How to flush coolant system
Lexus Champion
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 1,815
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From: CA
There are flashers for engine oil, coolant, power steering fluid, transmission oil, A/C, brake lines....
Basically these machines force out exiting fluids throughout all lines in the system while the engine is running, and then fill the system with new fluid after that.
Of course you can DIY at home but the outcome is minimum. For coolant, find the drain valve of vehicle's radiator, and follow the instruction on your flash kit. I think it is around $10 in parts store. You will need to drain and refill a few times and turn on engine to circulate and heat-up its flow...
I don't think DIY flushing works well, unless you flush it offten. For coolant flashing with live-feed machine, I see my local area charing around $120 to $200, and not many stores have those machines.
Basically these machines force out exiting fluids throughout all lines in the system while the engine is running, and then fill the system with new fluid after that.
Of course you can DIY at home but the outcome is minimum. For coolant, find the drain valve of vehicle's radiator, and follow the instruction on your flash kit. I think it is around $10 in parts store. You will need to drain and refill a few times and turn on engine to circulate and heat-up its flow...
I don't think DIY flushing works well, unless you flush it offten. For coolant flashing with live-feed machine, I see my local area charing around $120 to $200, and not many stores have those machines.
Last edited by josephdoc; Mar 23, 2007 at 07:40 PM.
I flushed the coolant on my moms Toyota Highlander. The dealer has two different coolants. One is a oem concentrated coolant that you have to mix yourself. The other one is already a pre-mix oem coolant that is already mixed so you dont have to do any mixing. I picked up the pre-mix.
Does Lexus use the red coolant like Toyota does??
I will be changing my coolant when my car is 5 years old.
Does Lexus use the red coolant like Toyota does??
I will be changing my coolant when my car is 5 years old.
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Toyota has two coolants. One is the old red stuff. It's a deep red color, almost like cranberry juice. The other is pink. They call it SLLC (Super Long Life Coolant) and it is intended to last 120k miles or 200,000 km. This is clearly called out in the scheduled maintenance plan.
There is no flush procedure called out in the FSM. They say simply drain and refill with SLLC. The factory fill goes 120k miles, and the recommend changing every 60k miles after the initial change.
Why would you want to flush this early in the car's life?
There is no flush procedure called out in the FSM. They say simply drain and refill with SLLC. The factory fill goes 120k miles, and the recommend changing every 60k miles after the initial change.
Why would you want to flush this early in the car's life?
Lobux,
Do you see any reason why a 20% SLLC / 80% water mixture with Redline Water Wetter would cause problems with the IS? I used it with great results in my S2000 for years with a high pressure rad cap and low temp thermostat (which I can't find for the IS).
Do you see any reason why a 20% SLLC / 80% water mixture with Redline Water Wetter would cause problems with the IS? I used it with great results in my S2000 for years with a high pressure rad cap and low temp thermostat (which I can't find for the IS).
Thread Starter
Driver School Candidate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 27
Likes: 0
From: NSW
theres no reason i want to flush it, not even wanting to drain it, just curious thats all
wow it lasts for 5 years?? i didnt know that
i guess ill leave it for 5 years then
hahahhaha
wow it lasts for 5 years?? i didnt know that
i guess ill leave it for 5 years then
hahahhaha
Toyota thermostats (at least the ones I've seen so far) have an adjustment screw in them that is crimped to hold it at the set temperature. It is possible to adjust the screw to get the t-stat to open sooner. It costs you nothing but time to do it. TRD sells low temp thermostats (160F) at an alarming price. I would never buy one from them. I'd just adjust mine until I am happy.
There is a negative to adjusting the t-stat cooler - you will take longer to get into closed loop, and more than likely, you'll lose some thermal efficiency so gas mileage will drop a bit. One of the Scion tC owners who commutes in his car 90 miles a day was looking for a bit more gas mileage, so he found a 210F thermostat and installed it. He picked up about 10% on his gas mileage. You can expect something similar (6% - 8%) should you choose a colder temperature, but in the other direction.
That's good to know about the adjustable T-stat. I would probably buy another stat, then set it with a pot of hot water before swapping it out with the stock one.
The Type II coolant in my S2000 was also prediluted by 50%, so I took that into account.
I didn't ever notice a reduction in the fuel economy on my S2000. I don't do much highway mileage, and I was getting great mileage with my 4.77 gears after reducing my coolant temps by about 20 degrees. The power benefit was significant, and my ignition timing was significantly advanced over my buddy's stock S2000 (same MY monitored via OBDII).
The Type II coolant in my S2000 was also prediluted by 50%, so I took that into account.
I didn't ever notice a reduction in the fuel economy on my S2000. I don't do much highway mileage, and I was getting great mileage with my 4.77 gears after reducing my coolant temps by about 20 degrees. The power benefit was significant, and my ignition timing was significantly advanced over my buddy's stock S2000 (same MY monitored via OBDII).
