lamboguy

Hi Folks,

2009 C6 -- do I need any special brake fluid to bleed brakes? Or just "good stuff"

Thanks,

Fred

ROC OUT

Others will chime in with suggestions on aftermarket or high performance fluids but you can start by considering the fluid recommended in the back of the owner's manual. At least you know this fluid is approved by GM while your car is under warranty.

z51vett

Delco dot 3
z51vett

lamboguy

Never even thought of looking there --

Thanks!

Fred

Dave S

Any major brand Dot 4.....not Dot 3.

Tonycan

If you track your car, try Motul 600.

Bill Suttie

Then why does my 06 owner manual and the cap on my brake reservoir say DOT 3 ????????????

carpe dm

Things have changed; our '10 says DOT 4.

Wayne O

A 'high performance' fluid provides superior protection on the track and on the street. Even if you don't track your car I think it's worthwhile to use. If warranty coverage is a concern you might want to use a recommended fluid. That said I'd use DOT4 instead of DOT3.

lamboguy

non-synthetic, right?

(gotta read the new cans carefully...)

Manual says nothing about synthetic

Fred

BEZ06

Nope - that's not correct!!!


Here's an excerpt from the 2010 Owner's Manual:

And here's an excerpt from the 2011 Owner's Manual:

Those are exactly the same specs since the 2005 C6 came out.

For the street, any good DOT 3 will be good. Many DOT 3 fluids meet DOT 4 specs anyway.

One of the main things brake fluid does is absorb water - it's hygroscopic.

The main thing that a DOT 4 will do for you is give you higher dry and wet boiling points. In order to raise the boiling points, one of the things that is done is DOT 4 may absorb more water, so it may need to be flushed more frequently than DOT 3.

I run DOT 3 in the brake system of my street ZR1, and DOT 4 (Motul RBF 600) in my track Z06 brakes. I run Prestone DOT 4 in the clutch system of both (less than $3 for a 12 oz. bottle at Walmart).

Nothing the matter with running DOT 3, DOT 4, Super DOT 4, DOT 4 Plus, or DOT 5.1 in your brake system. For a street driven car a good DOT 3 is perfectly adequate.

All of those are generally compatible with each other because they are all glycol ether and borate esther formulations. There a couple of high end racing brake fluids that are not friendly to magnesium, but I don't think we have any magnesium parts in the brake system in contact with the fluid.

ALL those fluids are essentially synthetic.

What you DO NOT want to use is DOT 5!!!!!

DOT 5 is a silicone based fluid. It's not compatible with the other fluids or the seals/gaskets in our car. And it's slightly compressible and not good in a car with a sophisticated ABS like ours.

So....any good DOT 3 in the brake system of a street driven car. DOT 4 for the clutch hydraulic system.

Bob

Dave S

Mea Culpa....you're absolutely right....I recently flushed the clutch fluid in my '05 & was thinking of the Dot 4 that I used. I stand corrected as you stated...Dot 3 for the brakes & Dot 4 for the clutch (presuming a 6SP).

lamboguy

good forum -- thanks!

Fred

EyeMaster

DOT 4 and DOT 3 are almost the same composition, I believe. But for the Clutch, will putting DOT 3 cause problems?

johnodrake

Then you can use the same fluid for brakes and clutch. I have been happy with Motul RBF 600

rchbn

You have the knowledge and ability to bleed your brakes but don't know what fluid to use?

Things that make you go huh?

Swiftrider08

BEZ06

Lamboguy has been around the forum for about 10 months now, and I assume he's about to do his first brake bleed/flush on the C6.

I don't think his question about what fluid we "experts" here on the forum think is good to use in a C6 is a bad idea at all!!!

There's a tremendous amount of knowledge specific to the Vette here.

However, I do have a beef with him for not just looking at the cap on the master cylinder reservoir, in the Owner's Manual, or doing a search on the forum!!!!

Butt.....even then, you can see by the various responses, some of us think DOT 3 is perfectly adequate for a street driven car, and others think that DOT 4 should be used even for the street. Lamboguy still has some decision makiing to do.

So.....Lamboguy, try using the search function to get some more info on lifting the car, proper order to bleed, and some info about using Speedbleeders, the Motive Power Bleeder, a MightVac, or other bleeding/flushing methods.

Bob

TSLAVette

ATE Superblue. Dot 4

Nightstalker Medic

I use ATE Super Blue Racing, then switch to the color Red for six months. I also use the fluid in the clutch too. Works great.