07-01-2022, 10:18 AM
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#1 (permalink)
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Corporate imperialist
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Brake fluid needs to be changed too occasionally
Especially if you tow. And dot 3 fluid kind of sucks.
https://youtu.be/Sp3LdgmZpD0
Plad appears to be a space balls reference, because I had no idea how fast these cars are.
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1984 chevy suburban, custom made 6.5L diesel turbocharged with a Garrett T76 and Holset HE351VE, 22:1 compression 13psi of intercooled boost.
1989 firebird mostly stock. Aside from the 6-speed manual trans, corvette gen 5 front brakes, 1LE drive shaft, 4th Gen disc brake fbody rear end.
2011 leaf SL, white, portable 240v CHAdeMO, trailer hitch, new batt as of 2014.
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07-01-2022, 02:18 PM
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#2 (permalink)
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Focused on MPG
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I can't speak for Tesla but the "Built to go fast on a track" use DOT 4 or 5 which has a higher boiling point.
Amazing what you learn when bored at work, I work for a Ford Dealership in parts going on 26 years and have 14 years experience as a parts counter person at O'reilly, Autozone, and Napa.
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07-01-2022, 04:34 PM
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#3 (permalink)
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Human Environmentalist
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He was the one driving, so he wasn't almost killed... he almost killed himself.
Did they conclude the DOT3 boiled or something?
Don't know why they even sell DOT3 since you can use DOT4 in anything (as far as I know).
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07-01-2022, 06:41 PM
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#4 (permalink)
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EcoModding Apprentice
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Cx9 - '18 Mazda CX9 Grand Touring 90 day: 31.41 mpg (US) Prius - '10 Toyota Prius III 90 day: 57.8 mpg (US) Tundra - '00 Tundra V6 long bed base work truck 90 day: 19.4 mpg (US)
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So if I'm understanding things from a quick scan of the comments, he took a flood salvaged car, hacked it up, installed an aftermarket big brake kit (90% of which are for show), reused old fluid, and decided to test the brakes on a high speed road course without any safety gear.
The number of piss poor decisions was staggering. And I doubt dot3 fluid was the main cause - I bet he had no idea how (un)well his brakes worked because the Tesla was mostly regenerating until the battery started getting warm at which point it suddenly relied on his ****ty brake job.
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07-03-2022, 04:24 AM
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#5 (permalink)
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It's all about Diesel
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Unfortunately some folks only remember that brakes require proper maintenance when it's too late...
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07-03-2022, 04:28 AM
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#6 (permalink)
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Human Environmentalist
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I just plan to use them as little as possible.
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07-06-2022, 09:09 PM
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#7 (permalink)
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Master EcoModder
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Boiling brake fluid on the street is really really hard, though I guess I could see someone doing it in a Tesla Plaid (it has similar sized rotors to my car, but has 2.5x the power and 1.7x the mass).
The price different between cheap DOT3 and cheap DOT4 is so small it doesn't make sense to buy DOT3 at all. Upgrading to a basic DOT5.1 or a premium DOT4 like ATE is an extra 10 dollars that probably doesn't need to be spent on a road car though.
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07-07-2022, 03:56 AM
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#8 (permalink)
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It's all about Diesel
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I haven't been paying much attention to brake fluid specs lately, yet I didn't even know DOT3 was still available.
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07-07-2022, 05:20 PM
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#9 (permalink)
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Focused on MPG
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You can walk into any local parts store in the USA and still buy DOT-3 Brake Fluid
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07-08-2022, 02:31 AM
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#10 (permalink)
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It's all about Diesel
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Economics of scale might still justify it, but even for those older models maybe DOT 4 can still be better due to the higher boiling point. Including some classics still fitted with drum brakes all around.
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