Considering the water I have seen accumulate in relatively short times -
I think I will stick to straight DOT 4.

Thanks,

John

On 12/30/2013 10:37 PM, Dennis Haynes wrote:
> To begin with those boiling points are for "wet" fluid. In other words
> saturated with water which would also mean it has been in use way too long.
> Next, if you do get the fluid in the calipers near that hot your are also
> already in trouble. I have seen the effects of bad or overheated brake fluid
> causing loss of pedal. But seriously, the Dot 4 is higher performance
> standard and the fluids are interchangeable. Dot 5 is an even higher
> standard but it is usually silicon based instead of glycol so those cannot
> be mixed. A quart is enough to flush the system even with the manual
> transmissions with the clutch.
>
> Dennis
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> JRodgers
> Sent: Monday, December 30, 2013 11:12 PM
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> Subject: Break Fluid - DOT 3 vs DOT 3/4 Vs DOT 4
>
> Dot 3  =  Boil point 280
> Dot 3/4 = Boil Point 480
> Dot 4  =  Boil Point 512
>
> In looking at Brake Fluids tonight - "ol Red needs a refill - I found these
> numbers.
>
> The shelves were full of DOT 3 and 3/4 but only one little can of Dot 4
> - And I wanted a 32 oz container at least.
>
> Question: Would the Dot3/4 be safe for use in the Vanagon. I'm suspicious of
> it - but there are copious amounts available. But the boil point is 32
> degrees below the DOT 4.
>
> Comments?
>
> Thanks,
>
> John
>