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I collect the fluid, from bleeding the brake systems on my Packards in a plastic spray bottle, and use it as a tire and rubber dressing. This is the DOT3 type, don't know how the 4 and 5 types would work. The fluid dresses the rubber nicely leaving a nice black natural looking appearance. Solves the problem of how to dispose of old brake fluid, and I don't need to buy the expensive tire dressings. Anyone else do this?

(o{I}o)

P.S. Of course I need to be careful and not get any of the fluid on painted surfaces.

John, I have used brake fluid to revitalize old rubber on occasion as well. Must be my Scot heritage or maybe the Yorkshire English on the maternal side "A Yorkshireman is a Scot with his generosity removed." or so someone once told me.

Wow...never heard of this before. What a great tip!

G'day all, Would love to hear from some of the Chemists in the forum about how this would work or not and in particular how it would affect the tyre sidewall serviceability? I have used Glycerine in the past to soften rubber parts but have not heard of the use of Poly Glycol brake fluids. Best regards Peter Toet

Just wondering, I posted a query relating to brake fluid earlier and recieved no response. Is there a noticable difference between standard dot 3 (which is what I've always used) and silicon? Someone else remarked that if the fluid had been changed, there would be a tag on the master to indicate the change. No offense meant, but the person that owned my vehicle before me wasn't exactly the best mechanic. I've always used dot 3, even when I was in the Army. Can I remove some of the fluid from my master cylinder and tell the difference by the color? The smell? I can't afford a "test" right now. Please, help! Thanks,

Scott

I have used it to remove paint from rubber parts that have been painted over. I remember making a little tray out of tin foil to soak the cowl rubber piece and the door stops on my '47. I soaked them in old DOT 3 brake fluid and the paint lifted of and left the rubber soft and pliable. I have never used it as tire dressing.

Scott, There is a huge difference between silicon and DOT brake fluid. They are not compatible and cannot be mixed. As to the difference in smell and or colour I will leave it to others with more xperience to explain. If the P.O. was not very mechanical I doubt he used silicon but who knows.

Could be brand specific but on the brands I have used, there is quite a pungent odor to the DOT 3 and 4--hard to mistake for anything else-- whereas the 5 has a much milder smell-almost like an oil. Dot 5 silicone is usually a little thinner in viscosity with a purplish tint while the older 3 & 4 is more clear to amber. Of course, if it has been in the system a long time then age and use will have taken care of that.

Not sure about the new paint formulations but if you have an old piece of scrap painted metal, a few drops of the silicone will not affect it much whereas the older fluid will discolor the paint and start to lift it off after a while.

while the older 3 & 4 is more clear to amber

BMW's current DOT4 which several of us use is blue in color. Can't say that I've seen a DOT5 which wasn't purple, but I wouldn't rely on that as a determinate of type.

Dot 3, Dot 4, and Dot 5.1, don't mix with Dot 5 silicone and that is all. I have a bottle with the two mixed to demonstrate for concerned parties. They remain separate with the Dot 5 on top.

So withdraw a sample from the top of the reservoir and mix with Dot 3. If it mixes your system is pure.

Mixing the two should not harm the system. At least when I was overseas the military were always mixing the two without loss of braking. If mixing was dangerous then DOT 5 would not be allowed at all.

Great info, Tim! I appreciate the procedure. I was worried that I would have to take a sample somewhere and pay to have it tested..... Thanks again!

Scott