Toyota Brake Fluid Color ?

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ericbauer

10 Year
Joined
Sep 8, 2011
Threads
23
Messages
83
Location
Los Angeles CA
Hey all

So I was backed up with work and couldn’t do some much needed maintenance on the ‘98 100 before an upcoming trip

I had my local dealer flush the brake fluid
I just got it back, popped the hood, and to my surprise the brake fluid is dark

I don’t remember this … I’m used to Castrol LMA-GT which has a clear / light yellow color

Haven’t used the dealer in a while, maybe their fluid is different color ?

Thought I’d ask here first before I go back there and ask WTF ?

Pics below

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IMG_1254.webp
 
Did you specifically ask for them to use Toyota brake fluid? Lots of dealers use bulk whatever is cheapest.

From the side that looks dark. You are also way over-filled. Classic dealer move.
 
So I did just called the dealer … you know, for fun …

The first thing out of the SA’s mouth is:
“oh but you see sir your LandCruiser is from 1998 so the plastic is old and faded and the plastic reservoir is stained from years of use”

To which I reply:
“Hmm yeah, except I replaced the master cylinder and ABS pump 8 years ago … so … yeah not quite 26 years old”

Granted it’s 8 years old
But not 26

I have another car I put a new master cylinder on 13 years ago and it’s always had Castro LMA-GT and that thing is still nice and clear to this day

Having to specify Toyota branded fluids at the dealer is … wild …

Why again doesn’t the manufacture regulate dealerships ? Oh yeah I know rhetorical question

I’m not saying they obviously hosed me
But it looks suspicious

Anyways, Go figure … stealerships

Guess I’ll just do my own brake fluid flush when I have a minute

Toyota of Glendale CA if anyone’s curious
 
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Brake fluid flush is one of the easiest up sales in the industry, 99% of drivers don’t even know there’s a fluid in the brake system, let alone how to check levels and condition, but since it’s a brake system, they scare them with horror stories and up sale them on a flush, when in reality all they do is empty the reservoir and refill with new.
Check your caliper bleeders to see if they were touched recently, just to confirm they did the job you paid them to do.

Assuming they did…
Not sure in your case since you replaced the brake pump assembly a few years back, but in my 20yo system, brake fluid looks darker than that a day after a full flush, I guess my brake guts are getting old and contaminate my fresh fluid almost immediately. Did 3 flushes in the last 4-5 years, same results.
 
ericbauer said:
So I did just called the dealer … you know, for fun …

The first thing out of the SA’s mouth is:
“oh but you see sir your LandCruiser is from 1998 so the plastic is old and faded and the plastic reservoir is stained from years of use”

To which I reply:
“Hmm yeah, except I replaced the master cylinder and ABS pump 8 years ago … so … yeah not quite 26 years old”

Granted it’s 8 years old
But not 26

I have another car I put a new master cylinder on 13 years ago and it’s always had Castro LMA-GT and that thing is still nice and clear to this day

Having to specify Toyota branded fluids at the dealer is … wild …

Why again doesn’t the manufacture regulate dealerships ? Oh yeah I know rhetorical question

I’m not saying they obviously hosed me
But it looks suspicious

Anyways, Go figure … stealerships

Guess I’ll just do my own brake fluid flush when I have a minute

Toyota of Glendale CA if anyone’s curious
Click to expand...
I have yet to find a toyota/lexus dealer that uses OEM Toyota brake fluid. In fact, my local Toyota dealer charges $15 for a 12 oz bottle! If I have the dealer flush my brakes, I mail order the Toyota fluid and bring in at least 3 bottles. Next time, will do it myself since labor rates are sky high here (in New Mexico, they charged me 1 hr labor at $120/hr pre-pandemic; in VA, they charge 1.5 hrs @ $200/hr post pandemic!! I did it myself and had my teenager work the brake pedal...cost: $0. BTW, when I lived in AZ, I'd flush w/ dot4 brake fluid. The heat would turn it dark pretty quickly (within days), but that wouldn't happen to the OEM fluid.
 
In technical terms, Toyota brake fluid should be the color of bud light. My reservoir is also stained from being old. Yours might be, too. You can bleed a little out of caliper and see how the fluid looks. The dealer around me is $8 per 12 ounces. A decent flush should be 5 bottles. If they charged you anything less than $40 for fluid, they most likely did not use OEM fluid. They probably only use OEM upon request.

Fluid color really doesn’t matter. As other commenters have point, regardless of this, shops are quick to inform customers of dirty fluid to make a buck. Moisture meter is the correct test. Instruments to test are pretty cheap.
 
I had almost the same exact situation as you a few weeks ago. I have an 01 LC. I replaced the master brake cylinder 3 years ago due to leaks and concerns I read here. Toyota dealer pointed out my color and recommended a flush. When I got it home, color looked the same and I questioned if it was done. I had to return two days later for some tires I was waiting on and had them look at it again. Their response was "you must have rust or gunk that's contaminating the fluid". Braking is perfect as far as I can tell but I may buy the moisture tester mentioned here.
 
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