Opinions needed on coolant

[laneo9417]

Opinions needed on whether or not to flush and change my coolant. The other day I noticed I was a little bit below the cold fill line on the reservoir (no leaks to be found anywhere). The coolant in there now is the green stuff and it has a little dirt and sediment on the bottom of the tank but it is by no means sludge. According to the few service records I have from the previous owner the last time it may have been changed was at 60k about 11 years ago (truck is currently at 118k). The truck runs fine and I have never noticed an overheating issue but I'm bringing this up because of its age and the fact that I'll be driving it a lot more now that winter is approaching.

Should I bother doing a flush given the age? Personally I'm a bit hesitant as I have never done this before and I'm a firm believer in "if it ain't broke don't fix it". From what I have researched the procedure seems like a fairly easy thing to do but if I can get away with adding some coolant and just monitoring it I'll be ok with that, especially because the truck runs great as is. Just looking for some advice from the experts. Thanks guys.

 

[bill06447]

Definitely give it a flush and refill-green coolant loses its antifreeze and lubricating properties with time, that's why two years is recommended interval. Do the hoses while you're in there.

Bill

 

[drdoom]

I am of the mindset that the coolant is the true lifeblood of a vehicle particularly one of age. As prevention to heater core and water pump and transmission cooler problems. The first two can be real trouble especially on the V8. I think it's worth it to put fresh coolant and distilled water is a must. YMMV

 

[chefduane]

I regularly do coolant flush/fill on my '98 SOHC 4x w/ trailer pkg. She went 185K until the rad finally cut loose and I had to replace it earlier in the year. Did hoses and thermostat too. 185k - that's pretty good. And no water pump/heater/trans cooler issues. BIG fan of regular coolant flush/fill. Do it.

 

[Flash]

It mightn't be a big deal with an iron head engine but with with aluminium heads coolant servicing is an absolute must!

I read somewhere a long time ago that if you leave coolant in too long it becomes corrosive.

As for the adage, "If it ain't broke....." coolant is a service item, like oil. Change it for the same reason you change your tyres.

 

[*deepinthawoods*]

I regularly do coolant flush/fill on my '98 SOHC 4x w/ trailer pkg. She went 185K until the rad finally cut loose and I had to replace it earlier in the year. Did hoses and thermostat too. 185k - that's pretty good. And no water pump/heater/trans cooler issues. BIG fan of regular coolant flush/fill. Do it.

Hi, I need to change my orig rad now after 168k. What rad did you use? I've seen full aluminum rads on ebay, did anyone tried these? thanks!

As for the coolant flush, I never did it in 12 years. I bought the truck when 1st buyer returned it after a 4 year lease. Only added coolant when needed. I
flushed reservoir one time when found sediments in it. I also added coolant after replacing the thermostat and hoses. I used Oem thermostat and oem hoses from the dealer.
No issues with South Florida weather, until now a small leak between rad aluminum core and plastic tank.
I only use Motorcraft coolant with destilled water.
Check on you trucks's owner manual specifications/type of coolant you need for your engine and you'll be safe. Not all engines are the same (iron blocks, iron heads, alum blocks, alum heads).

 

[masospaghetti]

Coolant is, what, $20 for 2 gallons? The new stuff lasts for 5 years, its crazy not to change it out. It has anti-corrosive properties that wear out over time and it loses its ability to protect your radiator and heater core. A heater core is not a fun job, just change your coolant.

 

[laneo9417]

Thanks for all the input. Does anyone know where I can find a good, thorough step by step how-to on this procedure? I searched a bit but couldn't find any good videos or posts with pics for a noob like me.

 

[masospaghetti]

Just do a simple drain and refill. There's a drain petcock on the radiator, unscrew it, let the radiator drain out. Top off with new universal coolant. Repeat this process a few times and you will replenish over 80% of the old coolant.

There's also a drain bolt on the block that you can pull out to get more of the old coolant out.

Another alternative is to disconnect the upper radiator hose and point it away at the ground with a bucket. When you start the engine, once the thermostat opens, coolant will come shooting out. Add distilled water to the radiator to replace the lost coolant. This will flush out the old coolant very rapidly. Just be sure to catch the old coolant because it is toxic.

 

[chefduane]

Hi, I need to change my orig rad now after 168k. What rad did you use?

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=271773&cc=1304413

Direct replacement.

 

[*deepinthawoods*]

http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=271773&cc=1304413

Direct replacement.

Thanks! But I did change the orig rad in my other 2000 Xplo 4.0 OHV at 175k miles for an aftermarket like this one and 1 year later the transm cooler that goes inside the rad failed (cheap asian stuff!!!) The coolant mixed with the transmission fluid...had to change transm because of that aftermarket rad. Not to mention how many times I had to flush the cooling system in the engine!!!... I found a like new motorcraft rad at a local u-pull autopart, installed it in the truck but this time not connected the diff fluid lines to it. I installed an auxiliary cooler for the trans.
I would like to hear if somebody tried those ALL ALUMINUM rads I saw on ebay.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-Row-w-o-E...98|Model:Explorer&hash=item1e91e869ec&vxp=mtr

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-All-Alu...98|Model:Explorer&hash=item3a96a04280&vxp=mtr

 

[Sedition]

Definitely change it and give it a flush or 7 as well. Use an all-round flush the first time then just tap water until it drains clear. Then use 50% ethylene glycol 50% water in the form of Green antifreeze.

Don't use the cheap ethylene glycol free stuff, you will get corrosion problems.

I like to change mine every 2 years, as it starts to loose its flouro green color after that time.

And for $30 to avoid serious problems later you'd be mad not to, right?

 

[field]

I did a coolant flush with Preston Flush a few months ago, but it didn't change the following situation.

Apparent coolant leak
My 99 SOHC 4.0L engine has been leaking about a quart or two a week. No dripping is visible anywhere. So I borrowed a pressure tester and pumped it up to the 16psi listed on the radiator cap. Water then seemed to pour all over from the front of the engine, but no particular leak site was visible. After that I could not pump more than 5psi no matter how fast and hard I pumped. It looked like the first pumping had unsealed something. But driving the vehicle after that again showed no dripping anywhere. This seems like an inconsistency, how does that copious leak reseal itself? Could the coolant pressure always be way below the 16psi radiator cap limit?

Immediately after normal driving, there has never seemed to be any significant pressure released when the radiator cap is removed. High pressure release is expected for most cars. There are warnings about that everywhere.

There is no white smoke in the exhaust.

The temperature gauge has always and still is centered in the middle of its range while driving.

But there is still and unfound slow leak.

 

[drdoom]

You probably need a lower thermostat housing.

 

[my98nnj]

My 98 never once had a coolant change. Sold it last year with 105,000 miles on it.

Your results may vary...