Julian Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 I think my 04 Td5 should have the coolant changed, the service record doesn't show it ever having been done. Rave says that I need coolant with organic acid corrosion inhibitor, but I've only got the standard ethylene glycol (blue) in stock. Would anyone know if there is a good reason for sticking to the manufacturer's recommendation or will the normal blue stuff be OK? Cheers Julian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dooroy Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 I would recommend using the proper afreeze - I also considered using other afreeze in my 01 Td5 . However I read that the proper antifreeze (OAT) also contains a lubricant which is important to the life of the water pump - and the coolant has an 'oily' feel to it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAttrill Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 And OAT antifreeze turns into glue after a while. There is a class action suit against Cadillac in the US about it. The only advantage that I can see for using the pink OAT stuff is that it is non-poisonous. Tree huggers like it. It won't poison your cat if you spill it. I would use ordinary ethylene glycol antifreeze at 40 to 50% concentration - no higher than that. ps. All antifreezes contain a lubricant for the water pump but the main reason to use them is the anti-corrosion additives. The coolant becomes acid with age which is why you should change it about every 18 months. If you have access to a Ph meter, your coolant should be > 8.5 ie quite alkaline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K88 MUD Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 We use the standard blue stuff in all and every LR we service...........just dont mix them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvio Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 We use the standard blue stuff in all and every LR we service...........just dont mix them. Correct, but how on earth can you avoid mixing them??? I drained the coolant in my defender Td5, but managed to get out only about 7 of the 11 litres that are in the circuit; and the same happened to others. Unless you turn your landy topsy-turvy, I see few chances of draining the system completely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K88 MUD Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 Correct, but how on earth can you avoid mixing them??? I drained the coolant in my defender Td5, but managed to get out only about 7 of the 11 litres that are in the circuit; and the same happened to others.Unless you turn your landy topsy-turvy, I see few chances of draining the system completely. Flush it with a hose pipe mate.......you can disconect a few hoses to make it easyier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dooroy Posted September 21, 2008 Share Posted September 21, 2008 I have been using the ethylene glycol for years in a variety of cars , usually at 40-50 % mix and it has done the job very well . I also use it neat when fitting O rings etc as it does have some lubricating qualities . As this is my first Td5 I was taking no chances - didn't know what other wonderful properties this pink stuff had . The one thing that bothered me most was the price - it's only available from the main dealer and is at least 4 ( yes four ) times the price of the ordinary ethylene glycol . Sometimes if you had a small loss of coolant which was hard to find you could keep a gallon of mix for topping up until it was fixed - at the price of this pink stuff you would want to get it fixed pretty quickly . Jim , you're a mine of information . Would you have to be sure to get all of the pink stuff out of the system before filling up with ordinary afreeze - how do they affect each other ? Could they thicken up and block pipes etc . - don't want to be the first to find out . I seem to remember that VW used two types of 'coolant additive ' - G11 and G12 IIRC and you were not supposed to mix them either . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAttrill Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 I guess the only way to change antifreeze is to flush the system through with a hose pipe which has been suggested. Then, top up with clean water and run it like that for a while to circulate everything. Then drain and flush again. Eventually you should end up with 4 litres or so of clean water in there. Then add 2 litres of water to 5 litres antifreeze and fill up with that. Anyway, every one to their own - try googling on Organic Acid Technology Antifreeze and you will find some interesting articles, including some stuff on the reasons for not running antifreeze strengths above 50%. I read lots of articles and decided (that as I don't drink the stuff) that the standard ethylene glycol is fine. Just change it every couple of years. They do use strange dye to colour it - the one we use now looks blue when at 100%, at 50% is flourescent green and when leaks dry it is pink. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian Posted September 22, 2008 Author Share Posted September 22, 2008 Thanks chaps, I'm going to driain the pink stuff tomorrow, find a suitable hose to disconnect and try and flush the system through. Blue glycol it is! That's good because I buy the stuff by the 5 gallon drum for the tractors and all the other stuff around the place. Dooroy - you don't have to buy the pink organic acid stuff from an agent at 4 times the price. All the motor factors sell it at a more realistic price - though it is more expensive than the conventional stuff. Here's the Comma product: http://www.commaoil.com/Product%20Pages/Co...uperredconc.htm Julian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dooroy Posted September 22, 2008 Share Posted September 22, 2008 I read a lot of articles also - the WWW is a fantastic source of information on just about anything ; but as I don't work on cars full time you tend to forget quite a lot of it . As far as I'm concerned there is no substitute for experience allied to knowledge - and a forum like this is invaluable to us serious diyers with expert advice freely given . Thanks for that link julian - I have a trade a/c with a local motor factors but they could only supply the usual ethylene glycol and I tried a few others as well with the same result . They do stock Comma products so will be able to get it for me . I wouldn't mind continuing to use oat for the time being if the price was reasonable . As jim says the colours can be a bit confusing - when I got the 'pink' afreeze the first time I thought it was wrong because it looked a different colour to what I had taken out of the system ; now I understand why - as jim explains the concentrate has a different colour to the 50% mix . I think I remember reading once that pure afreeze has a lower boiling point than water - one reason I presume for not going above 50% mix . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAttrill Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 Quick question just for a laugh: It is minus -10°C and you go out to your car which has been left outside overnight. The engine is frozen solid. How much antifreeze do you have in your engine? 1. 10% 2. 50% 3. 70% 4. 100% Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 100%! Actually not quite true as the info I found suggests that straight antifreeze freezes at -8 deg F which is -22 C but still surprising! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimAttrill Posted September 23, 2008 Share Posted September 23, 2008 I used the graph on this URL from Alaska (where it gets even colder than the Falklands ) Looks like -12°C on there. But I have also read -8°F somewhere. http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF6/680.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian Posted September 24, 2008 Author Share Posted September 24, 2008 Correct, but how on earth can you avoid mixing them??? I drained the coolant in my defender Td5, but managed to get out only about 7 of the 11 litres that are in the circuit; and the same happened to others.Unless you turn your landy topsy-turvy, I see few chances of draining the system completely. Job done and filled with 4 Liters of blue. It's easy to get all the old out. Remove drain plug. Remove top hose from cylinder head and metal heater pipe. With a hosepipe flush copious volumes of water through 1. cylinder head and block 2. down top hose and radiator 3. through heater pipe 4. through header tank. Repeat a few times until the water comes out totally clear. Refill as normal. Julian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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