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I went ahead and did a coolant flush this weekend on our GX, and didn't see any writeups here about it. Currently it has 71k miles on it, and although the recommended flush is at 100k, I think having new, fresh coolant in the system will help with the longevity of parts like the radiator and water pump. Here's a few tips and pictures for anyone interested in doing it themselves.
- You'll need to remove the front plastic cover in the engine bay for improved visibility and access to the radiator and overflow tank. Just a bunch of those plastic push clips that hold it in place.
- I put the GX up on jack stands to get more clearance underneath. Not 100% necessary, but a huge help for crawling around under it.
- You'll need to remove the metal bash/skid plates underneath the front of the GX for access to the radiator drain plug, and for better visibility. I removed all the skid plates, and also did a front diff flush and lubed the front driveshaft - the "while you're in there" mentality. Four M8 bolts and a plastic clip hold the front metal plate in place, and it is also hinged on the front side to a metal brace with two tabs that are a PITA to remove (if you've changed your own oil filter you already know this). The second skid plate that hides the oil pan is also held in with 4 bolts (M8 - 12mm socket).
- Toyota Super Long Life Coolant (Pink) is what is used from the factory; it's already premixed so no need to buy water. Capacity of the system is 14.5 qts or 16.4 qts (with rear heater) IIRC. So you'll need 3-4 gallons depending on your flush technique.
- Remove the radiator cap (make sure the engine is cold) to eliminate any vacuum seal when draining and for bleeding air from the system.
- Drain the radiator via the yellow drain plug located on the driver side (US) of the radiator. This is what it looks like peering in from the driver's side wheel well
Turn the yellow plug counter-clockwise to loosen. You can see there is a drain tube sticking down; you can attach a piece of tubing to this if you want to have no splashing/mess, or you can stick a narrow funnel in there to direct the fluid to your pan. The yellow plug allows you to control the flow, so it's not too messy.
Draining the radiator yielded around 3 qts of coolant, so there's still a lot left in the system if you just drain the radiator. Screw the yellow plug back in when you're done. It has a defined end point when it is closed, so no need to worry about torque. If you pulled out the plug completely when draining, dip the o-ring on the end of the plug in your old anti-freeze before you thread it back in. A little coolant on the o-ring will help it make a good seal.
The next step is to drain the engine block. I located the block drain port on the US passenger side of the engine block. It's approximately even with the front suspension/steering, so if you look up toward the engine (with a flashlight) with your head near the front passenger tire, you'll see the drain **** and brass bolt as pictured below. It's a M6/10mm plug bolt that is accessible with a small ratchet or box wrench. I attached some clear plastic tubing to the drain tube, and ran it down to the drain pan. Not 100% necessary, but helpful to reduce the clean up efforts.
Turn the brass bolt about a full turn counter clockwise to start the draining. I got about 5.5 qts from this side, so it's definitely worth the effort to drain the block. Once you're down to a dribble, remove the plastic tubing and tighten the bolt back up. I don't know the torque spec, but it's not much. Hand tight with a small wrench...
If there is a equivalent drain **** on the other side of the engine (likely), I couldn't see it. There's too many parts in the way, including the compressor for the AC. So I stopped here. Nearly 9 quarts out of 14.5 is a pretty good clean out. There should also be a little bit of old fluid in the coolant overflow tank, so use a syringe or turkey baster to pull that little bit out as well.
There are lots of techniques refill and bleed air out of the system, including multiple flushes with distilled water to fully clear out the old fluid, so you can Google it or use your favorite technique. Be sure to refill the radiator/block completely, and fill back up the overflow tank, and then run the engine with the heater on for 10-15 minutes so that you get full circulation of the cooling system (radiator cap off). If you track how much coolant came out, then it's pretty easy to approximate how much coolant will need to go back in.
Recheck the coolant level in the overflow tank in a day or two after you've driven around a bit. You will likely boil out a few more bubbles in the system, and the radiator will suck more fluid from the overflow tank. Top that tank back to F.
Last edited by Jacket; 03-20-18 at 04:04 PM.
Reason: corrections
I went ahead and did a coolant flush this weekend on our GX, and didn't see any writeups here about it. Currently it has 71k miles on it, and although the recommended flush is at 100k, I think having new, fresh coolant in the system will help with the longevity of parts like the radiator and water pump. Here's a few tips and pictures for anyone interested in doing it themselves.
- You'll need to remove the front plastic cover in the engine bay for improved visibility and access to the radiator and overflow tank. Just a bunch of those plastic push clips that hold it in place.
- I put the GX up on jack stands to get more clearance underneath. Not 100% necessary, but a huge help for crawling around under it.
- You'll need to remove the metal bash/skid plates underneath the front of the GX for access to the radiator drain plug, and for better visibility. I removed all the skid plates, and also did a front diff flush and lubed the front driveshaft - the "while you're in there" mentality. Four M8 bolts and a plastic clip hold the front metal plate in place, and it is also hinged on the front side to a metal brace with two tabs that are a PITA to remove (if you've changed your own oil filter you already know this). The second skid plate that hides the oil pan is also held in with 4 bolts (M8 - 12mm socket).
- Toyota Super Long Life Coolant (Pink) is what is used from the factory; it's already premixed so no need to buy water. Capacity of the system is 14.5 qts or 16.4 qts (with rear heater) IIRC. So you'll need 3-4 gallons depending on your flush technique.
- Remove the radiator cap (make sure the engine is cold) to eliminate any vacuum seal when draining and for bleeding air from the system.
- Drain the radiator via the yellow drain plug located on the driver side (US) of the radiator. This is what it looks like peering in from the driver's side wheel well
Turn the yellow plug counter-clockwise to loosen. You can see there is a drain tube sticking down; you can attach a piece of tubing to this if you want to have no splashing/mess, or you can stick a narrow funnel in there to direct the fluid to your pan. The yellow plug allows you to control the flow, so it's not too messy.
Draining the radiator yielded around 3 qts of coolant, so there's still a lot left in the system if you just drain the radiator. Screw the yellow plug back in when you're done. It has a defined end point when it is closed, so no need to worry about torque. If you pulled out the plug completely when draining, dip the o-ring on the end of the plug in your old anti-freeze before you thread it back in. A little coolant on the o-ring will help it make a good seal.
The next step is to drain the engine block. I located the block drain port on the US passenger side of the engine block. It's approximately even with the front suspension/steering, so if you look up toward the engine (with a flashlight) with your head near the front passenger tire, you'll see the drain **** and brass bolt as pictured below. It's a M6/10mm plug bolt that is accessible with a small ratchet or box wrench. I attached some clear plastic tubing to the drain tube, and ran it down to the drain pan. Not 100% necessary, but helpful to reduce the clean up efforts.
Turn the brass bolt about a full turn counter clockwise to start the draining. I got about 5.5 qts from this side, so it's definitely worth the effort to drain the block. Once you're down to a dribble, remove the plastic tubing and tighten the bolt back up. I don't know the torque spec, but it's not much. Hand tight with a small wrench...
If there is a equivalent drain **** on the other side of the engine (likely), I couldn't see it. There's too many parts in the way, including the compressor for the AC. So I stopped here. Nearly 9 quarts out of 14.5 is a pretty good clean out. There should also be a little bit of old fluid in the coolant overflow tank, so use a syringe or turkey baster to pull that little bit out as well.
There are lots of techniques refill and bleed air out of the system, including multiple flushes with distilled water to fully clear out the old fluid, so you can Google it or use your favorite technique. Be sure to refill the radiator/block completely, and fill back up the overflow tank, and then run the engine with the heater on for 10-15 minutes so that you get full circulation of the cooling system (radiator cap off). If you track how much coolant came out, then it's pretty easy to approximate how much coolant will need to go back in.
Recheck the coolant level in the overflow tank in a day or two after you've driven around a bit. You will likely boil out a few more bubbles in the system, and the radiator will suck more fluid from the overflow tank. Top that tank back to F.
What technique did you used to re-fill and bleed air out of the system?
- park nose up on a hill, or elevate the front of the GX so that the radiator cap is at the high point.
- If you have one of those fancy valved funnels designed for the top of a radiator, then use that, otherwise a normal funnel will do.
- slowly fill the radiator with coolant, minimizing splashing and bubbles. You should be able to put almost as much coolant in as you removed. Fill it all the way until you see the radiator about to overflow.
- Fill the plastic overflow tank up to the H line
- leave the radiator cap off, and start the engine. Turn on the heater inside the car.
- let it run for 10-15 minutes so that the thermostat opens, the heater circulates coolant through the heater lines, and the bubbles can work their way to the top of the radiator. If you stand over the radiator and can see the coolant, you should see bubbles start to appear as it runs for a bit - this is good. Then turn off the engine, top off the coolant in the radiator, and let it cool a bit.
- put the radiator cap back on.
- Assuming at this point you've replaced at least as much coolant as you removed, go run some errands or drive around for 30 minutes or so, letting the engine fully warm up and pressurize the cooling system.
- Park it in the garage and let it cool off. Once cold, check the coolant level in the overflow tank, and top it off as needed.
I usually check the overflow tank level again in a few days, or the following weekend to make sure the coolant level stabilizes and all the air is out.
Im picking this up from walmart later on in preparation for a water pump change on another vehicle.
For reference, I called a local dealer and they said 1 gallon of the pink SLLC is around $21. From reading the reviews on A few forums, I’m sure either one works without issues.
If you get from Walmart it's packaged as a Valvoline product "with Zerex technology"...whatever that means. Judging from various discussions around forums it's the same formula
I just did the water pump and thermostat on the 460 and ran out of coolant. Went to check on the aftermarket and all the jugs I saw stated to drain and flush completely before replacing with their product. That made me pause and wait a day until the Toyota dealer was open. Bought a gallon of CONCENTRATE for $2 more than premixed and giggled and laughed with the parts dude that some buy the 50/50 instead of mixing it themselves.
TLDR: Toyota concentrate (gallon jug with red top) and a gallon of 88 cent distilled water FTW!
Are members using the Toyota SLLC or something else ??
Rather than a traditional flush, i do a drain and fill of the radiator every year or so and use the Toyota concentrate that I dilute with distilled water.
I just buy it at the dealer when I need it (never really since I let the dealer do the coolant services)... parts are generally cheaper at Toyota dealers vice Lexus. Not really available anywhere online I've found either...
Found both engine block coolant drains and took pictures.
Both are relatively easy to access with an extension and perhaps a wobble head... the driver side is not easily visible (without lying on ground) but one can easily feel it thru wheel well.
Anyone know what temp the thermostats opens for those doing this service and and that want to use obd2 and fusion or torque to monitor coolant temp to know when to shut engine back off while allowing any air to escape?
03-20-18, 01:44 PM
Coolant Flush / Fluids / Questions / Comments
