How often do I need to change the brake fluid?

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A good braking system is a guarantee of safe movement, which is why it is so important to monitor the brakes and change the TI in time. Those drivers who do not neglect their own and others' lives are not often interested in how often to change the brake fluid in order to observe one of the most important periodicity of replacing consumables.

Running ahead and not forcing to read the entire article, I will answer right away — I need to change the brake fluid at least once after two years of operation, and if it's a sports car, then two or three times more often.

Why change the brake fluid?

The figures of the periodicity of the replacement "brakes" manufacturers do not come up, but regulate relying on the composition of the liquid and its properties.

For reference: the boiling point of the brake fluid is about 200 — 260 ° C, but hygroscopicity (moisture absorption) decreases this threshold over time, while the fluid can be heated to 150-180 ° C when driving through the city. And when this boiling point is reached, air bubbles form, which leads to the release of brake fluid into the reserve tank, and as a result — a low level will not allow you to create the required pressure in case of sudden braking, the failure of the brake pedal is inevitable!

When the moisture content in the brake fluid exceeds more than 3%, the boiling point decreases from 30 to 50 ° C.

An equally important pretext for replacing the liquid is the chemical properties of various additives, which, over time, begin to decay, contributing to the loss of their properties.

When do I change the brake fluid?

Often, the replacement procedure proposed by the manufacturer is about 30 — 60 thousand km. mileage, which is somewhere in every two years, and the presence of such an additional system as ABS in no way affects the frequency. And if the question concerns sports cars like Lamborghini or Ferrari, then the replacement of the brake fluid should be made after 15 thousand km. since speed modes on such cars are much higher. But such data are only indicative, because if the color of the liquid changed ( cloudiness or precipitation ), then sometimes it is necessary to change the brake fluid before it was stipulated.

Running a car with a turbidity of the liquid or sediment in it can lead to malfunctions in the brake system.

Therefore, in addition to the mileage indicators a good indicator of the need to change the brake fluid is its color. Although visual control is not the only way to monitor the condition. For example, in the SRT for testing the fluid use special testers that determine the percentage of moisture and on the scoreboard display data on the need for replacement.

Brake fluid on a glycol basis in an ideal ratio is recommended to be changed every 40,000 km. And if you are flooded with silicone TZ, then there can be completely different data on the frequency of replacement, which can go up to 5 years.

An additional drive to an unscheduled change of the brake can be the depressurization of the braking system, since in addition to that a part of the liquid may flow out, so also that it remains sufficiently quickly saturated with oxygen and the boiling point of the TZ drops.

The driver should always remember the responsibility of the question of how often to change the brake fluid, because the brakes have no right to refuse.

Distinctive features of brake fluids of DOT class.

The main differences between brake fluids are the boiling point and moisture absorption. The higher the boiling point, the better the brake fluid, but it will be more expensive.

Brake fluid of class DOT 3 — for this class of liquids the base is the connection of glycols (dihydric alcohols). The use of glycol makes the cost of its manufacture cheaper, but DOT-3 is more hygroscopic, that is, it accumulates moisture faster. And this leads to a decrease in the boiling point of brake fluids of this class.

The brake fluid of class DOT 4 is a fluid with improved performance, designed to work in cars with disc and ventilated disc brakes. Its basis is the compounds of esters with boric acid. Boric acid, which is part of DOT-4, completely neutralizes the water condensate. This results in less moisture than DOT 3, and helps maintain a given boiling point, and also increases the service life of DOT-4 fluids.

The brake fluid of class DOT-4 refers to high-quality brake fluids.

The brake fluid of the DOT 5 class is made but silicone-based and non-hygroscopic, that is, does not absorb the moisture that enters the braking system and does not mix with it, and this can lead to the accumulation of water in the lower points of the brake system and the freezing of this trapped in a water system at low temperatures.

The brake fluid of class DOT 5.1 — a liquid of this class has a composition similar to the liquid DOT-4 but, due to the use of additives has a large boiling point. This allows the use of DOT 5.1 in the braking systems of cars developing high speed.

Mixing brake fluids: If a DOT 5 liquid is filled in the brake system (not to be confused with DOT-5.1!), You can not top up the DOT 3 or DOT 4 fluid. This will damage the braking system.

Brake fluids of DOT-4 class can be mixed with DOT-3 and mixed

the same fluid among themselves.

It is necessary to comply with the rule that a higher class of liquid can be added to a lower one, but not mixed. For example, if a DOT-3 brake fluid is poured into the vehicle, you can top up the DOT-3, DOT-4 or DOT-5.1 fluid in this case. This will even improve the properties of this brake fluid.

The boiling point of the new brake fluid, ° C

The boiling point of the "old" liquid, ° C

The viscosity of the new liquid at -40 ° C, mm2 / s

Материалы: http://www.drive2.com/b/2036166/


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