Clutch fluid turned black

[XcelleraThor]

DOT 4 brake fluid has a boiling point of 265°C and when containing water it steeply drops to 170 °C. Chemically spoken there should be nothing in the fluid that would degrade due to excess heat exposure. When searching the internet for this issue it is full of posts, that indicate that wear debris from either the cylinder in the clutch or the lever is responsible for this. These tend to be made from aluminium and a slightest amount of anything can noticeably color a liquid. In this case a small amount of "metal dust" giving the brake fluid a dark coloration. It is highly likely the water issue is not the case here. Man, guys, we got brand new bikes! If the seals were bad already....

I have 3004 km on the dash and mine is pitch black with no thru visibility to a white piece of paper.

I'll call my dealer tomorrow, but I fear this might be a case of "works as designed".

[THOR]

Hi , This used to happen on my Ducati Multistrada 1200 DVT S and on Superduke GT this is somehow normal, as this dot 4 boiling points are quite weak sometimes, I am assuming the Kawasaki engine running hot , clutch is hot too, so the condensation could cause the dot 4 to brown or dark colours. Shouldn't make any difference to the performance but its so easy to flush it every 2000 Km or depending on your climate. People regularly go to track days needs to bleeds them every 3 months or every very hard session's

[FJR919]

1600 miles and mine has darkened quite a bit as well.

[Barrel]

My dealer changed the clutch fluid at the second service (12000 km). Now back to clear. Kawasaki are aware of the blackness and say it is the dye from the hoses absorbed into the fluid and noticeable due to the small quantity of fluid used coupled with the frequent up and down movement/flow of fluid with the clutch operation. Makes sense to me.

[roadczar]

My dealer changed the clutch fluid at the second service (12000 km). Now back to clear. Kawasaki are aware of the blackness and say it is the dye from the hoses absorbed into the fluid and noticeable due to the small quantity of fluid used coupled with the frequent up and down movement/flow of fluid with the clutch operation. Makes sense to me.

Makes sense, I've noticed it before with my other bikes.

[FJR919]

It's a relief to know that it's not fluid breakdown or contamination. So nothing to worry about .

[Kwee]

900 km clutch fluid is black too.

[kingroslolo]

SX SE 000251, my clutch fluide turn black after 3 days, couple hundred miles,replace the top can fluide 3 times (no bleeding) still turning black.

[CiscoKid]

I am at about 1150km 1st service needed now. I noticed mine turning black as well after I saw this and probably started around 700km or so. Will mention to dealer and leave as is till then, perhaps I can get them to just change it out under warranty , 2020 SE

[Vex]

It's not a big deal, if they don't. /Shrug