Change coolant in radiator

[toast1]

Can I just drain the radiator and then put in coolant and water? 
Videos on YouTube instruct me to drain water from the engine, but that's too much for me.

Is it harmful for me to just drain the radiator, fill up, then run the engine 20min to get the bubbles out?

Thanks

[JAS21]

 Yes.

 

Draining the complete system is the best way.

 

You will need to make sure that you use the correct antifreeze for your engine.

 

Yes, run the engine for a period after a refilling and then top up that will also  help to mix up whatever is in the system.

 

Normally, you would use a 50-50 mixture so you will not know what the mixture strength is. Unless you’ drain the whole system and start again.

 

Of course if you drain the radiator by removing the bottom hose from it you will more than likely drain the whole system anyway.

 

 

Edited October 10, 2019 by JAS21

[transam]

If you take off the lowest end of the bottom radiator hose most of all the water from the engine and rad will come out. Buy cans of mixed water and antifreeze/corrosion inhibitor to refill..

[Kwasaki]

https://www.bigc.co.th/catalog/product/view/id/49524/category/396/?___store=en&___from_store=th

[alan grice]

Genuine Nissan is circa 1000 Bht a Gallon . Ford n BMW , much the same about 1250 ish.Hondas dont leak , so no idea..????[emoji481]


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[JAS21]

9 minutes ago, alan grice said:

Genuine Nissan is circa 1000 Bht a Gallon . Ford n BMW , much the same about 1250 ish.Hondas dont leak , so no idea..????


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 I think a can of antifreeze is a little cheaper .......

[petermik]

How often should this be done? my Nissan Sylphy is 3 years old having done 39,000 kms and the fluid in the expansion tank looks the same as it was when I first bought the car,never needed as yet to be "topped up"

[alan grice]

 I think a can of antifreeze is a little cheaper .......

Glycol died years ago, how can he replace inhibitor fluid with a top up bottle.?.


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[transam]

40 minutes ago, petermik said:

How often should this be done? my Nissan Sylphy is 3 years old having done 39,000 kms and the fluid in the expansion tank looks the same as it was when I first bought the car,never needed as yet to be "topped up"

No ploblem....But, your handbook will quote a change period....

[petermik]

7 hours ago, transam said:

No ploblem....But, your handbook will quote a change period....

actually no as I haven,t got one.....bought the car from auction (like new 800 kms on the clock, good price),sold as seen,no Nissan warranty....long story trans,had it 2 years now and it,s never skipped a beat....I do long return runs each month from Pattaya down to our house in Trang 946 kms and I,m getting 19.5 kms/litre out of it (100/105 kms/hour where I can) great car and I,ve had it serviced at a local garage (non Nissan no point) I,ll take a look at an online service schedule and see what it says.....thanks anyhow

p.s. now over the 3 year warranty period anyhow

[JAS21]

1 hour ago, alan grice said:

Glycol died years ago, how can he replace inhibitor fluid with a top up bottle.?.


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 Are you saying that antifreeze it’s not 50% of what is in coolant. Have a look at the spec for say Toyota coolant. 

 

Of course I could be completely wrong and frequently are according to my wife

Edited October 10, 2019 by JAS21

[transam]

33 minutes ago, petermik said:

actually no as I haven,t got one.....bought the car from auction (like new 800 kms on the clock, good price),sold as seen,no Nissan warranty....long story trans,had it 2 years now and it,s never skipped a beat....I do long return runs each month from Pattaya down to our house in Trang 946 kms and I,m getting 19.5 kms/litre out of it (100/105 kms/hour where I can) great car and I,ve had it serviced at a local garage (non Nissan no point) I,ll take a look at an online service schedule and see what it says.....thanks anyhow

p.s. now over the 3 year warranty period anyhow

Take your pick.....

https://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Nissan-999MP-L25500P-Antifreeze-Coolant/dp/B00AKYOOYY

[toast1]

Thanks for the information.

 

I haven't had a radiator leak since the 80's, on my old Datsun.

 

My car is 15 years old, so I thought I aught to do this.

 

I'll just drain it, then fill it, then run the engine for 20 minutes and top up.

Is this the right way to do it?

 

 

Thanks

 

 

[transam]

6 minutes ago, toast1 said:

Thanks for the information.

 

I haven't had a radiator leak since the 80's, on my old Datsun.

 

My car is 15 years old, so I thought I aught to do this.

 

I'll just drain it, then fill it, then run the engine for 20 minutes and top up.

Is this the right way to do it?

 

 

Thanks

 

 

Just fill it up slowly so the air comes out, when it settles down put the rad cap on and fill the expansion bottle/tank with the same stuff to the max mark, start the engine and let it do it's thing, air should be forced out, then top up, but don't top up when hot as you may get blasted with hot water....

 

PS. If the rad does not have a rad cap there should be a bung on top that unscrews to let air out..

Edited October 10, 2019 by transam

[alan grice]

 Are you saying that antifreeze it’s not 50% of what is in coolant. Have a look at the spec for say Toyota coolant. 
 
Of course I could be completely wrong and frequently are according to my wife

Ill ask My Wife , then we both can be right.!. i do know Audi Coolant in the US is about the same price as Remy M Brandy.


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[JAS21]

10 minutes ago, alan grice said:

Ill ask My Wife , then we both can be right.!. i do know Audi Coolant in the US is about the same price as Remy M Brandy.


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 My wife just told me that I am  on the right track, she say it’s basically a 50-50 mixture but also some inhibitors and anti-foam stuff together with the small amount of magic bits from Mercedes, Audi, BMW etc. etc. So that the price can be elevated somewhat.......

 

I trust your wife would agree with mine ????

Edited October 10, 2019 by JAS21

[transam]

Engines are made of a cast iron, aluminium or both. Both these metals are protected from corrosion by anti-freeze corrosion inhibitor. Usually 50% water and whatever a brand uses for the corrosion thing.

Personally I would bung anything in that states it has corrosion inhibitor, the cheaper the better. I have never had a corrosion issue....

But yes, a high end ride may state it has some super dooper ingredient that it needs, who knows.....????

[gk10002000]

31 minutes ago, toast1 said:

Thanks for the information.

 

I haven't had a radiator leak since the 80's, on my old Datsun.

 

My car is 15 years old, so I thought I aught to do this.

 

I'll just drain it, then fill it, then run the engine for 20 minutes and top up.

Is this the right way to do it?

 

 

Thanks

 

 

Not quite.  After running the engine let it cool down, but keep the over flow reservoir at the proper level.  The vacuum and cooling of the fluid will suck coolant into the enginer.  Might even take two hot and cold cycles, depending on how full it gets each time.  Once you put the initial coolant change in, do not open the radiator cap.  You want to keep the coolant system contained.

[DaRoadrunner]

Do not use antifreeze, it is not needed in this country and it is corrosive. Best to use coolant, which is anti-corrosive.

 

If the car is old and the water dirty or rusty you might want to flush the system clean first with a product like Rad Flush.

 

Not uncommon to find Thais just use plain water, without coolant.... result... rust and blocked radiator.

 

It is so cheap to get it done at a garage, why bother doing it yourself?

 

 

[toast1]

Thanks, I was told by my mechanic to leave the radiator cap off overnight to let the air out, and by another to just run the engine for 20min on idle to let the bubbles out.

[transam]

11 hours ago, DaRoadrunner said:

Do not use antifreeze, it is not needed in this country and it is corrosive. Best to use coolant, which is anti-corrosive.

 

If the car is old and the water dirty or rusty you might want to flush the system clean first with a product like Rad Flush.

 

Not uncommon to find Thais just use plain water, without coolant.... result... rust and blocked radiator.

 

It is so cheap to get it done at a garage, why bother doing it yourself?

 

 

Antifreeze has uses besides guarding against freezing. Plus it has stuff mixed in to guard against corrosion of iron and alloy......

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antifreeze

[canthai55]

Ethylene glycol is a source of corrosion. Most corrosion from ethylene glycol is due to the decomposition to organic acids (such as glycolic acid) at higher temperatures. Aluminum alloy corrosion in the presence of ethylene glycol is presumed to be the result of acidic attack of these acids. Impurities present in ethylene glycol also accelerate the corrosion process. This corrosion leads to clogging of pipes, pumps, and valves, which decrease system efficiency. Corrosion problems are minimized or eliminated by adding inhibitors.

https://www.corrosionpedia.com/definition/2738/ethylene-glycol

[DaRoadrunner]

12 hours ago, transam said:

Antifreeze has uses besides guarding against freezing. Plus it has stuff mixed in to guard against corrosion of iron and alloy......

True.... but I long lost count of the number of cars that develop radiator leaks immediately after adding antifreeze. It eats into any weakness in the cooling system. Better to use coolant.

[toast1]

Thanks for the information.

 

Is there anything I need to look out for when changing the fluid?
I don't want to screw things up, like leave air in there.

I plan to just empty the radiator, fill it up with water, run the engine, empty it out again to flush.
Then fill half and half, then run the engine with the radiator cap off for 20min to let the bubbles out.

 

This is what my mechanic told me to do.

 

Edited October 14, 2019 by toast1

[transam]

6 hours ago, toast1 said:

Thanks for the information.

 

Is there anything I need to look out for when changing the fluid?
I don't want to screw things up, like leave air in there.

I plan to just empty the radiator, fill it up with water, run the engine, empty it out again to flush.
Then fill half and half, then run the engine with the radiator cap off for 20min to let the bubbles out.

 

This is what my mechanic told me to do.

 

If you go the leave the cap off route, stand clear of the area....

[alan grice]

Ive seen those little Rad Repair places about. Cant miss em, they have brown water stains outside.Id find one of them, watched them soldering and fitting back in .Id find one they all seem to have one Chap and a Lad on the Spanners.Many different Coolants on Display. Waiting for the Mrs it passes the time.[emoji222]


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[alan grice]

True.... but I long lost count of the number of cars that develop radiator leaks immediately after adding antifreeze. It eats into any weakness in the cooling system. Better to use coolant.

You do keep count of funny things[emoji705]????


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[transam]

On 10/11/2019 at 8:28 PM, DaRoadrunner said:

True.... but I long lost count of the number of cars that develop radiator leaks immediately after adding antifreeze. It eats into any weakness in the cooling system. Better to use coolant.

Every single car I have owned or worked on had anti-freeze in it, whether new or old. Most rad leaks were caused by the constant expansion and contraction of soldered joints on brass and copper. Now, other materials are used, including the use of plastic top and bottom rad tanks.

[DaRoadrunner]

11 hours ago, transam said:

Every single car I have owned or worked on had anti-freeze in it,

Sorry, but that is just rubbish. Particularly in Asia where antifreeze is not even necessary and rarely used. Maybe you are confusing antifreeze with coolant?

 

In fact, the Thais are so stingy they often just use plain water, with eventual disastrous results being corrosion, blocked waterways and overheating.

[Isaanbiker]

On 10/10/2019 at 12:43 PM, toast1 said:

Thanks for the information.

 

I haven't had a radiator leak since the 80's, on my old Datsun.

 

My car is 15 years old, so I thought I aught to do this.

 

I'll just drain it, then fill it, then run the engine for 20 minutes and top up.

Is this the right way to do it?

 

 

Thanks

 

 

When you open up the radiator cap and you see some gibberish stuff, it's time to flush the whole cooling system.

 

     Same goes when you see rust, it will destroy your water pump and a couple of other things.

 

  Why don't you just Google for a owner's manual for your vehicle and do some reading?