The Best or Very good Dot 4/5 Brake Fluid??

[Da Game]

Well, after reading the topics about bleeding Brakes and the OCI for them, another question comes to mind. What is the best Dot 4/5 fluid in use (or out there)that would satisfy a BITOGer use?

 

[MCompact]

I use ATE Super Blue Racing DOT4.

 

[Scimmia]

DOT4 and DOT5 are two different, incompatible specs. Did you mean 3/4?

ATE is popular, as is Castol LMA and Valvoline Synpower.

 

[ccs v2.0]

You mean DOT 4/5.1?

For the price, you cannot beat Synpower. I use ATE Blue.

 

[gtx510]

GS610?
www.gs610usa.com

same as Neo?
www.neosyntheticoil.com/bkfluid.htm

ATE Blue is the TYP 200(amber) brake fluid with blue dye.
www.raceshopper.com/ate_brake_fluid.shtml
I'm interested to see if the blue will wash out of my reservoir.
Good stuff for the price. Same with Synpower.
Castrol LMA is good, but probably not the best for the track...
Is the Ford Hi-Po stuff still good/cheap?


How do you quantify "best"?

 

[Kestas]

This may help.

ARRANGED BY DRY BOILING POINT:

DRY:401F -- WET:284F --- DOT3 MINIMUM
DRY:446F -- WET:311F --- DOT4 MINIMUM
DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5.1 MINIMUM
DRY:502F -- WET:343F --- VALVOLINE SYNPOWER
DRY:509F -- WET:365F --- MOTUL 5.1
DRY:527F -- WET:302F --- AP RACING 551
DRY:536F -- WET:392F --- ATE SUPERBLUE/TYP200
DRY:590F -- WET:410F --- AP RACING 600
DRY:590F -- WET:518F --- CASTROL SRF
DRY:593F -- WET:420F --- MOTUL RBF600
DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- NEO-SYNTHETIC SUPER DOT 610
DRY:620F -- WET:425F --- COBALT SUPER XRF

ARRANGED BY WET BOILING POINT:

DRY:401F -- WET:284F --- DOT3 MINIMUM
DRY:527F -- WET:302F --- AP RACING 551
DRY:446F -- WET:311F --- DOT4 MINIMUM
DRY:502F -- WET:343F --- VALVOLINE SYNPOWER
DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5.1 MINIMUM
DRY:509F -- WET:365F --- MOTUL 5.1
DRY:536F -- WET:392F --- ATE SUPERBLUE/TYP200
DRY:590F -- WET:410F --- AP RACING 600
DRY:593F -- WET:420F --- MOTUL RBF600
DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- NEO-SYNTHETIC SUPER DOT 610
DRY:620F -- WET:425F --- COBALT SUPER XRF
DRY:590F -- WET:518F --- CASTROL SRF

 

[Da Game]

Sorry guys, I meant to say Dot 3 or 4. As for the best I understand its subjective, but considering the quality of different oils, which one satisfy the BITOG'ers taste for quality, performance and duriability??

Btw, thanks Kestas for the chart it helps!!

 

[par]

For me, it's whatever is on sale at Autozone because I change it every year and figure that all brake fluids are very similar these conditions.

 

[Kestas]

It doesn't matter a whole lot to me which fluid I use, since I don't do repeated high-speed stops, nor do I do any driving in mountainous areas, plus I change the fluid before too much moisture is absorbed.

 

[labman]

I never drive that hard, but I have been using Prestone DOT 4 for 40 years. I have never had it go bad even in 5-10 years. There is horror story after horror posted here from people that let other brands go over 2 years. Wagner should be durable too.

Prestone mixes well with GM factory fill.

I wouldn't take ATE or Synpower as a gift.

 

[mechtech2]

If you are not racing, you don't need the super sauces.
Consider that paper burns at 452 def F.
That is REALLY hot for a fluid.
A rating of 500 deg F or more is insane for the street. A piece of paper would ignite when touched to brake fluid this hot!
Save your dough. All brake fluids are synthetic, and the normal fluids are more than enough, when fresh and clean.

 

[Michael Polutta]

quote:

---

Originally posted by labman:
I wouldn't take ATE or Synpower as a gift.

---

???

 

[benjamming]

Kestas,
Do you have a chart for OEM brake fluids or of the "OTC" fluids?

 

[Kestas]

No. The specs I provided were posted on this site some years ago and saved to my personal archive.

 

[carock]

You know, a lot of mechanics ask this same question. Unfortunately I only know about european cars. IMHO Castrol LMA is the best because annual brake fluid changes have had many cars go 15+ years and never need any new hydraulics. The ATE fluids have never performed as well.

 

[Jim 5]

Kestas' post should be a sticky somewhere.

That's very handy information to have!

Thanks for that!

 

[labman]

quote:

---

Originally posted by mechtech2:
If you are not racing, you don't need the super sauces.
Consider that paper burns at 452 def F.
That is REALLY hot for a fluid.
A rating of 500 deg F or more is insane for the street. A piece of paper would ignite when touched to brake fluid this hot!
Save your dough. All brake fluids are synthetic, and the normal fluids are more than enough, when fresh and clean.

---

With the problems I see reported here, I wonder if they aren't formulated for long time use. I am sticking to Prestone.

 

[moribundman]

I second the notion that Castrol LMA represents one of the best values in high quality DOT 4 brake fluids out there. I've been using it for years without any problems.

The two differently colored ATE fluids are perfect for those who track their cars and who change the brake fluid after every track session.

 

[Kestas]

I'm curious, why is brake fluid changed between track events? I thought brake fluid cannot degrade from heat, and only degrades from moisture pickup, corrosion, and seal wear debris - all of which occur only after a long time in service. Is moisture such a real problem during the track event?

 

[Winston]

I use Castrol LMA or Valvoline Synpower. Readily availible, not too expensive, DOT 4 fluids.