radiator flush
Most shops seem to do a drain and fill, even the dealer. One independant said with confidence " yes sir on that car its a drain and fill" Like a Toyota has unique ability to clean it own coolant while you drive. How do they get away with that ? I have even heard that some shops will put a chemical in and then just do a drain and fill. Leaving most of the chemical still in the system. They might charge 69 dollars for changing the coolant but all they do is drain and fill. Drain and fill is easier than an oil change I would have done it myself if all they were going to do drain the radiator.
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The only reason you might not want to do it yourself is that coolant is messy, dangerous to animals if spilled, and it's a hassle to dispose of (in California, you cannot throw it in a dumpster ). And sometimes it's HOT, too.
But if you're willing to endure all this to save $50, more power to you!
Separately, I have seen a number of write-ups, even in Popular Mechanics, that don't make reference to the block drain. I agree with joe3891 that the block and radiator drains should both be used but, apparently, many folks don't seem to agree.
Disposal of used coolant is a serious issue but waste-water treatment engineers have pointed out that modest amounts of ethylene glycol will enhance the biological treatment process. Accordingly, some municipalities do specifically allow (or even encourage) sewering of this material. Be careful, of course, some may also disallow it.
Sorry, I couldn't resist. I, too, have normally used drinking water for 40+ years and had no significant problems. GM's Harrison radiators, however, seem to have a life of about eight years but it's my impression this is independent of the water chemistry.
Each engine may be different [iron block, aluminum heads, all aluminum, all iron, different alloys of aluminum, different radiator alloys,different water pumps, thermostat metals, etc].
Making a single formula of AF work under all circumstances is a big compromise in that you have things not needed for one and maybe not enough of some additive for another type of metal.
Additive for iron really get in the way in all aluminum engines!
In a perfect world you would mix pure Ethylene Glycol with pure water and select from a 8-16 ounce additive package to complement and protect your individual combination.....like most SemiEngines whose radiators last 500,000 miles.
You would test the solution once-twice a year and add a suplemental amount of additive to corrrect for depletion.
If you think about it where does the crud that blocks radiators come from? From the unused additives interreacting in non normal ways, the glycol turns acidic and attacks the interior of radiator and moves metal to the colder bottom of radiator helped by gravity....the blocking pile builds from the bottom.
Most common brands work ok for a while but draining the sludge build up and changing the additives is important because the new long life formula may contain 2-3 times [%] the volume of additives thus if something goes wrong there can be 2-3 times the build up in radiators.
Many consider my annual change while using [150k] long life AF excessive even wasteful, but it is just a part of my planned total maintenance.
q45man If it makes you feel good i won't fault it.Some pay $4.00 to $5.00 for a quart of oil and change every 3000 mi.
To protect it I flush and refill every year.
The bulk of the aftermarket and a few dealers purchase look alike non factory units which cool 20% worse than OEM [fewer fins per inch], they weigh less [thinner aluminum, thinner plastic] but they cost 1/4 of OEM so the customer is happy for a while!
If the PH never gets below 7.0 [neutral] electrodynamic corrosion doesn't occur in water [except sea water high salt].
Simple to test with VOM for parasitic voltage generation ....one lead on aluminum rad, one lead in solution middle of filler neck any voltage measured a no no! nothing above 10-20 millivolts.
is it ok to use the extended life antifreeze on a 99 mazda protege 1.8L instead of the regular one?
the extended life af/c conforms to GM's DEXCOOL specs. i was wondering if i could use it in my protege without any adverse effects. (i dont plan to go 5 yrs/250K miles though). i like the fact that it extends water pump life and its not much costlier than the normal af/c.
has anyone ever done this before? tks
I don't trust "lifetime" anything. that's another way of somebody else telling you to shut up and roll over, you're dead when I tell you.
now the extended life af/c by havoline (yes, the orange stuff) is also ethylene glycol-based.
i just dont know whether the absence of borates/nitrates etc would have an adverse effect on my car's cooling system.
nevertheless, irrespective of what coolant i use, i plan to change it every 30 months/48,000km as per mfr recommendations
So I guess it depends on what you buy.
Now your basic Prestone may be able to claim their coolant has low silicate levels. But its not quite as low as Hondas.
But now the silicate levels only really affect the waterpump and waterpump seals. But when Honda replaces your waterpump at every timing belt replacement its not much of an issue.
93 Legend 94,000 miles. Car starts to overheat on occassion. Engine also then begins to occasionally surge. It revs from back and forth from 1,000 rpm to 1,500 in park. No heat comes out of the air vents when engine temp begins to climb to an overheated situation. I shut the engine down before it ever hits the red zone.
I replaced the thermostat a week ago and refilled the radiator with coolant. I bled the radiator hose from the valve on the top hose and everything was ok for a week. Then samething happens. Park the car and check a few hours later and the radiator is low. I refill and bleed again. The next day engine temp ok, heat working. After about three hours, I take the cap off of the radiator since it was not hot but cool, and there is a lot of pressure and the fluid shoots out. What is going on here? Why is this car overheating and yet no heat is produced when it does? I am at my whit's end. Any help greatly appreciated.
The problem is seen most often when the radiator is only drained [< 40% of total coolant].