Engine Coolant Recommendations

[Tungsten]

I'm about to replace the water pump on my truck and since it's one of the things you replace while doing the timing belt I might as well throw a new timing belt on there. Since the coolant has to be drained for all the hoses to come off and it would be a good idea to replace it anyway. I was just pondering on what I should replace it with. I could use the good old 50/50 Prestone thing available anywhere or could do something special. I know for the most part they are all the same but would like some more input on it.

Edited December 6, 2011 by Tungsten

[adamzan]

I have the Canadian tire brand, (probably made by prestone) coolant in mine and its been fine for over 3 years. Coolant is coolant unless its a vw or something.

[Towncivilian]

Coolant is coolant unless its a vw or something.

So why is there red, orange, pink, green, blue, H-OAT, silicated, non-silicated, Dexcool, blah blah blah... it gets confusing. I'd read this article.

 

For simplicity's sake and to avoid headaches, I'd just go with Nissan coolant. A gallon jug is like $20, my R50 only needs two gallons 50/50 for the radiator, so total cost for rad drain & fill is like $22. Hell, you can switch to Nissan long-life blue coolant which claims 5 years/75k mi replacement interval (for non-factory fill) if you wanted (though if diluted with green it's 4yr/60k) according to TSB NTB09-040a. Be sure to use distilled water.

[adamzan]

I'm pretty sure the wd21s just use the standard green stuff...

[adamzan]

Here is what the fsm says. Ethylene glycol is the standard green stuff AFAIK.

 

 

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If I went to the dealer for everything I would have pissed away my life savings in gas and part costs.

[silverton]

Toyota red coolant is very nice! Probably just go for the standard green stuff and throw in some of that redline water wetter if youre worried about your truck over heating.

[Tungsten]

cool i'll probably just use the standard stuff so that way it's compatible with what was in there before

[nunya]

I use Prestone Global (it's green but mixes with all 'colors'), mainly because it's what we have at work. Standard coolant is fine in a wd21 though

[1994SEV6]

Just in general, don't be mixin' colors. This ain't art class.

I know some of them say that they can be mixed with all colors, but I've seen too many posts/threads saying "Don't mix [green] and [red] or damage WILL ensue". I think there is a post around here that says that exact thing.

 

I know I'm being completely paranoid, but I don't want to ruin my engine over such a stupid thing. The owners manual says Ethylene glycol, my truck was bought with Ethylene glycol in it, and I'm going to use Ethylene glycol. It's the simple green stuff that is everywhere. Except for the red stuff in my friend's s10 (I think it's actually rusty water), I haven't see anything else.

 

These trucks aren't complicated machines. For the most part, you can put whatever you want in them. lowest octane gas, cheap-o oil, BS oil filters, and they will still run. I think you might actually have to go out of your way to get something other than the green stuff.

To actually answer your question, I would use unmixed coolant. Don't get that 50/50 stuff. I see you live in NJ, and winter is coming up. The 100% coolant stuff is about the same price as half coolant half water. I don't see any downside to getting more coolant. Besides, it's less likely to freeze or boil.

[sewebster]

The engine coolant half actually sucks at heat transfer. That's why you use water too, it's great. You need to mix.

[silverton]

you can mix toyota red with regular green. It's the GM dexcool @!*% that can't be mixed with anything or run in anything that it wasn't designed for.

 

As for running straight coolant, that's just downright retarded unless you live on Antarctica!

 

antifreeze has a very low boiling point, but also an extremely low freezing point. whereas water is the exact opposite, high boiling point, but freezes at 32 degrees.

[1994SEV6]

you can mix toyota red with regular green. It's the GM dexcool @!*% that can't be mixed with anything or run in anything that it wasn't designed for.

 

As for running straight coolant, that's just downright retarded unless you live on Antarctica!

 

antifreeze has a very low boiling point, but also an extremely low freezing point. whereas water is the exact opposite, high boiling point, but freezes at 32 degrees.

 

Actually we're both wrong.

I just read this article that says pure Ethylene glycol freezes at about 8degrees F above zero. The freezing point drops when you add water. I don't understand this at all..If you have a 60/40 mix of Ethylene glycol/water, then the freezing point is about -90F. But, if you have 50/50, then it's about -30F. If you have a 90/10 mix, then it's about -20F. It's pretty weird. Check this out

 

http://www2.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF6/680.html

 

I know it says 1984, but Ethylene glycol is still ethylene glycol, right? And water is still water.

[nunya]

yea, defiantly make sure to mix, like silverton said... strait coolant is just a waste and plain dumb. We have global in everything at work and all our personal stuff (which is a mix of MANY different things from imports to "dex-cool specific" GMs to classic iron from back to the 50s to Cat powered 6500s... etc.) 0 issues with it in ANY of them, and it's not just a 2 month review... honestly I think it's easier on the gasket prone GMs than that b.s. enviro friendly dex-cool garbage that don't taste as good.

[Tungsten]

stupid GM

[silverton]

Actually we're both wrong.

 

We aren't both wrong, you just misunderstood my post. I was talking about the two separate, not mixed.

 

The more antifreeze you have in the mix, the lower the freezing point, but also the lower boiling point. the more water in the mix, the lower freezing point, but the higher boiling point. but you learned all that in that article you linked! 50/50 is plenty good for most places, the more extremes like canada probably run a 60/40

[Kingman]

My grandpa unknowingly mixed regular green coolant with the Dexcool in his '00 Bravada. A few months later the heater core clogged, in the dead of winter of course, and when I took the thermostat out it was really goopy in there.

[nismothunder]

Buy the wally world green stuff for 8 bucks a gallon un-mixed. If you need too run water wetter you need a new truck. Or move out ofsouth america.

[Precise1]

throw in some of that redline water wetter if youre worried about your truck over heating.

 

From my experience of driving 3 Nissan trucks for almost 20 years, they do not overheat. If you are overheating, it is a symptom of a problem (clogged radiator, bad thermostat, fan clutch, etc). Address the problem and forget the water wetter crap, it isn't needed.

 

B

[Tungsten]

No overheating for me. I was just trying to get some opinions.

[adamzan]

To add to the water wetter thing, I don't think there is ever a time where you should be adding additives to the fluids. I have nearly 240k miles on mine and the engine runs like a top. I've never put any gimmick crap in to "fix" problems other than seafoam trans tune but that was more like a flushing chemical for the tranny. It has never once overheated, has the original rad and runs on standard "all makes and models" coolant.

 

My heater core has a slight leak and my friend suggested I put bars leak in it. Even though I'm selling the truck soon I wouldn't put that @!*% in there.

[nismothunder]

I've had very good luck with the pellot style Bars stop leak on the retarded hidden under the intake hose. And there engine stop leak for a rear main seal. Thats all I'm gonna say, oh yeah, Caterpillar and IHC both add Bars/house brand too brand new equipment. So, if its ok in 500,000 dollar equipment, I'm gonna say its not gonna hurt a $1500 truck.

[Steve_RI]

I remember mulling this over a few years back and went with 50/50 mix of G-05 (Napa) with distilled water after full flush/drain. I did this sometime during the end of 2005. Everything still looks good and I really haven't touched it since. This reminds though that I should at least drain the radiator and refresh this stuff a bit, it has been awhile.

[silverton]

Bars stop anything is horrible!

 

As for the redline water wetter. it does work, i've read about it a bunch, not that I have anything that I'm worried about the coolant temperature in. and I'm not saying to use it to fix an over heating problem, i'm just saying that it does lower the overall temperature of the coolant.

[Towncivilian]

Here is some interesting reading: http://ultimatecarforum.com/smf/index.php?topic=3797.msg41045

 

Of course, these tests obviously don't replicate conditions of an engine, but still gives you something to think about.

Edited December 28, 2011 by Towncivilian