Antifreeze?

[danny20vt]

Example of mixed coolant which I had to sort when I bought mine

Does look quite tasty though

 

[JPS1]

some antifeeze used by garages is clear. The cheapest way to find out if there is some in the system is to taste it! just dip you finger in and then touch your finger on your tongue(don't swallow it lol) it should be a sweet chemical taste or just buy a tester like this one http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/LASER-TOOLS-4293-ANTI-FREEZE-TESTER-ETHYLENE-GLYCOL-/350133104552?pt=UK_Diagnostic_Tools_Equipment and this will let you know what temperature your coolant will freeze at.

 

[Slimy]

Example of mixed coolant which I had to sort when I bought mine

Does look quite tasty though

Mmmm, chocolate mousse!

 

[Fl@pper]

some antifeeze used by garages is clear.

what manufacturer is selling neat coolant additive then ? always thought they all had dye added to help identify it's spec - never seen clear stuff yet apart from water

don't forget it lowers the freezing temperature of course but also raises the boiling point so it's something that is worth checking all year round

 

[JPS1]

what manufacturer is selling neat coolant additive then ?

i don't think it's neat coolant just a clear dye or a pale amber colour that looks a clear colour once mixed with water. i know mercedes used to use one in the cars (i work on the mercedes commercial vehicle side) and the ford premium stuff is clear.

 

[mikesndbs]

Hi chaps

This is getting to me, I just don't have the time to take the car to be flushed, by the description here it sounds like I would not want to attempt it.
So, I would imagine when I call the garage that fitted the rad for me and point out that they charged me for A/Freeze Xstream G30 Red and yet it seems there is nothing but water there, they would give me a couple of lts of it.

So my question is, if I syphoned out the expansion tank and then filled with neat A/Freeze Xstream G30 Red, ran the car, let it cool and repeat, would this get the mixture to the right levels?

 

[sambryant]

Nope that wouldnt be a good idea as it would mix with what ever is already there. Full flush IMHO is the only way for peace of mind. On a brighter note, it's not freezing cold yet so there is no rush to get it done as of yet. If I was you I'd buy the G12 plus plus from the main dealer and then take it to the garage who did your rad and tell them they put wrong anti freeze in. Then ask them to flush your car then refill using the g12 free of charge. I'm sure the will do this for you, it's only a 5min job for a garage.

 

[andycupra]

Hi chaps

This is getting to me, I just don't have the time to take the car to be flushed, by the description here it sounds like I would not want to attempt it.
So, I would imagine when I call the garage that fitted the rad for me and point out that they charged me for A/Freeze Xstream G30 Red and yet it seems there is nothing but water there, they would give me a couple of lts of it.

So my question is, if I syphoned out the expansion tank and then filled with neat A/Freeze Xstream G30 Red, ran the car, let it cool and repeat, would this get the mixture to the right levels?

No. - and added to this you seem to say the water smells a bit and so there is still the possibility that there is some clear coolant in the system? - in which case you need to drain and flush the system.

Most people will say the coolant system on the leon if around 4 litres so this gives you an idea of how much coolant you need.
Im sure i got nearer 5 litres in mine when i drained mine though..

Its honestly that that difficult to drain, just tricky to access the pipe, so long arms could be useful with perhaps some pipe (around 7-8mm pipe?) to push onto the drain pipe.

 

[Red Panda]

When I had my timing belt done 5k ago the mechanic changed the G12 coolant for some watery looking stuff. I have just got him to change it back to G12++ and it's now that nice pinky colour.

TBH I guess I might of been too picky in wanting the G12++ back in but I wanted it doing. The temperature gauge has stayed the same throughout I'm on a 50/50 mix so it's ready for winter up here

 

[PAULTDI67]

Halfords sell a G12 for our cars blue bottle around £20 ish for 5 litres, mines got it

HI M8 allways wondered about halfords pink stuff is it the same as vw stuff or just regular stuff dyed pink r there diffrences in testers?checked mine 4 strength when it was freezin at christmas my tester said good 2 minus20/25 had service around march garage recorded it as minus15might change nxt yearhow the f$#k u get the rad off cat see any mount bolts?

 

[LEE69]

Is spec is the same as G12 the bottle says.
Rad slides in
This should help http://www.seatcupra.net/forums/showthread.php?t=264868
although there is a tap on the bottom to drain.

 

[mikesndbs]

Hi thanks for all the info.
The point I was making is that they say they have filled it with G30, this is an approved VW for modern engines product so I don't think I can say they have added the wrong stuff.
But I still think they have not added any or very little.
I'll try to speak to them tomorrow morning and find out.
But I don't think the G30 is clear, it says red!

 

[PAULTDI67]

antifreeze

HI peeps was gunna change my antifreeze nxt year but dont have 2 now after toppin up,checked car last week after not startin it 4 around 2 weeks(not been out of house cos i had proper flu)on startin buzza sounded 4 low level!!(been same lvel as long as i've owned car)didn't have any a/freeze so topped up wi water not good in these temps so had 2 get some from vw dealer f*$#'n expensive stuff!!£8.40 4 1.5l seen some on ebay @£7 but not sure how much postage!anyway checked h/book about change interval says as long as topped up with proper vw stuff lasts foreverso took a pipe off i could get 2 & drained some off & topped up.

 

[LEE69]

5L £20 last time i bought it at Halfords

 

[Richy Cupra]

Bringing this one from the dead. Unfortunately my LCR has blue antifreeze in it, hasnt been in the system for that long but was wondering if i was to drain it via the tap by the radiator, will it be safe to put red in or will there still be some left in the engine??

 

[BoostHard]

Best to remove the thermostat and flush it through with a hose.

Euro car sell the new G13 quite cheap. I got 5 litres of neat coolant for about £18

 

[Richy Cupra]

Best to remove the thermostat and flush it through with a hose.

Euro car sell the new G13 quite cheap. I got 5 litres of neat coolant for about £18

Im gonna change the thermostat today anyway as its shot, after iv drained most of it would it be safe just to fill it with water and drain again? Iv never done this before hense the questions. G13 is on the cards as well

 

[andycupra]

Bringing this one from the dead. Unfortunately my LCR has blue antifreeze in it, hasnt been in the system for that long but was wondering if i was to drain it via the tap by the radiator, will it be safe to put red in or will there still be some left in the engine??

i'd drain it out, (you are looking to get more than 4 litres out), then run water through, leave that running until hot and fully circulating then drain again. (i always put the heater on when doing coolant to make sure its fully circulating, no idea if i actually need to do this).
If the water is clear then you can go ahead with the G12. if not run another cycle of water through.

You will know by now roughly how much coolant is required to fill the system so if you monitor what you have put in you will know when the system is fully purged and clear of air, but do check levels afterwards.
G12 from dealers or better still GSF and the like works out cheap, often they are not pre-mixed so read the label, 50:50 mix with water is usual. - you may be able to poor neat coolant then water in to start with, but its a good idea to pre-mix before adding to the system to ensure the correct mix. (and then keep a small bottle in the car for top ups, - but not were a kid may have access to it as its very toxic).

Some may say this is OTT, - im not sure what qty of coolant type mix is required for it to be a problem.. but doing the above isnt much more hassle than not once you have car up, tools out etc. and much less of an issue than if there was a mixture issue.

 

[Richy Cupra]

i'd drain it out, (you are looking to get more than 4 litres out), then run water through, leave that running until hot and fully circulating then drain again. (i always put the heater on when doing coolant to make sure its fully circulating, no idea if i actually need to do this).
If the water is clear then you can go ahead with the G12. if not run another cycle of water through.

You will know by now roughly how much coolant is required to fill the system so if you monitor what you have put in you will know when the system is fully purged and clear of air, but do check levels afterwards.
G12 from dealers or better still GSF and the like works out cheap, often they are not pre-mixed so read the label, 50:50 mix with water is usual. - you may be able to poor neat coolant then water in to start with, but its a good idea to pre-mix before adding to the system to ensure the correct mix. (and then keep a small bottle in the car for top ups, - but not were a kid may have access to it as its very toxic).

Some may say this is OTT, - im not sure what qty of coolant type mix is required for it to be a problem.. but doing the above isnt much more hassle than not once you have car up, tools out etc. and much less of an issue than if there was a mixture issue.

Thanks andy for the info, doesn't seem that OTT really bud its just to be safe! I will give this a go and ill take my time with this and checking how much comes out of it to get a rough idea. Im going to attempt this soon so ill update on my progress or if i c**k it up. Is there a big risk of air locks doing this as well??

 

[kr1s77]

i'm going to be mine in the next couple of weeks, got 2 1.5L bottles of G12++ from GSF yesterday for just over £11. so just waiting for a good day when i don't have to rush around to do it.