Coolant Swap

I'm about to change my thermostat. I am not sure what coolant was put in my car previously but my brother in law (previous owner) had a bottle of orange coolant in the trunk when I got the car last year.

I can't remember for certain if he told me or not but I would put my money on it that his mechanic put in dexcool or some other compatible orange colored coolant. I know it was not regular green ethylene-glycol and I'd put my money on it (again) the shop didn't use Volkswagen G12 or whatever the spec is.

SO my question is, other than flushing the system and refilling it with regular green ethylene-glycol antifreeze is there anything I should be concerned about? In a prior thread I posted about my thermostat someone mentioned dex-cool in a manner as if once it was used in the vehicle there is no going back (my interpretation on the comment made at the time). This being true with synthetic oil I figured I'd check before I go do something regrettable and screw up my cooling system.

Thanks!

Only only only g12. Flush it again and put the right stuff in there.

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php/263790-Antifreeze-Experiment-amp-Testing

Andrew

To change chemistries you need to flush all traces of the old stuff out. Drain, fill with plain water, run the engine, drain, do that again and you should be getting straight water out. At that point you can fill it with whatever you like.

I will say that G12 is a far better product than the green stuff, and far cheaper if you plan on keeping the car. The green stuff breaks down in only a few years while G12 is good basically forever. It also seems to keep everything super clean in the cooling system, it doesn't build up junk like the green stuff tends to. Since everything lasts longer it costs you less.

You'll need to flush all the non-G rated coolants out of the system. If there's dexcool in there now you need to get it out before going with VW approved coolant.

The current VW level is G13, it's violet colored and it's backward compatible with all prior G coolants. I don't think the VW dealer here even stocks G12 or G12+ anymore.

This pic captures the situation pretty well



Steve

well that link has sold me on never using "peak" anywhere.

I was only thinking of using regular anti-freeze for the ease of availability (i have several new gallons laying around). I'm not against running it G12 or G13, 14 or whatever they come up with next; it's just difficult to get last minute and probably costs a lot. Yes, I know longevity does play into the upfront cost.

For the time being (since the average temp is 28 degrees around here and pulling the garden hose out isn't an option) will dex-cool be ok? I just need to get through the winter with heat in my car.

On a side note, my Powerstroke Diesel uses green anti-freeze however one of the big things they tell you to watch is for cavitation and you're suppose to test the antifreeze levels. Perhaps a g12 like coolant would be a better fit. Sucks I need 8 gallons though for the truck. That an entire different project though.

Never liked Dexcool, heard too many horror stories about the stuff.

There are lots of different coolants, each maker has some reason for specifying the stuff they pick. I've just always stuck with the VW stuff. Last gallon of G12 concentrate I bought was maybe $19 but that was years ago, just bout a gallon of G13 from a friend who works at VW and it was $15. He keeps a stock at home because he works on cars there in his off hours, also easy for me to swing over and pick it up. I keep a gallon on hand and some 50/50 with me when I'm on the road.

Steve

Around here you can find G12 or newer at any VW or Audi dealership and at Canadian Tire. Maybe not at your average parts store but I dunno, you don't end up needing it that often.

If you're on the road in an emergency somewhere that G12 isn't available straight water will do, as long as it's not the middle of winter. But usually cooling system problems happen in the summer.

Dex cool is not good. Maybe one of the worst green slime coolants you can have in there. Years ago they lost a class action lawsuit because dex was eating gm engines and their seals. Just not worth having anything but g12 and up in there!

Steve Addy said:

Never liked Dexcool, heard too many horror stories about the stuff.

There are lots of different coolants, each maker has some reason for specifying the stuff they pick. I've just always stuck with the VW stuff. Last gallon of G12 concentrate I bought was maybe $19 but that was years ago, just bout a gallon of G13 from a friend who works at VW and it was $15. He keeps a stock at home because he works on cars there in his off hours, also easy for me to swing over and pick it up. I keep a gallon on hand and some 50/50 with me when I'm on the road.

Steve

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When you say concentrate how far does a gallon go? I would imagine that is a 50/50 mix like green coolant? In that's the case price really isn't too bad considering the engine can only take so much coolant. My PSD takes 8 gallons. that damn heavy duty truck kills me on quantity!

Yup, 50/50 mix. WELL worth using distilled water too, no sense filling the cooling system with scale.

vanbcguy said:

Yup, 50/50 mix. WELL worth using distilled water too, no sense filling the cooling system with scale.

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^^^ what vanbcguy said.

If you are changing coolant chemistry, consider flushing the system with Restore:
https://www.cumminsfiltration.com/pdfs/product_lit/emea_brochures/LI33024-GB.pdf
Ford 6.0s frequently have coolant issues. Restore tends to be the recommended flush to clean out the coolant system and prevent reaction between coolants. Just ensure, that you rinse with distilled to neutral: http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1276383-how-to-flushing-with-restore-and-restore-plus.html

annieneff said:

Only only only g12. Flush it again and put the right stuff in there.

http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php/263790-Antifreeze-Experiment-amp-Testing

Andrew

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I used to own a 1998 New Beetle 2.0 AEG. When I replaced the timing belt and waterpump at 100k miles, my owners manual did not specify G12 coolant. The 1998 manual said to use a non-phosphorous coolant so I used Dexcool. From 100k miles to over 300k miles, my Beetle had the orange Dexcool and I never had a cooling system failure other than the common coolant flange failure. I did pull the Hvac to wrap the blend doors so I replaced the heater core but the core wasn't leaking and it wasn't restricted. When I sold the car in 2014, it was running strong with over 300k miles and virtually all of the original cooling system components.

Cessna000 said:

I used to own a 1998 New Beetle 2.0 AEG. When I replaced the timing belt and waterpump at 100k miles, my owners manual did not specify G12 coolant. The 1998 manual said to use a non-phosphorous coolant so I used Dexcool. From 100k miles to over 300k miles, my Beetle had the orange Dexcool and I never had a cooling system failure other than the common coolant flange failure. I did pull the Hvac to wrap the blend doors so I replaced the heater core but the core wasn't leaking and it wasn't restricted. When I sold the car in 2014, it was running strong with over 300k miles and virtually all of the original cooling system components.

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Check my signature. lol