Brake fluid Reservoir twice?

[kent55]

Does this car have 2 reservoirs? I've never this before.

 

http://i774.photobucket.com/albums/yy26/kent55/IMG_20160925_135119121.jpg

 

http://i774.photobucket.com/albums/yy26/kent55/IMG_20160925_135100880.jpg

[bluesuby]

In your second picture the reservoir on the left is the hydraulic clutch.

[kent55]

In your second picture the reservoir on the left is the hydraulic clutch.

 

DOT 3 Brake Fluid is written on the lid. The fluid looks dirty and it's at the low line. Can I siphon the fluid out and add new?

[Justin case]

You could but there will still be fluid in the line. To do a proper flush you would have to bleed it all out through the bleeder on the slave cylinder.

[TonyF]

my clutch accumulates water quicker than my brake fluid does, as tested with an electronic brake fluid tester. Thought it was weird but the cap seal seems ok and the clutch works fine, so I just flush it out more often...

I'll just leave this here

[apexi]

Interesting. I heard clutch fluid should last longer than brake, since it doesn't go through heating/cooling cycles the way brake fluid does. It's easy to do the turkey baster replacement method with the clutch fluid though, so it's good to know that it adsorbs water quicker than brake fluid. I've heard that "adsorbs" is the correct term for that, even though "absorbs" seems the be more appropriate? Not sure, just saying that's not a typo.

[TonyF]

I would say 'absorbs' is also the normally correct term, BUT, I don't see under the hood when I drive to know for sure that water is not also splashing that area, also I am a firm believer of rinsing and drying off my engines so if my habits are inadvertently introducing more water into the equation, fine, I flush more, it's easy

[ehsnils]

Just because it says DOT 3 doesn't mean that it must be, you can use DOT 3, DOT 4 or DOT 5.1. But don't use DOT 5.0.

 

And it's a good idea to flush now and then to avoid corroding your parts.

[kent55]

Where can I find the instructions to bleed the through the slave cylinder? I'm ready to do this. My clutch pedal is very difficult. And which DOT is recommended by you all?

[Merc6]

I thought manuals had blue tops and dip sticks or was that certain year GTs?

[ehsnils]

Where can I find the instructions to bleed the through the slave cylinder? I'm ready to do this. My clutch pedal is very difficult. And which DOT is recommended by you all?

 

For the clutch any DOT 3, 4 or 5.1 since it's not getting hot. For brakes I'd pick the 5.1 since it has the best quality.

 

Bleeding - well, look at instructions on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=bleeding+clutch+slave+cylinder

 

The important point is to avoid getting the fluid on paint and to not get any air into the system, otherwise there's not much to it.

[kent55]

I thought manuals had blue tops and dip sticks or was that certain year GTs?

 

This is not a GT. I'm sure you can tell from the enigne picture though.

[Merc6]

This is not a GT. I'm sure you can tell from the enigne picture though.

 

I was assuming all manuals came blue tabs and tops but that appears to be soo wrong. Yeah I noticed from the pic it's the more reliable trim level. It was a random witch hunt for a differential dipstick since the Auto dipstick is hidden under the downpiple making it a painful adult version of the game operation when you try to check it on a hot car.

[JmP6889928]

Glycol-ether based brake fluid (DOT 3, 4, 5.1) is hygroscopic.

 

hy·gro·scop·ic

ˌhīɡrəˈskäpik/

adjective

(of a substance) tending to absorb moisture from the air.

Relating to humidity or its measurement.

 

Glycol-ether based brake fluid does not compress, hence the reason why it can give a firm pedal BUT as it absorbs the water from the atmosphere, it lowers the boiling point of the brake fluid, which in turn results in brake fade at extended use. This is why synthetic fluids were developed and why some of them have extremely high temperature ratings. The non-compression quality is also the reason why you can ONLY use DOT 3, 4, 5.1 in ABS systems. If you use silicone fluid, your ABS controller will not work correctly because it can compress the fluid as it dishes it out in measured doses and the pump will not return on the time set in the controller due to the bouncing.

 

Silicone based brake fluid (DOT 5.0) does compress and can generate a somewhat spongy pedal but is not hygroscopic, and that's part of the reason people use it for very limited use vehicles (street rods, classic cars, etc.) because the belief is that the silicone does not absorb the moisture, so it is safer on brake lines. This is not true as there is still water in the system (as in all hydraulic braking systems due to condensation from hot/cold cycles) and it forces the water to the top as it floats on the silicone fluid.

 

In all of the high spots where the line is bent, water finds it's way on top of the silicone fluid to that spot and begins to corrode the brake lines from the inside out, so the myth that you can put silicone fluid in once and forget it, is just that-a myth.

 

Look for high boiling points and flush the entire system with at least a quart of fluid at least every 2 years (I try to do it once a year) and it will remove the moisture, prevent you from corroding from the inside out, and keep your pedal firm and ABS controller properly lubricated and working as it should.

 

If you have an opened bottle or can of brake fluid and it's more than a couple of months old, it's already absorbed too much moisture to be of much good. You can test with strips or an electronic fluid boiling point tester and it will tell the truth.

[ehsnils]

Another reason to avoid the silicone is that since it doesn't absorb the water it can cause ice plugs to form in the winter resulting in additional nasty surprises.