Vaker

Ok, I'm kinda of a noob when it comes to this, infact I never did it, but I need to flush my new T/A's radiator.


What supplies do I need, and can anyone tell me how to do it?

Thanks!

urbanhunter44

iTrader: (3)

Supplies:

A couple gallons of green coolant. Make SURE it's the green stuff and NOT Dexcool (The orange/reddish stuff). Dexcool IS BAD FOR OUR CARS!!!#!@#$ (Not sure how much our cars hold with the stock radiator - someone help me out here)

A wrench that fits your radiator valve thingy, and a coolant catcher of some sort. (Usually a big bucket.)

A funnel can also come in handy, but I don't usually use one.



There should be a little valve somewhere on the bottom of your radiator. It's white and looks like a hexagon. (You'll have to jack the front of the car up to get under there and see it)

You will probably need a wrench to open it, but might be able to do so by hand. So open it up, stick a pan under there and move. Then make sure that your radiator cap and overflow bottle caps are off, and it'll drain pretty quick.

Then tighten the valve when it's done draining completely. Be VERY careful not to overtighten as it can strip really really easily.

Now add coolant until it's full up to your radiator cap. Start the car and let it suck it in and keep adding until it stays full at the cap (might overflow a little bit.) Cap it up and make sure the overflow bottle is at "FULL HOT" when your engine is warm.

Make SURE to have someone in the car watching your temp while you add the coolant if you're unexperienced at this, as you say you are.

This reminds me.. I need to do my coolant lol.

urbanhunter44

iTrader: (3)

double post :P

TA5LiterHO

Why don't you like Dexcool. I use it in both my cars and it works excellent. I run aluminum radiators though. The cooling system as never stayed so clean before and so cool.

Vaker

Thanks! sounds simple!

BretD 88GTA

Just be sure to keep an eye on it. I just switched back to Prestone Green after using Dex Cool the last few years.

Dex Cool can go haywire and leave an "orange mud" in the system. If it gets bad it can really muck things up.

Some people have had good luck with Dex Cool, while others have horror stories. Dex Cool does do a better job of protecting the metal (especially aluminum), but it does not like air in the system.

If you develop any type of cooling system leak that allows air in, it can cause problems. Also, some experts recommend changing Dex Cool every 2yrs./30,000 miles like traditional coolant. Apparently it's not always living up to the 5yr./150,000 promise.

I was starting to see the orange build up appearing in my reservoir bottle, so I flushed the system and went back to green.

urbanhunter44

iTrader: (3)

It sure is Vaker, good luck!

And yeah bret, I've experienced baddd problems with dexcool as our cooling systems aren't made for it.

Nate86

If you're unsure of when the last time the coolant was changed in the car and it's looking sort of brownish instead of a dark green color, I'd just go ahead and completely replace all hoses and coolant instead of just draining the radiator.

These are my instructions on how to do this if you want to try. I went into procedure almost completely blind except for a Haynes manual and this board, so it's really not that hard. Just expect to take up about a day or so doing it (being your first time; once you know how to do it, it shouldn't take more than a few hours). These instructions are also based on a coolant change with a carbureted LG4. It may different for TBI and TPI cars.

Supplies needed:

A large pan
Three (3) gallons of antifreeze
Three (3) gallons of distilled water
Upper radiator hose
Lower radiator hose
Radiator cap
Thermostat housing (sometimes known as the waterneck)
Thermostat
Thermostat housing gasket
Heater core hose (in)
Heater core hose (out)
EFE Thermal Vacuum Switch
Two (2) clamps for each hose
[optional]Coolant overflow tank
[optional]Two (2) bottles of Prestone Super Radiator Flush
[optional]Two (2) bottles of Prestone Super Sealer

Instructions:

1. Jack the car up and put it on jackstands.

2. Climb under the car and locate the drain plug on the right side of the radiator. Put a pan under it and put some towels around the pan. Open the drain plug and allow the coolant to drain. Remove the radiator cap so that the coolant flows out of the radiator faster. Remove the coolant overflow tank hose from the radiator and drain it as well (or if you bought a new one, just throw it away). If you are not doing using the Prestone Super Radiator flush, skip to step 6.

3. After the coolant finishes draining, close the drain plug and pour both bottles of SRF into the radiator, and fill the radiator up with water. Put the cap back on.

4. Start the car and run it at idle for about 10-15 minutes. Don't revv the engine as it may cause a hose to burst (it's may not be likely, but it happened when I did it). Turn off the car and allow it to cool for a couple of hours.

5. Repeat step 2. You may notice that the color of the liquid flowing out is a dark brown color. This is normal.

6. Unclamp the lower and upper radiator hoses from their spouts on the radiator and on the engine. Remove the heater core hoses from their spouts on the firewall and on the engine. Throw them all away.

7. Remove the air cleaner and look at the thermostat housing (a round looking spout that the upper radiator housing connects to). Using a ratchet or wrench, unscrew the coolant temperature sensor from the housing. This is the sensor with a black and yellow wire running to it. You will need this later. If you can also remove the EFE thermal vacuum switch, do that too. However, the two connectors for vacuum hoses may not allow a ratchet to fit and an open ended wrench may strip the bolt. Don't worry if you can't get it off.

8. Unscrew the two bolts holding the thermostat housing onto the engine. Take the thermostat housing off and throw it away (save the bolts, however).

9. The thermostat will be sitting in a small hole underneath the thermostat housing. Take note of how it was placed in the hole, remove it and throw it away.

10. Using a water hose, run a steady stream of water thru the engine and the radiator until the water becomes clear after coming out of the engine and radiator.

11. Put the replacement thermostat back in the way the old one was positioned.

12. Put a gasket underneath the replacement thermostat housing and bolt the thermostat housing down onto the engine.

13. Put some teflon tape on the end of the coolant temperature sensor and screw it back into the thermostat housing. Do the same with your (possibly new) EFE thermal vacuum switch. Reconnect the wiring harness to the CTS and the vacuum hoses to the EFE TVS.

14. Connect each of the replacement hoses to their respective spouts and clamp them down securely on the spout. IMPORTANT: The heater core spouts have small ridges on them which keep the hoses from leaking when clamped down. When you clamp the hoses to the heater core, MAKE SURE you put the clamps on IMMEDIATELY ON OR AFTER THE RIDGES or else coolant will leak out of the hose, down the heater core and eventually onto your interior carpet. I learned this lesson the hard way; let's just say now I have green blotches on my carpet.

15. If you purchased the Prestone super sealer, pour both bottles into the radiator. I was told this will keep the water pump from dying after changing the coolant. Then pour a 50/50 mixture of antifreeze and distilled water into a container and pour it into the radiator as well. Pour it until the radiator is completely full. Pour whatever is left of the mixture into the coolant overflow tank. Put the cap on the radiator.

16. Reconnect any other vacuum hoses you might have disconnected and reattach the air cleaner.

17. Start the car and allow it to reach operating temperature. Top off the coolant overflow tank until it reaches the "Full Hot" mark with a 50/50 mixture of antifreeze and distilled water.

That's it. I did this thorough cleaning to my car's coolant system and the system has run better ever since.

Hope that helps.

EDIT: Forgot to mention some other stuff.

#1 - This whole procedure will cost you around $75-$90 for all the parts. The most expensive parts will be the four hoses and the antifreeze. It may seem like a lot of money just to change your coolant, but keep in mind that short of a new radiator and heater core, you basically have a brand new cooling system.

#2 - These cars come with a 195 degree F thermostat. Go with that if you want to keep the car stock. There are replacements that range anywhere from 160 to 180 degree F, however. I personally went with 180 degree.

Spdfrk1990

Thats some good info prestone has some new fluid out extended life its peach in color. Has anyone tried it suppose to be good stuff suppose to not be as thin as dexcool so u shouldnt have the leaking problems.

BretD 88GTA

I've seen the new Prestone, but I don't know anyone who has tried it yet. I want to see if I can read up on the new formula.

Dex Cool has been a big problem for some people. It doesn't always last for 5yrs/150k miles as advertised and it can leave an "orange mud" in the cooling system.

I tried Dex Cool for a while and had good results, but I started noticing the orange gunk in the bottom of the reservoir bottle. I just switched back to good old Prestone Green and won't be using Dex Cool ever again.

Time will tell how good this new extended life formula is.