see folks bleeding the brakes a couple of times a weekend at Viper Days events. Many later found that an effective brake ducting system helped extend the life of the pads, fluid, etc. If you are going to continue going to the track consider getting ducting, and for now plan on changing fluid after a track day -- and maybe even during the weekend. You can try Castrol SRF , which is quite expensive, but it has a higher boiling point than other brake fluids easily obtainable.
Good luck.

 

[bluesrt]

2 percent moisture a year it can collect in your system. maybe its bull**** but thats what the big guys that mess with petree dishes say

 

[gb66gth]

Even expensive brake fluid is cheap when you consider that it keeps you from wadding up your car at the end of a straight.
I run RBF600, bleed the system as needed, and flush it completely at least once a year.
I figure, it's cheap insurance.

 

[SoCal Rebell]

The simple answer is that you have a Gen II. The flow of air around the design of this beautiful body has one flaw, in that very little air gets to the rotors/calipers. Fluid will go bad pretty quickly if you are driving hard. It was not uncommon to see folks bleeding the brakes a couple of times a weekend at Viper Days events. Many later found that an effective brake ducting system helped extend the life of the pads, fluid, etc. If you are going to continue going to the track consider getting ducting, and for now plan on changing fluid after a track day -- and maybe even during the weekend. You can try Castrol SRF , which is quite expensive, but it has a higher boiling point than other brake fluids easily obtainable.
Good luck.

Castrol SRF is by far the best fluid I've found for my Gen II. I can pretty much get through a 2 day track weekend without having to bleed them, but you must bleed when you get home. Pricey at $60-$70 per litre but worth it IMHO.

.

 

[GTS Bruce]

Went from castrol srf to motul 600. No problems so far. However I do have the stoptech big brake setup and flush it once a year. Also I press on the brakes instead of stand up on the pedal. Either way no matter what system you can burn it up in a few laps if you're thinking with something other than your brain. Stay within limits. The other guy might have super carbon brakes, fluid recirculation, massive ducts with fans,super sticky slicks or soaked tires. Just get used to your limits and have fun. Track days are not racing. They are fun days to polish some skills and enjoy the company, consider some more mods to increase performance a little and longevity a lot.. GTS Bruce

 

[crazyspeed]

The simple answer is that you have a Gen II. The flow of air around the design of this beautiful body has one flaw, in that very little air gets to the rotors/calipers. Fluid will go bad pretty quickly if you are driving hard. It was not uncommon to see folks bleeding the brakes a couple of times a weekend at Viper Days events. Many later found that an effective brake ducting system helped extend the life of the pads, fluid, etc. If you are going to continue going to the track consider getting ducting, and for now plan on changing fluid after a track day -- and maybe even during the weekend. You can try Castrol SRF , which is quite expensive, but it has a higher boiling point than other brake fluids easily obtainable.
Good luck.

^^^ What he said. Castrol SRF has the highest WET boiling point and is cheap considering.... also brake ducting..Henry Cone??( some guy out west sells the kit..Parts Rack?)

 

[DrumrBoy]

Depending on the track, one weekend will hurt the fluid. Was the venue you were at dragstrip-hairpin, dragstrip hairpin etc or a bunch of big sweepers? If it was the former, one weekend will definitely kill the fluid. Once you have the wheels off you can get the whole flush/fill done in about 10 minutes!

 

[dave6666]

2 percent moisture a year it can collect in your system. maybe its bull**** but thats what the big guys that mess with petree dishes say

Automotive fluid chemists don't use petri dishes. Research scientists studying ****** do though.

So hey blue... Get over to the clinic and get your fluid checked out bud!

 

[bluesrt]

not until my balls r blue

 

[VJR3]

Wow thanks for the replys. Venue will be Nelson Ledges (ironically thats where they did early viper torture testing), ****** Run, and Mid Ohio.

I will be tracking the car as much as possible, so I wanted a feel for how often you guys do this. I have alot of soild track mods done: upgraded the pads and rotors as JonB recomended(not a big brake kit, not enough $), P/S cooler, balljoint heat shields, oil pan baffle kit, SS brake lines, and religous on all the fluids. But the brake fluid I'm still learning about. I would love to do a duct system but I dont want to cut up the car, thats why I dont want the big brake kit, what is out there that just bolts on?

When you say "bleeding" does that mean you do like a partial drain, like bleed it till the the resivior is low? What is the procedure for this? All four corners, if so what order, or just the fronts or rears? Cause I take it a "flush" means get it all out which I did last time. If you bleed at the track what is the procedure?

Sorry for all the ?s, but any advise and tips would be greatly appreciated.

Oh also does brake fluid go bad if opened and it sits for a while?

 

[bluesrt]

brake fliud draws to moisture, dont leave it opened

 

[DrumrBoy]

This is what I do....not sure it is the best way but its certainly straightforward:

Open the brake fluid filler (underhood) and **** out most of what's visible in the reservoir. Fill it to the fill line with fresh fluid.

Put a box-end (ideally 6 pt) wrench on the bleeder. Get some vinyl tubing (like the fish tank stuff) maybe 2 feet long (depends on how high off the ground you lift the car) an put it over the bleeder....the other end in a bottle or can.

With a pal in the drivers seat, apply pressure to the brake pedal, open the bleeder and then CLOSE the bleeder when the pedal reaches the floor. Inside car partner then gets off the brake pedal and, if necessary, lifts it back up with the top of their shoe. Apply pressure to the pedal again and open the bleeder valve.

Repeat this until you see the fresh fluid coming through the vinyl tubing. That line is now fresh. Keep an eye on the fluid level in the reservoir and top up as necessary....you don't want to **** air in by having the reservoir emptied.

Do this three more times and you're done. I was surprised how little fluid is in the entire system....it ain't gallons!.....and the flush can usually be accomplished with 4-6 brake push-down cycles.

Didn't mean to be pedantic, if you've done this before I didn't mean to insult you. Good luck with it!

 

[SteveD]

I've always heard that you sould drain and rebleed the entire system every 3 years to keep it prestine. I personally shoot between 3 and 5 years as most of my cars are not a daily driver.

 

[dave6666]

One small container of DOT 4 through every port. 8x $3 per container = why even ask. People using higher cost fluids will obviously spend more.

 

[VJR3]

brake fliud draws to moisture, dont leave it opened

Not open as in no cap. Open as in the seal was broken on the bottle and not all of it was used. Its been on my shelf for several months with the cap tighly on the bottle. So is it still good?

This is what I do....not sure it is the best way but its certainly straightforward:

Open the brake fluid filler (underhood) and **** out most of what's visible in the reservoir. Fill it to the fill line with fresh fluid.

Put a box-end (ideally 6 pt) wrench on the bleeder. Get some vinyl tubing (like the fish tank stuff) maybe 2 feet long (depends on how high off the ground you lift the car) an put it over the bleeder....the other end in a bottle or can.

With a pal in the drivers seat, apply pressure to the brake pedal, open the bleeder and then CLOSE the bleeder when the pedal reaches the floor. Inside car partner then gets off the brake pedal and, if necessary, lifts it back up with the top of their shoe. Apply pressure to the pedal again and open the bleeder valve.

Repeat this until you see the fresh fluid coming through the vinyl tubing. That line is now fresh. Keep an eye on the fluid level in the reservoir and top up as necessary....you don't want to **** air in by having the reservoir emptied.

Do this three more times and you're done. I was surprised how little fluid is in the entire system....it ain't gallons!.....and the flush can usually be accomplished with 4-6 brake push-down cycles.

Didn't mean to be pedantic, if you've done this before I didn't mean to insult you. Good luck with it!

No insult, just confermation that I've been doing it right. Thanks

 

[MTGTS]

If anyone is looking for some SRF. I already bought what I needed

CASTROL SRF RACING BRAKE FLUID,HI TEMP ROAD RACE, LITER | eBay

 

[Rickman6]

Dear track fan's
all the previous comments about keeping the fluid as fresh as possible is absolutely correct...
I've just loaded my racer with the Performance Friction RH665 (DOT4) Dry boiling point 325 degree's .. should do the job...

 

[AZTVR]

What is the procedure for this? All four corners, if so what order, or just the fronts or rears?

Stoptech (and others) recommend that you should do them in order of farthest to nearest: Right Rear, LR, RF, LF. On dual bleeder calipers, do outboard first, then inboard.

 

[BruceW]

On the Gen 2's it looks like the LR is the furthest wheel from the reservoir (the rear T connector is near the RR wheel). Probably not that big a deal though...