frankyknuckles Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 My car is one year old and has done seven track days in this period. Should I consider changing the brake fluid? (I'm using Catrol SRF). Also, does anyone know the volume of fluid required for an R300? www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Support Team Shaun_E Posted January 19, 2005 Support Team Share Posted January 19, 2005 Caterham service schedule is every 2 years which seems about right. However it would do no harm to change more frequently especially if you do a number of trackdays. Yellow SL #32 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheds Moderator Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 It's the rate at which it soaks up moisture from the air that is critical. As it soaks up moisture the boiling point gets lower. You really don't want your fluid to boil. Every 2 years is recommended, I think that any more often is unnecessary. I'd wait until next spring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 Folklore has it that overheating the brakes will do nasty things to the fluid closest to the caliper - on that basis, it might be worth just flushing some fresh fluid through. Also, if air has got in anywhere, it will almost certainly be at the caliper-ends of the system, so a flush and bleed could he beneficial anyway. After faffing around and wasting a large number of litres of cheapish fluid last year (only £9 a litre ), I ended up settling on the tyre-pressurised Eezibleed as the most reliable way to sort the situation out (I work alone, it must be said....) Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankyknuckles Posted January 19, 2005 Author Share Posted January 19, 2005 Thanks. I'm going to flush the system through with the remaining fluid that I have (Catrol SRF is very expensive), so this should get rid of any air that might be in the calipers. My pedal has never been very solid, so I'm interested to see if any air in the system. I've purchased the Mityvac hand help vacuum pump brake bleeder, looks very easy to use and will allow me to do it on my own www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Sewell Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 Franky, From memory, I was always told to use FRESH fluid if I ever did anything on the brakes. This is because the seals on the tims are not perfect and the fluid you are using may be as bad as the stuff being thrown away! I appreciate that SRF is expensive, but that money has already been wasted. As brakes are critical, it seems senseless wasting time on an exercise that may make things worse just to save a few pounds. In which case, if the fluid is only a year old, you'd be better advised to leave well alone. Low tech luddite - xflow and proud! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 Yep - always use fresh. Some people go to the extreme of hunting through the bottles on the shelf to see which was manufactured most recently - and even to the extent of picking sales-outlets with a good turnover of stock.... Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankyknuckles Posted January 19, 2005 Author Share Posted January 19, 2005 OK thanks. I've never been 100% happy with the brakes on my car and I hope that the vacuum bleeder will allow me to do a better job, so I'll order some fresh fluid. 1 ltr should be enough? When bleeding, how do you tell that new fluid is coming through? www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 Depends how old the existing stuff is. You might be lucky and notice a colour change (darker to lighter, usually). 1 litre will be fine - that's almost the volume of the complete system. The critical thing is to carry on bleeding if you can see any small bubbles coming through the drain-tube you've attached to the nipple (I used a combination of the Eezibleed to force new fluid through and an Eezlibleed one-man thingy (bottle with one-way-valve) to collect the old fluid. Only a fiver or so from Halfrauds. HTH Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Drawmer Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 When I was ordering some brake fluid from Demon Tweeks, I got told that the more extreme temps and usage, the more often the fluid should be changed. Extreme Racing fluids need changing more often than normal road types. So, whereas ornery stuff is OK to change every other year, SRF needs changing every year - some folks say 6 months! haha just looked at the srf data sheet: change within 18 months! edited to remove non-working link: info pasted below. Racing Brake Fluid DESCRIPTION Castrol SRF is a high performance brake fluid of special value in competitive motor sport where extreme braking conditions are encountered. It is an exclusive Castrol product registered under patents in many countries. Castrol SRF exceeds US Federal Standards FMVSS 116 DOT 3 and DOT 4, ISO 4925, JIS K2233 and current SAE J 1703. APPLICATION Castrol SRF has been especially formulated to maximise braking performance under arduous competitive conditions. In order to achieve the optimum benefits in such applications, advanced materials have been employed in a unique and patented Castrol formulation. The use of Castrol SRF should be restricted to not more than eighteen months before draining and refilling for maximum efficiency. Prolonged use in excess of the recommended period may give rise to a deterioration in performance at very low temperatures. Castrol SRF is suitable for all disc and drum brake systems with the exception of those for which mineral oil is prescribed. FEATURES/BENEFITS The exceptionally high dry boiling point, (higher than 300oC) makes Castrol SRF ideal for use under arduous braking conditions such as racing or rallying. Castrol SRF has a very high vapour lock point (the more important measure of high temperature performance under actual braking conditions), and has the additional advantage of sustaining high vapour lock point characteristics during its service life. The compressibility of Castrol SRF is very similar to that of current DOT 3 and DOT 4 fluids. It can, therefore, be filled into any non-mineral oil braking system. Castrol SRF is miscible with all conventional fluids meeting US Federal Standards FMVSS 116 DOT 3 and DOT 4, ISO 4925 and current J 1703. However, mixing Castrol SRF and conventional brake fluids will merely reduce the higher quality of Castrol SRF. It is, therefore, recommended that conventional brake fluids be drained from the system before flushing and refilling with Castrol SRF. PERFORMANCE SAE J1703 FMVSS 116 DOT 3/4 TYPICAL CHARACTERISTICS Density at 20ºC 1.065 Edited by - Paul Drawmer on 19 Jan 2005 18:55:20 Edited by - Paul Drawmer on 19 Jan 2005 18:59:29 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Perry Posted January 19, 2005 Share Posted January 19, 2005 Its also good practice with a seven to re-bleed them after the first couple of hundred miles. I find that when I do this I fnd a few more air bubbles in the system and the pedal firms up a bit more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankyknuckles Posted January 20, 2005 Author Share Posted January 20, 2005 When bleeding, do I need to keep replacing the master cylinder cap everytime I add more fluid, or can I leave it off until the job is done? I can't think of any reason why the cap should be on whilst bleeding, after all, it is only a fluid reservoir www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Wong1697456877 Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 OK to leave it off till job done, as long as you keep topping up during the bleeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Perry Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 Another thing that I can't see mentioned above is that brake flud doesn't do paint any good if you spill any so you need plenty of rag to protect your painted finish if you have one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankyknuckles Posted January 20, 2005 Author Share Posted January 20, 2005 www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 Erm - the point about paintwork needs reinforcing - rags won't do much good if it soaks through. Have plenty (watering can or hose) of water handy instead and sloosh it down if spilt. Regarding topping-up the reservoir - if you are using the tyre-pressurised Eezibleed, you fill *its'* bottle with fluid and it automatically tops the reservoir up as you bleed. Make sure that the EEzibleed doesn't run dry though - you really don't want to drain the master reservoir and let air in from the top of the system. Oh, and from experience - if you are using one of the 7's tyres to pressurise the system, you might need to pump it up (rather than let it down as per the Eezibleed instructions) - they are assuming that the tyre has much more pressure in that is the case with the 7 - and I've had trouble getting enough flow without increasing the tyre-pressure. Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankyknuckles Posted January 20, 2005 Author Share Posted January 20, 2005 I'm using a vacuum pump that sucks the fluid from the nipple. I'll make sure the reservoir does not run dry. www.R300.net Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 Dave, If you use the Gunson ezi-bleeder kit You have to make sure that everything is on tightly. especially as your car has a painted finish. i've always found ezi bleeders well.. bleeders in that you can sometimes get brake fluid spraying out of the kit /master cylinder cap joint under pressure would recommend covering up your paintwork with polythene sheet if you are going to use one of these things, keep the reservoir topped up otherwise you will drag fresh air into the piepwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Wong1697456877 Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 SRF isn't too aggressive on paint. I've had it leak on my paint a few times - a quick wet sponge & wipe seems to be enough - if left on for a day though, it does start to make the paint bubble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myles Posted January 20, 2005 Share Posted January 20, 2005 Even though you are using a vacuum pump, it's probably worth you buying the Eezibleed anyway - you can ignore the tyre-pressurisation (obviously), but use the bottle, tube and cap as an auxiliary reservoir (it takes about 1/3 to 1/2 litre IIRC). I think you'll find it a pain in the neck to keep alternating between topping up the master reservoir and operating the pump. Cost is only £13-15ish IIRC from Halfrauds. Project Scope-Creep is underway... Alcester Racing 7's Equipe - 🙆🏻™ Alcester-Racing-Sevens.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now