PlotPoint

I just paid for a brake fluid change and when I picked up the car i noticed the fluid was at the exact same level and color as when I dropped it off. The color I see through the reservoir tank walls when I open the hood and look is black.. The reservoir tank is made of an opaque, white plastic material. So stands to reason that if the brake fluid is new it should be clear in color and the color visible through the tank wall should not be black. Am I missing something? This is a first gen LS400. Thanks.

LScowboyLS

they may not have removed and cleaned the walls of the reservoir, which could leave a false impression of the the cleanliness of the brake fluid. - the real test is to dip some of the brake fluid out of the reservoir and observe it in a clean glass vessel, it should be clear, just like brand new fluid, if it's not, then you got cleaned out, and I would insist that they do the job right! (as well as refunding the bill for the brake fluid change, for ripping you off in the first place, lest you publicize your story further with the names of the guilty!)

I just bled the brakes on my 1986 300ZX and now when I look in the reservoir, it looks like it is full of water!

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

It should def be a clear golden color but like LS said the reservoir could just be dirty. Just suction some out and look at it.

PlotPoint

Thanks to you both. That's what I was thinking...that it could be residue on the walls of the reservoir. I will definitely take a closer look at that this weekend... suction some out ...to see what it looks like. Will post back once I know. I am pretty sure he did the work, but when I saw the color, that threw me off. I need to verify for my own peace of mind.

Yamae

These are what I drained.
The left side one was obtained when bleeding was just started. The right one was obtained at the final stage of my bleeding. The final one was as clear as the new fluid just poured to the reservoir and I decided to stop bleeding.

ajahearn

Definitely not black. Brown to gold to yellow is the expected color. But be sure to wipe off any oil/dust build up that might have been attracted to the outside of the container.

PlotPoint

Ok, thanks all. The pics are helpful. Yes, the color is very similar to the 'final stage' to what Yamae posted. Weird that the reservoir level looks dark from the outside. I will make sure the tank gets cleaned out next time. Btw, just out of curiosity, I called around to find out what kind of DIY testing one can do on brake fluid. Turns out there's an inexpensive gadget ($22 on amazon) that measures moisture in brake fluid and there are also strips you can buy that measures the quality (looks for copper and other signs of end of life, etc.). The strips were not cheap....like $54 for 100. And since I don't need 100 strips I am not buying it, but it's good to know that that kind of easy testing is available.

PlotPoint

Update: I now think the grit on the reservoir walls has contaminated new fluid. When I first tested this, I dipped into the fluid barely visible above the baffle on the top of the reservoir and wiped that on a white paper towel. That color looked a very light tan color, as shown in Yamae's pic. Looked okay to me. However, I thought I detected a feeling of grit when I ran my finger through it (yes, I washed immediately). But when I extracted some fluid into an opaque white plastic container, the fluid looks dirty to me. It actually has a kind of greenish tint to it. I could not get a lot out since that baffle was in the way and I could not get that off, but I got enough out to see the color and to tilt the sample container so that about 1/4 of a teaspoon was clearly showing the color. It is a greenish tint.

PlotPoint

I can see small grains of black grit that settled in the bottom of the miniscule sample. There is sediment. Not much, but I bet on a larger sample it would be more visible. I think I will see if Pep Boys or a similar shop can assist. The thing is, I am pretty sure the guy worked on the fluids. So why would this fluid be this color?

PlotPoint

Ok, just got back from Autozone where I was able to get a better sample, a good teaspoon and my brake fluid is green! It's clear, not cloudy, but a light to medium green. I do not see black in it. There are only a couple of granules of grit -- literally two. I purchased the brake fluid from a Toyota dealership, not a Lexus dealership but the part number was supposed to be the same -- it's DOT3 fluid. I did not see the color of the fluid that came out of the bottle since I did not do the work myself, but I did provide the fluid. What could be the explanation for green brake fluid?

RA40

iTrader: (6)

When the fluid is like this, it has been in there far to long or the reservoir cap is not producing a good seal. Rather than push all the gunk through the system, suck out what you can from the reservoir, fill with fresh fluid, suck out again (Repeat as necessary till the reservoir has reasonable fluid color), then bleed. If as bad as I imagine, optionally disconnect the fluid lines from master cylinder so that the fluid can be drained from there.

If you do disconnect the lines, you'll have to make sure all the air is purged out of the system or the ABS/TRAC will be quite unhappy.

Why do you want an analysis? It is going to cost you about $30 if you go through Blackstone Labs. I'd use that $30 toward fresh fluid instead.

PureDrifter

iTrader: (10)

my usual brake fluid is blue so idk

PlotPoint

I've done some research and the there seem to be a two leading theories. I will get it reflushed. Any ideas where I can get a good deal? I live in Southern Calif.

Here's the most reasonable explanation I could find (sorry, lost the link):

"The green fluid is most certainly caused by the fluid chemical components breaking down and attacking the brazed joint in the brake tubing. While the tubing itself is steel, it is spiral wound (like a paper towel tube) twice and brazed with brass (which has copper.) It is then pushed through an extruder head to size the tubing and overlaps the seams. Look up Bundy tube.

The other possibility is someone mixed SuperBlue fluid in while topping off the reservoir. If this is the case, then your brake fluid will be a nearly neon green.

You will need to flush your system. Suck the fluid from the reservoir, and replace it with stuff from a nice big bottle of fluid (NEW and SEALED). Bleed the brakes in the proper order until every brake runs clear or whatever color your new fluid is. I will usually come back and bleed the system again a few months later just to be 100% sure."

PlotPoint

Thanks. That cap was on there good and tight. I'll take a look at it the next time I am out but I think it's far more likely that that is very old brake fluid I am looking at that was left in the reservoir and was not part of the bleed. I'll take your advice and skip the analysis.

RA40

iTrader: (6)

This place:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/cl-...-in-socal.html

There are other So. Cal threads for shops that come recommended to consider too.