Advice on coolant drain and fill
03-02-14, 04:37 PM
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Advice on coolant drain and fill
hello members, I saw on "da intanet" that having non-oem vs the oem toyota red or pink coolant/antifreeze affects cooling and heating in your car. ive been having heating problems, not necessarily due to coolant prob servos or heater core or something but i would like to do a coolant drain and fill? is it wise to switch to the oem toyota coolant now after having reg peak brand green color from autozone? I drive a 98 gs300. Also does anyone know good shops to do a drain n fill in nyc or is this something any mechanic can do blindfolded? Thonks
03-02-14, 05:10 PM
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03-02-14, 06:44 PM
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The Toyota red or pink coolants don't have any silicates. The most commonly used green coolants do. They should NOT be mixed. Mixing can shorten the life of the coolant itself and possibly cause damage to the coolant system parts. Depending on whether the part is made of aluminum or copper it could wear out prematurely. But equally important, mixing silicate coolant with non-silicate coolant can cause the silicates to precipitate out of the liquid. This may very well clog the radiator and/or the heater core. The car may only blow cold air as no coolant would flow through the heater core. Sound familiar?
Thing is you really can't tell by color alone except in a few select cases. We know Toyota red and pink are non-silicates. There are other color non-silicate coolants out there, including some green ones. There are also some red coolants that contain silicates. Unless you are going with a genuine Toyota brand, you MUST read the label. I wouldn't put anything in my car that wasn't an exact chemical match to Toyota red or pink. In fact, I just did a drain and fill. I hated to do it but I paid the $30 for a gallon of red rather than take the chance.
Thing is you really can't tell by color alone except in a few select cases. We know Toyota red and pink are non-silicates. There are other color non-silicate coolants out there, including some green ones. There are also some red coolants that contain silicates. Unless you are going with a genuine Toyota brand, you MUST read the label. I wouldn't put anything in my car that wasn't an exact chemical match to Toyota red or pink. In fact, I just did a drain and fill. I hated to do it but I paid the $30 for a gallon of red rather than take the chance.
03-02-14, 07:07 PM
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Don't get all caught up in the "Toyota red vs the world" game, haha. Read your owners manual it specifically says:
"TOYOTA Long Life Coolant" (TOYOTA LLC) or equivalent, with ethylene-glycol type coolant for proper corrosion protection of aluminum components
This means as long as it contains ETHYLENE-GLYCOL then you are good. I'm not making this stuff up, this is not a debate, it's in the manual. People will put their "whole check" on Toyota Red, but I've never used it, and I'm at 225K, and it's blowing hot air when it needs to.
"TOYOTA Long Life Coolant" (TOYOTA LLC) or equivalent, with ethylene-glycol type coolant for proper corrosion protection of aluminum components
This means as long as it contains ETHYLENE-GLYCOL then you are good. I'm not making this stuff up, this is not a debate, it's in the manual. People will put their "whole check" on Toyota Red, but I've never used it, and I'm at 225K, and it's blowing hot air when it needs to.
03-02-14, 07:23 PM
#6
Don't get all caught up in the "Toyota red vs the world" game, haha. Read your owners manual it specifically says:
"TOYOTA Long Life Coolant" (TOYOTA LLC) or equivalent, with ethylene-glycol type coolant for proper corrosion protection of aluminum components
This means as long as it contains ETHYLENE-GLYCOL then you are good. I'm not making this stuff up, this is not a debate, it's in the manual. People will put their "whole check" on Toyota Red, but I've never used it, and I'm at 225K, and it's blowing hot air when it needs to.
"TOYOTA Long Life Coolant" (TOYOTA LLC) or equivalent, with ethylene-glycol type coolant for proper corrosion protection of aluminum components
This means as long as it contains ETHYLENE-GLYCOL then you are good. I'm not making this stuff up, this is not a debate, it's in the manual. People will put their "whole check" on Toyota Red, but I've never used it, and I'm at 225K, and it's blowing hot air when it needs to.
http://bioengr.ag.utk.edu/Extension/...es/engcool.htm
03-02-14, 07:53 PM
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You can't go wrong with the manufactures OEM brand and the price difference is worth it so why wouldn't you go with OEM !?!
Your heating problem could be several things including faulty ECT sensor or faulty thermostat. A coolant flush is recommended annually but most people do it every few years.
Depends on how you use your car, terrain, climate etc.
Your heating problem could be several things including faulty ECT sensor or faulty thermostat. A coolant flush is recommended annually but most people do it every few years.
Depends on how you use your car, terrain, climate etc.
Last edited by czr73; 03-02-14 at 07:59 PM.
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03-02-14, 09:29 PM
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The Toyota red or pink coolants don't have any silicates. The most commonly used green coolants do. They should NOT be mixed. Mixing can shorten the life of the coolant itself and possibly cause damage to the coolant system parts. Depending on whether the part is made of aluminum or copper it could wear out prematurely. But equally important, mixing silicate coolant with non-silicate coolant can cause the silicates to precipitate out of the liquid. This may very well clog the radiator and/or the heater core. The car may only blow cold air as no coolant would flow through the heater core. Sound familiar?
Thing is you really can't tell by color alone except in a few select cases. We know Toyota red and pink are non-silicates. There are other color non-silicate coolants out there, including some green ones. There are also some red coolants that contain silicates. Unless you are going with a genuine Toyota brand, you MUST read the label. I wouldn't put anything in my car that wasn't an exact chemical match to Toyota red or pink. In fact, I just did a drain and fill. I hated to do it but I paid the $30 for a gallon of red rather than take the chance.
Thing is you really can't tell by color alone except in a few select cases. We know Toyota red and pink are non-silicates. There are other color non-silicate coolants out there, including some green ones. There are also some red coolants that contain silicates. Unless you are going with a genuine Toyota brand, you MUST read the label. I wouldn't put anything in my car that wasn't an exact chemical match to Toyota red or pink. In fact, I just did a drain and fill. I hated to do it but I paid the $30 for a gallon of red rather than take the chance.
03-02-14, 10:42 PM
#9
Yes, that is what I am saying. If it were me, I would give it a good drain and flush. I mean more than just drain and refill. You need to get ALL the old coolant out. You can get a DIY kit along with a chemical flush at your local parts store. They are cheap and easy. The chemical flush will help dissolve built up deposits. It may even fix your problem. After that, it doesn't matter much which type coolant you use since you won't be mixing them and will have only one type coolant in the system.
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