Rep Power: 288

I just bought some Prestone DOT4 and it says on the bottle it is synthetic fluid...WHAT?!?!? when did they start making brake fluid synthetic... says it will mix without probs with regular. but I dunno....


Oh... and are the front rotors on the '01 sedans pressed or bolt on? and should that make a huge difference in labor?


"I have become Synthetic!!" - Spine Shank

 
Rep Power: 288

BUMP...anyone? anyone?

 
Rep Power: 308

The info I have states DOT 3, I only use OEM fluids when needed.

Remember if your pads are near end of life your brake fluid will be low, if you top it off when the caliper pistons are pushed back in for the new pads it will overflow the reservoir.

 
Rep Power: 412

they do make brake fluid synthetic now.

I am not sure what you mean by press on or bolt on. They pop out and into the caliper.

 
Rep Power: 288

and "red" said he didn't know whether the front rotors had to be pressed or if they are just bolt on rotors.

btw I take it prestone is just as good for brake fluid as any other?

(no one said otherwise yet)

 
Rep Power: 424

The front rotors are a bit of both. The 2 screws hold them in place, but they're just there so they don't pop off while you're working on them. I don't use the screws since they like to sieze in place. The rotors loosely press onto the hub and overtime will rust to them. Theres 2 extra holes in the rotor.... standard 8mm bolts fit in them, thread bolts in and alternate turning them in, it'll back the rotor off the hub until it pops loose. Clean the scale off the hub, install the new rotor. All that you really need to hold the rotor on is the wheel.
I know what you're thinking of with press on rotors... and no, they're not those.
Old Accords had those and were a true bitch.

 
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pressed-on rotors are where the hub and rotor are cast into one piece. so you have to "press" the bearings inside the back of the rotor and pack it full of grease before you slide it back onto the spindle.

i did the front brakes on an old dodge dakota that had these and i second the fact that rotors of this type are a true bitch.

thank goodness the civic has bolt-on rotors... makes a brake job sooo much easier

as far as the synthetic brake fluid... i had mixed brake fluid for a few months before i completely re-bled with valvoline synthetic. during that time i didn't have any problems... even though the guy at the autoparts store said if i mixed the two i would "blow my seals".

this bottle says it's compatible with conventional fluids too and that it exceeds dot3 and dot4 specs. something tells me that if the bottle says it'll mix, it'll mix. 'cause if mixing the fluids causes you to "blow your seals" and your brakes fail, you'd have super solid grounds for a lawsuit.