sperkins

So I just picked up a bottle of Valvoline's fully synthetic SYN power bake fluid and I'm wondering if this meets the approval of the road racers here. It says it's compatible with conventional fluids and exceeds DOT 3 & 4 with a dry-boiling point of 500*.

So is it the right choice for a guy that does 6-8 HPDE's a year in a C5 ZO6?

jlcvt

Not my favorite, there are better fluids out there. If you do 6-8 events, I hope you don't plan on leaving the same fluid in all year long.

JohnnyB51

I haven't used it myself, but I know other people have without any problems. You made need to change fluid more often, but it should be OK.

I will probably try it myself in the future.

Miaugi

I'm not so sure about this fluid. I think I've read somewhere that while most brake fluids will absorb water, synthetics don't absorb water so as moisture gets into your brake system it stays seperate and may cause more problems, although I won't swear this 100% accurate.

I use Motul RBF 600 which works very well and has a good wet boiling temperature which some members say is actually more important than the dry boiling temperature.

John Shiels

It's OK but the wet point is low if I remember correctly so you need to flush at each event. If you are really going to get the rotors glowing forget it the fluid will not take it.

outnumbered

We are not suppose to use synthetic. I too use the Motul 600 and have been happy with it. Many say the Casterol SRF is the best. Pricey but the best.

bb69

I used it in my 69 for the first few years of HPDE's I ran and it worked well. I bled the brakes before every event. However, the last time I ran at Gingerman, which is hard on brakes, I was boiling the fluid after 4-5 laps. I think this was a combination of me getting better and braking later, and the lack of proper cooling. This year I will be moving to a better fluid and adding some cooling.

Ken

gkull

I used it for many years and it worked great. But when I went to a bigger motor is when it started to fail in about 10 minutes of lapping.

You could try it....... But the first sign of your brakes getting mushy, just pull off. Wilwood sells a 580 degree. From Summit Racing it is only under $10 per bottle

JimbeauZ06

I've used it for two events. It's OK at best. Maybe better than GM, maybe not. I'm planning to move to Motul or Super Blue at my next change.

redvetracr

all brake fluid is synthetic...and yes another vote for SRF being the best!

VetteDrmr

It depends on how hard you're driving the course. I find that tires are a good indicator of how aggressive you can be. If you're running on street tires, then the Synpower usually works fine. If you're on an intermediate tire like a Toyo RA-1, Victoracer V700, or similar, then it's possible to overheat the Synpower.

If you're running V710s or Hoosiers, then you likely will be driving hard enough to boil the Synpower, and should go to the highest boiling point fluid you can find (SRF being one of the best). At this point you really need to get a good cooling system for your front brakes.

HTH, and have a good one,
Mike

sperkins

Did you mean to say silicone?

outnumbered

Oops! :o

Miaugi

Oops, I think that is what I was thinking too....my bad!

Z06Fix

I use it for daily driving and autox. Seems to work pretty well and it's cheap. For OT events I flush it and go with Motul.

beerkat

I have been using it for the last few events. It works fine but I change it before each event.

c4cruiser

Don't look at dry boiling points when selecting a brake fluid for track use. The wet boiling point value is the one to use.

IIRC, the Valvoline SynPower has a wet boiling point of 333 degreees. This is still within the DOT3 temp range. DOT4 starts at around 390 degrees (wet). Motul has a wet boiling point of over 400 degrees and Castrol SRF is over 500 degrees.

I am using ATE Super Blue for autocross and track day use in my 87. I still have the stock rotors with Hawk HP+ pads and have not had a problem with boiling the fluid at Portland.

The ATE Super Blue has a wet boiling point of 392 degrees and is a DOT4 fluid. ATE also has TYP200 fluid that is exactly the same as the Super Blue except for a gold color. If you swap back and forth between these two fluids when flushing, you can easily tell when you're done by the change in fluid color. ATE Super Blue/TYP200 runs about $12 per liter and is sold in metal cans.

As mentioned, having cooling air to the front brakes will be a big help in keeping the brakes (and the fluid) cooler.

sothpaw2

The Valveline is not acceptable. It is cheaper, and you get what you pay for. Fine for a daily driver.

The bare, minimum standard for HPDE is the ATE. Wet BP is what counts. Motul is an upgrade on the ATE and costs 2-3 times as much.

Slalom4me

At the bottom for this link, StopTech displays a chart showing dry and
wet boiling points for several brands of Brake Fluid, along with unit prices.
(The link starts with Carroll Smith's 'Notes on Brake Fluid' and additional
comments by James Walker.)

The comparison indicates SynPower with Dry 503ºF / Wet 343ºF
characteristics (wet being slightly higher than the 333ºF mentioned
above by c4cruiser.)

Here is a link to another comparison that was several years old in '05.
Brake Fluid Comparison. It shows SynPower's WBP as 333ºF. But times
change, maybe SynPower's product characteristics have, too.

FWIW - I checked the Valvoline site for current information about
their SynPower brake fluid. I did not find it listed, they only show
their DOT 3/4 fluid. Is SynPower brake fluid still in production?

I use Valvoline SynPower brake fluid in a C4 primarily for Solo I-like
events. It worked without issues during DE days but there were too
few of these to make an unqualified endorsement in those conditions.
However, based my experiences, SynPower is certainly suited for more
than mere daily driver applications.

I am interested in the comment about Wet Boiling Point being the only
measure that matters. My vote is that this is the case for fluid that
has been in the system for some period of time. However, I proceed
in the belief that if the fluid has been fully bled from a fresh bottle
immediately prior to an event, then the actual boiling point is going to
be nearer to the Dry number than to the Wet number.

For my purposes, SynPower works and is (was?) easy to find in small
quantities at very reasonable prices. To me this means that I am not
be faced with disposing of large quantities of expensive unused fluid or
guessing whether it is ok to use what is left over in the unsealed container.

Your mileage may vary.

.

c4cruiser

The Synpower WBP value I quoted came from an old CF thread from back in 02 (and looks like the same data as shown in the "Brake Fluid Comparison" linky). I would think that a somewhat higher WBP value could be accurate simply because of improvments in the fluid.

As for using the WBP as the "standard", most of the experienced HPDE guys have stated that the WBP value is the one that should be used to select a fluid.

The WBP temp value is apparently based on tests with a small percentage of moisture in the fluid so I would believe that those values would be accurate for fluid that has been in a braking system long enough enough to allow some moisture in. But I think that a DOT4 fluid will take in moisture faster than a DOT so DOT4 should be bled more frequently.

There is lots of information available about brake fluids if anyone wants to do some seaches using the "Advanced" function.