KawiLex

Can someone show me where to find this DIY !?!?

Sorry if this was a misleading title... but you were meant to click on it.

Bradtank?? ) I like your DIY's and only have the tie rods left to do after this flush.

Thanks!

sr20mofo

iTrader: (10)

i havent done a coolant flush in the LS yet but from my understanding the procedure is pretty much universal with all cars?

unscrew drain plug on the bottom of radiator
let all fluids rush out
put back drain plug
fill radiator with water
start car and let it sit and coolant cycle
repeat steps 1, 2, 3
then fill radiator with 3/4 coolant 1/4 water

done

Lynzoid

Or just open the drain plugs down the engine block. There's 2 if i remember correctly.
And where you got 3/4+1/4???? That's crazy talk.
You have to use toyota ready coolant without any mixing.

BMW7_LS430

Get Toyota concentrated instead and save money. Mix it with distilled water.
50/50 is the universal formula but you can go somewhere between 30% to 70% concentrated based on where you live.
More concentrate for colder regions and less for hotter. If you don't want to complicate things then just stay 50/50.

XJSFan

50/50 is the mix you should use...If you buy concentrate, use distilled water and mix 50/50...

writes123

there is a DIY for the LS400 that I used. Surprisingly the engine block drain plugs are not too hard to access. Attached some clear hose to the nipple and it'll drain fairly easily. There is a decent amount of coolant that drains from the engine block. Also remove and replace the thermostat and gasket when you're doing the procedure.

A long debate whether to use Red or Pink Toyota Coolant. Red was standard for 01-03 and Pink was standard for 04-06. Pink only comes in 50/50 mix.

A simple maintenance would be to drain the radiator and refill with 50/50 coolant. That'll get ought around 30-40% from my experience. It all depends on how in depth you want to go into the procedure. I follow the stance to replace the coolant every 2-3 years no matter what the fluid is.

BMW7_LS430

Read instructions on keeping the heater on and burping the car afterwards.
Do it right and avoid potential overheating issues.

Royal12

My 2006 LS430 hit 51,000 miles and 10 years so its time to change the coolant. The engine drains are above the rear lower splash shield hiding near the catalytic convertors. Awkward to access so use a universal joint and extension with your metric socket. I was nervous as mine had never been cracked open and they resisted but finally opened. You can attach a clear hose which I did but they drain straight down so its not necessary. I got about 1/2 gallon out of the driver's side before it stopped. Much more from passenger side. Inspecting driver side I found it dripping so I cracked it open again and another half gallon drained. This time I tightened it further to close completely. More than a gallon drained out of the radiator. I siphoned out the old coolant from the overflow tank. All used coolant was clear and pink so I cancelled my plan to fill system with distilled water, drive it a while and drain again. I closed all the drains and poured in Super Long Life Coolant 50/50 Pink premixed (standard from 2003 model year on). It took about 2.5 gallons between the system and the overflow tank. Started car and set heater on high. You need to set heater to MAX TEMP and rev engine to 2500 RPM for coolant to flow through the heater core. You will know it's working by hot air coming out of the vents and the heater cable extending and opening the heater valve (engine cover must be removed to view valve). I was lucky as driving my car on my Race Ramps put it at a height that leveled the radiator opening and the heater valve so air burped out quickly. I installed the radiator cap and drove it for several miles. Shut it off. Inspected for leaks as I let it cool for several minutes. I carefully opened the radiator cap to bleed off pressure and check coolant level. Added a bit more fluid, topped off the overflow to the full mark. I will leave the air inlet cover off for a few days and check the coolant just in case. I have about a half gallon left over for future needs.

doanvien

You can check it out.

Gronemus

Thanks for this post. I was looking at the service manual instructions that someone had posted on here but they really don't tell you where the drain plugs are located and the drawing is ambiguous.

I was only able to get a little less than a gallon out of the radiator but then again I don't believe I had any coolant in the reservoir and the radiator was probably a little low to begin with. One of the reasons I decided to change out the coolant...

Johnhav430

My hunch is that since the air intake covers the reservoir, many people don't bother and may not even realize where the window is to see the reservoir level....so it evaporates over time....

Gronemus

Between the two engine drain plugs I probably got a little more than 5 quarts or so out of them, so add that to the gallon I got out of the radiator I got over 9 quarts out of the 10 in the system. I'm pretty pleased with that. A lot better ratio than other cars that I've changed the coolant on...

Johnhav430

Nice! I dunno why I'm "afraid" to do anything with the engine drain plugs lol Maybe I'll man-up next time!! Seriously, 9/10 sounds pretty good. I also wish the sllc2 came in 100%, I like to be over 60% just to have that extra protection. But too much over 60% would be flirting with 70%, after which the protection decreases....

BradTank

I actually think that's smart to be a little apprehensive messing with the block drains if you're a DIY'er. I'm sure most times it's a non-event and completely draining is best, but if you didn't tighten them down properly, something stripped etc you could have a little project on your hands you don't want. You're also more likely to get air trapped in there.

Draining the radiator from the petcock doesn't remove all the coolant, but it will be fine if you just want to do it that way but just a bit more often. And the coolant needs to be drained anyway when you do the timing belt/water pump.

It sort of reminds me of people that do a "flush" on their power steering instead of just sucking out the old fluid with something like a turkey baster. I've seen where someone will try to make the pump run while it's draining by connecting the line to something like a oil catch can and let it suck in fresh fluid. The problem is, something goes wrong with their contraption and the pump runs without any fluid doing FAR more damage than if they had just done a few drain and fills that would have taken 5 minutes.

Johnhav430

I've seen the write-up on a GM auto tranny...it's a little involved using the motor to flush out old, and add new in, so many DIY'ers waste good Dexron VI and change it more than once to get the most possible out....I had thought maybe the Lexus dealer would use an exchange machine, but it doesn't seem so, that's why DIY is starting to make more sense....(Invoice says drain/refill, nothing about flush or exchange)