Is SRAM dot 5.1 brake fluid just 5.1 brake fluid?

Might be a daft question but I’m asking anyway

Yes

Yes. Get ye down to ye olde motor factors.

Yep. Individual fluid specs do vary but all 5.1 is good tbh.

DOT stands for Dept of Transport, and is a US standard. All DOT fluid is compatible with any other of the same number.

I think you need about 50mi to bleed both brakes, a 120ml bottle of SRAM brake fluid is a tenner, for a job you’ll likely only do every couple of years at best. Like buying a litre of mineral oil from Halfords for shimano brakes, I wonder if the teeny cost saving is worth it?

https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/dot-5-1-brake-fluid-is-it-all-the-same-stuff/

I bought dot 5.1 from euro car parts for no more than £10. 500ml of the stuff. Numerous bleeds down the line and I’m not dead. Great to have on hand and even do mates brakes.

Ask Sram if their stuff is counterfeit.
And can they prove it has been tested to FMVSS116.

https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.dot.gov/files/documents/tp-116-04_tag.pdf

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CFR-2012-title49-vol6/xml/CFR-2012-title49-vol6-sec571-116.xml

And can they prove it has been tested to FMVSS116.

Utterly irrelevant, Ask SRAM whether their brake fluid works in their brakes…

… and whether they’ll warranty your brakes when you’ve used the cheapest ‘compatible’ DOT 5.1 fluid you could find.

(FWIW I would, and do, use any old DOT 5.1 in my brakes but that wasn’t the question)

Leisurelakes do a yellow 250ml bottle for under £4, the Delphi stuff Hope use.
Big bottles aren’t ideal, once opened its best to use within 12 months so smaller bottles are better, when priced accordingly, but Srams is totally overpriced.
I also keep mine in the house to avoid extreme temperature changes of the shed.

paton
Free Member

Ask Sram if their stuff is counterfeit.

…and the answer will be, no, as long as it’s genuine.

I’ve used dot 4 but it did cause UK wide flooding and some children died, yes it was my fault!

Don’t forget about Dot 4.
Higher boiling point, maybe better for longer runs.

I use Motul RBF600. “Only” a dot 4, but better wet and dry boiling points. With 5 bikes running for fluid, I can justify a 500ml bottle every 18 months or so.

Every bike then gets fresh fluid whether it needs it or not so as to not let the new stuff spoil.

There are better fluids, but at £50 a litre, it’s too much for too much.

Surely dot 5.1 has the higher boiling point.

Nope, each dot rating has a minimum spec but there’s nothing to stop a manufacturer going over that spec. I think it’s the viscosity that falls down for the RBF600 and stops it being 5.1