Hi all, so this question is regarding compatible brake fluid with my 08 XF SV8(4.2 SC), in the user manual it says to use Shell Dot 4 ESL brake fluid, if unavailable use a low viscosity brake fluid meeting ISO4925 Class 6 specifications. Cannot for the life of me find the Shell brand brake fluid.

I've found 2 so far in the Penrite brand, one being a Super Dot 4 and the other being a Dot 5.1 but both meeting the ISO4925 Class 6 specification.
​​​​​Would the Super Dot 4 be the more appropriate one?

I have attached a photo of the Penrite brake fluid bottles

 

Either will be perfectly OK to use in a 2008 XF.
The Super Dot 4 is usually cheaper than the Dot 5.1 and you don't really need 5.1, 4 is plenty good enough especially as Penrite claim the same boiling point for both.
I have used both 4 and 5.1, Penrite and Nulon, in my XFR and F-Type with zero problems.
Just don't mix up 5.1 with 5, do NOT use Dot 5 as it silicon based while 3, 4, and 5.1 are glycol based, and the two types do not play nice with each other.

 

Thank you so much for helping clear that up! It's been racking my mind as I didn't want to mess up and wanted to make sure I got the correct fluid.

I had a post regarding power steering fluid also as I'm finding it difficult to figure out.
The manual says to use Pentosin chf202, which is terribly hard to find, there is a penrite alternative however. But I checked my power steering fluid bottle and it seems to have more a reddish hue reminiscent of standard power steering/atf dexron 3 fluid rather than a green hue used in hydraulic setup which I thought the SV8 had. Is there a sure fireway I can tell what fluid it is so don't top up with the incorrect fluid?

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+1 to the Super Dot 4 as more appropriate.

You're not alone having difficulty sourcing the recommended Shell Dot 4 ESL. It's the same specification for my models and I had a tough time finding it in England.

On fluids in general, the first thing I do with a 'new' to me vehicle is flush and refill all fluids. This removes any doubt about specifications that have been used by the PO and gives me a baseline for future maintenance.

Graham

 

How would I go about doing a brake and power steering fluid flush?
This may sound silly, but I've never done a brake fluid or powering steering flush before
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Lots of vids on the interwebz showing how to replace/renew the brake fluid and an XF is no more complicated than most.
Gravity bleed or use pressure/pump.
It helps to have a helper who can pump the brake pedal while you open and close the brake bleed valves/screws, but you can still do it on your lonesome using a simple and cheap bleeder kit, pretty sure Supercheap Auto have one or two.
Start at the furthest from the master cylinder so on an XF the left rear, then right rear then left front and lastly the right front.
Make sure you bleed new fluid right through so there is no air left in the lines, so best to buy two 1 litre bottles of new fluid to make sure you have enough and for top ups.

Power steering fluid replacement is easier and quicker, you just need something to suck the old fluid out of the reservoir such as a large syringe or a turkey baster.
Screw the reservoir cap off (be warned, it can be very tight!), suck as much fluid out as you can, top up with fresh fluid, put the cap back on, get in the car and start it up and waggle the steering from full lock one side to full lock the other way there or four times (or else drive around the block in both directions a few times). Then empty the fluid again and fill again, rinse and repeat. Do this it least twice maybe three times until the fluid in the reservoir looks new, job done.

 

Pentosin DOT 4 LV, you can get it at Autozone, or the regular DOT 4 is less expensive.

 

Thank you very much for all the help and very detailed explanation of the full bleed process! thankfully I have some Super Dot 4 brake fluid at home.

I'm having issues determining what power steering fluid I'll need, my owners manual says Pentosin Chf 202 , but everywhere else I've looked it says Mobil ATF320/dexron 3 or Dexron 3 equivalent.
I checked the power steering resevoir and it's like a orange/brown, almond colour so I'm assuming it would the Dexron 3 ATF fluid

 

As with the brake fluid I have used Nulon or Penrite power steering fluid in my Jags (2010 XFS, 2010 XFR and 2014 F-Type) for years now with zero problems.
My current half used bottle of Nulon says "suitable for systems requiring Dexron II-III fluid" and that is what I last used to replace the fluid in the F-Type.
Orange/brown is the colour the fluid turns once it has been in the system for a while, it is bright cherry red when new. If it has gone dark brown it is well due for replacement.
Just get a bottle of the Nulon from Supercheap Auto and you will be good to go.

 

You have been such a massive help with all of this Oz, honestly can't thank you enough!

The colour of the steering fluid kind of threw me off but now thanks to you, I know it's the Dexron 3
Really appreciate the help a lot!
Been a little pedantic about it because I didn't want to mess anything up.

 

I used to use Mrs G as my pedal pusher for brake bleeding. When I bought a pressure bleeder kit she seemed genuinely upset her services were no longer required.

A pressure bleeder kit (which attaches to the reservoir) is the simplest method to remove all the old fluid as a solo operation with no risk of introducing air into the system. Plenty of makes available either 'pump up' or run from a compressor.






JLR recommendation is a brake fluid change every 2 years regardless of mileage.

Graham

 

I'll definitely have to invest in one those!