Thread: Colored Brake Fluid??

Why would you want that?


And no, I have never seen colored brake fluid.

So that as I pump it through I get a general idea of when I have pumped all the way through the system as I start seeing the color change coming out at the caliper.

Makes since.

Originally Posted by slickwill

So that as I pump it through I get a general idea of when I have pumped all the way through the system as I start seeing the color change coming out at the caliper.

Like when you're bleeding brakes? Are you replacing brake fluid?

I imagine the brake reservoir contains close to the same amount that is in the lines. Put in BRcapacityX2 and color it DONE.

There is blue.

ATE Super Blue Racing Brake Fluid

What does your old brake fluid look like? It might be just a bit darker if it's not that old, or even look like strong coffee if it's been in there a while, just keep bleeding until you see the new stuff coming out.

Originally Posted by evl_twn

What does your old brake fluid look like? It might be just a bit darker if it's not that old, or even look like strong coffee if it's been in there a while, just keep bleeding until you see the new stuff coming out.

That's what I do. You can definitely tell when you've got all the old stuff out. If you switch to something that's a totally different color, then on the next change, are you going back to the previous brand?

Originally Posted by HondaGalToo

If you switch to something that's a totally different color, then on the next change, are you going back to the previous brand?

That's the plan. Just switch back and forth between something colored and the Motul that I've been using. I've noticed that my Honda Dot 4 is VERY slightly darker than the Motul but not enough to really tell the difference.

My motard seems to respond favorably to very frequent bleeding so the fluid never gets dark enough to make any difference. I can get a noticable difference with weekly bleeding. I generally bleed about every other week. The problem is that the stock reservoir is VERY small. I just wanted to run something different colored through it at least once to get an idea of what the total volume of the system really is.

Originally Posted by slickwill

I generally bleed about every other week.

So you're studying that really old school medicine... do you favor leeches or those heated glass bulbs?


For what you're talking about I don't think it actually matters if you get all the old stuff out - sounds to me as if you're dealing with trapped air, not water molecules.

As I understand it, the brake fluid absorbs water from the atmosphere over a period of time such that if you're massively heating your brakes as in a race, the water actually boils off and the brakes fade. I seriously doubt that's the scenario here. In the course of a couple of weeks there's no way that Motul is picking up that much water. Just run it through until there is no frickin' way that there is any old fluid in there and bleed it properly, and you should be good for months. (presuming you don't have any air leaks in the system.)

Originally Posted by CBRVFR

So you're studying that really old school medicine... do you favor leeches or those heated glass bulbs?


For what you're talking about I don't think it actually matters if you get all the old stuff out - sounds to me as if you're dealing with trapped air, not water molecules.

As I understand it, the brake fluid absorbs water from the atmosphere over a period of time such that if you're massively heating your brakes as in a race, the water actually boils off and the brakes fade. I seriously doubt that's the scenario here. In the course of a couple of weeks there's no way that Motul is picking up that much water. Just run it through until there is no frickin' way that there is any old fluid in there and bleed it properly, and you should be good for months. (presuming you don't have any air leaks in the system.)

I'm definitely not in a situation where it matters at all if I get all the old stuff out. I just really (for my own curiosity) want to see how much it takes to go all the way through the system.

I don't have any air in there, I've gone all the way through. Nice pure clear fluid with no air bubbles. I'm not talking about a major change at all. I could ignore it for months (and did through the winter with no problem) but, every two weeks or so I just hook on the tubing, give a few pumps, and can get a few VERY small air bubble and a slight improvement in firmness at the lever. There are no major issues of any kind, most people wouldn't notice or care about the slight difference. It takes me at most about three minutes for a quick little brake pick-me-up.