Im just refreshing my brakes so ive reconditioned the calipers, new discs and pads all round and I'm now ready to put some brake fluid in.
Which fluid do I use? As far as im aware there is dot 3, dot 4 and dot 5 but im unsure what was used previously, would it matter if I mixed 2 different types? As there will still be old fluid in the pipes etc..
Thanks in advance

[Edited on 5/8/18 by adam1985]

Chances are it's dot 4 , I would suck out as much fluid as possible from the reservoir before refilling with fresh fluid then flush out the old fluid using the bleed nipples until clean fluid comes out

Sounds pretty straight forward, thank you

Yes, probably dot4 as it's the most common (haven't seen any 2 or 3 in years. Dot2, 3, 4 and 5.1 will mix but dot 5 is silicon based and won't mix (and it's a bit crap).

I'd recommend Ate Typ200 (used to be Ate SuperBlue until the Americans objected to the colour) if you intend to drive it hard or on track days. It's dot4 but exceeds the required min boiling point by quite a bit and it's not as expensive as some racing fluids that are out there. Never had brake fade with it even nailing it down Alpine passes or on track.

Ive used dot 5, silicon based for years and never had an issue, so don't know why you think its crap

It has a higher boiling point, and does not attract water, so plus plus

I used to use DOT5 and found that the pedal was too soft, no matter how much I bled the system. The main problem is that once you use it, it's a pain to clear out if you want to use ordinary fluid once more. I had to flush it out (several times!) with regular brake fluid and everything worked properly again.

DOT5's biggest benefit is that it doesn't absorb water, so is ideal for classic cars that sit around and rarely get driven (no internal rust in the brake mechanism). But this isn't a dig at you Steve!

It's not a bad idea to change brake fluid at least once every 2 years if your using dot 4 in fact Vauxhall recommended every year at one time