[Jim_Chow]

Anyone ever get their hands on the toyota red pre-mixed coolant? I've only seen the red that you mix yourself, but have heard that dealers in TX and FL have a completely different parts list than dealers in other states and can gets stuff they can't get, like different wheels, etc.

[e9999]

so you want to pay more for the real thing with water added to it?


kinda like Light Beer...?

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Anyone ever get their hands on the toyota red pre-mixed coolant? I've only seen the red that you mix yourself, but have heard that dealers in TX and FL have a completely different parts list than dealers in other states and can gets stuff they can't get, like different wheels, etc.

Our Toyota "Super Long life" Coolant is Pre-mixed 50/50 ...The "Long Life" coolant is not...

I didnt realize it was hard to get in certain markets How much do ya need ?

[Jim_Chow]

Originally Posted by SINCITY100

Our Toyota "Super Long life" Coolant is Pre-mixed 50/50 ...The "Long Life" coolant is not...

I didnt realize it was hard to get in certain markets How much do ya need ?

Is the "super long life" the stuff that you can run for 60K or 100K miles while the long life is 30K?

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Is the "super long life" the stuff that you can run for 60K or 100K miles while the long life is 30K?

Correct.

The "new" SLLC is good for 100K and is sold locally pre-dilluted 50-50 .. Its the original factory-fill fluid on all 2004-up Toyota models ( I think Lexus models have been using it for some time though).


Considering the (higher) cost per fill, I still think its a good value due to its longer Mileage interval, AND you dont have to stop and grab distilled water on the way home

[jjbodean1970]

we get and use both the pre-mixed and the non-diluted versions. not sure as to why?

[LX470Pilot]

decided to look at this while changing out the headlights on my 2000 LX - all fluid in resevoir and in radiator is as clear as if it just came out of the bottle. 56000 total miles and never been changed.

[1loudLX]

...did you get the HID kit Pilot?

[LX470Pilot]

Originally Posted by 1loudLX

...did you get the HID kit Pilot?

nah, just replacing stocks with H1ST Sylvania Silver Stars - quite an improvement in themselves.

HID would be nice, but my tires'll need replacing in a little while, and I'm watching my finances - until I get a better job.


-LX Pilot

[Jim_Chow]

Originally Posted by SINCITY100

Correct.

The "new" SLLC is good for 100K and is sold locally pre-dilluted 50-50 .. Its the original factory-fill fluid on all 2004-up Toyota models ( I think Lexus models have been using it for some time though).


Considering the (higher) cost per fill, I still think its a good value due to its longer Mileage interval, AND you dont have to stop and grab distilled water on the way home

Are you buying your SLLC in CA or NV?

[hoser]

Originally Posted by LX470Pilot

decided to look at this while changing out the headlights on my 2000 LX - all fluid in resevoir and in radiator is as clear as if it just came out of the bottle. 56000 total miles and never been changed.

Be advised one can't measure the condition of coolant by just looking at it. Yes, brownish coolant with is bad but old coolant can look new but have lost its anti-corrosion properties and it's ability to resist boiling and conduct heat. Your LX probably came with the Long Life Coolant w/ 30k miles replacement intervals.

[Steph23]

If you have the dealer replace the coolant, which one would they typically be using? Long Life or Super Long Life?

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Are you buying your SLLC in CA or NV?

In NV Jim , its the same price (per Ga.) as the original SLC non-dilluted coolant

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Steph23

If you have the dealer replace the coolant, which one would they typically be using? Long Life or Super Long Life?

Normally, If the vehicle is pre-2004 it gets filled with the "old" Long Life Coolant, 04-up models require the new fomulation SuperLLC .

[Jim_Chow]

I checked the partly opened bottle of mix-it-yourself Toyota red in my garage and it says "long life." Anyways, although I'd like to use the SLLC, I'll be performing the 60k service, meaning the 90K t-belt service is only 30K mi away. And for that, the radiator will be drained and removed, so I may as well use the LLC now and SLLC at 90K. Do they sell the SLLC in a mix-it-yourself version?

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Do they sell the SLLC in a mix-it-yourself version?

As far as I know, no... It (SLLC) comes bottled in a pre-mixed formula only.

[NMuzj100]

I'm sure not leaving the choice of distilled or tap to the consumer is key for the actuarial logic of the SLLC.

[Jim_Chow]

Originally Posted by NMuzj100

I'm sure not leaving the choice of distilled or tap to the consumer is key for the actuarial logic of the SLLC.

Or the dealer. I called my dealer and they said they use tap water. And AZ tap water is very hard.

[SINCITY100]

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Or the dealer. I called my dealer and they said they use tap water. And AZ tap water is very hard.

Good point Jim.

You MUST bring your OWN distilled water with you to the dealer if you want a "clean" refill when non-dilluted coolant is being used.

And there is no doubt that the mineral-rich Vegas tap water keeps local radiator shops in business

[Jim_Chow]

And the thing that bothers me about the dealership for stuff like this is, how to you really know if they used the distilled water you brought, or forgot and dumped it out to make it look like they used it unless you're watching?

[100 TD]

My thoughts exactly Jim, the stuff I have seen the dealers do makes you really wonder why you pay them so much for such inadequately trained personel, and it is the simple and basic stuff they stuff up, that anyone knows how to do, so I don't hold out for the technical stuff. Unless you do it yourself there is no knowing what goes on.

[NMuzj100]

A couple of good earlier threads on ...

Toyota Red vs. Green Coolant

Tap Water vs. Distilled Water

And an unanswered orphan post by gopriest31

Originally Posted by gopriest31

Just got done with the timing belt on my 98- Did the water pump also. Overall it wasn't that bad of a job, just took a while. Filled it with water initially when I put it back together to flush it out. Now Im ready to put coolant back in it. Does anyone know how much coolant is needed to make the correct concentration? I have a few gallons of new Toyota LLC - Any help would be appreciated
Thanks

From 1998 FSM (CO-2)

w/ Front heater: 14.8 Liters (15.6 US Quarts, 13.0 Imp. Quarts)
w/ Front and rear heater: 15.3 Liters (16.2 US quarts, 13.4 Imp Quarts)

The FSM does not recommend a flush but does recommend using all three drain plugs and torquing them to 9ftlbs.

This pic posted by mabrodis (Here) shows the plug locations. The two block plugs are on opposite sides of the block.


Amando had this advice on accessing the plugs.

Originally Posted by i4c4lo

You need a 14mm wrench to open it, it's not that hard, also what helped me was I put a 1/4" hose to it so it doesn't leak all over you and you can drain into a pail for proper disposal.

Also, if you leave the radiator cap on, only a small amount of coolant will come out right when you open it (the bolt) , then as soon as you are ready to drain everything into a pail or what ever you want to catch it with then let the air through by opening the radiator cap.

Don't tighten too much, it doesn't need that much and you don't want to strip it later.

Other than Mark's photo from the manual you can look through the wheel wells and see the bolt for the block, it looks funky because there is like a tube looking thing attached to it.

Good luck.

[KathmanduCruiser]

I am planning on doing the coolant flush (Toyo dealership wants to charge me $137 for it) within the next few days.

As far as I know from reading a bunch of posts about coolants, this is what I am planning on doing:

1. Get Super Long Life coolant.
2. Open the drain plugs and drain the existing coolant from the three drain plugs. Hvae a large bucket ready to collect old coolant.
3. flush the system with tap water.
4. Put the drain plugs back on and fill up with specified amount of coolant. Do not overtighten but rather remain true to torque specifications.

- no gaskets or any part replacements are needed

Questions:
How easy are the drain plugs to get to?
Any tips/tricks?

[spressomon]

Originally Posted by KathmanduCruiser

I am planning on doing the coolant flush (Toyo dealership wants to charge me $137 for it) within the next few days.

As far as I know from reading a bunch of posts about coolants, this is what I am planning on doing:

1. Get Super Long Life coolant.
2. Open the drain plugs and drain the existing coolant from the three drain plugs. Hvae a large bucket ready to collect old coolant.
3. flush the system with tap water.
4. Put the drain plugs back on and fill up with specified amount of coolant. Do not overtighten but rather remain true to torque specifications.

- no gaskets or any part replacements are needed

Questions:
How easy are the drain plugs to get to?
Any tips/tricks?

Flush with distilled water NOT tap water (drain all the existing fluid out; fill back with distilled water; recirculate; drain and repeat until water is clear (or nearly clear). Fill with Long Life Red and distilled water. This is how I just did mine...worked great.

[KathmanduCruiser]

Spresso,

Thanks for the tip on distilled water instead of tap water.

Are the drain bolts easy to access?

Thanks.

Originally Posted by spressomon

Flush with distilled water NOT tap water (drain all the existing fluid out; fill back with distilled water; recirculate; drain and repeat until water is clear (or nearly clear). Fill with Long Life Red and distilled water. This is how I just did mine...worked great.

[spressomon]

Originally Posted by KathmanduCruiser

Spresso,

Thanks for the tip on distilled water instead of tap water.

Are the drain bolts easy to access?

Thanks.

I just drained the block from the DS/left side (along with the bottom radiator petcock). With a good light and access from underneath you can easily reach the petcock just beneath the exhaust manifold with a socket wrench (I think it's 10mm but can't remember for certain). And I used a 1/4" x 3' piece of rubber hose inserted over the drain petcock to drain into a bucket (no mess!). I didn't bother with the PS/right side...I did 3-flush/fill/recirculate cycles and the water was barely pink when I installed the new coolant. You can probably flush with tap water but I figured for any extra $6 for distilled water I have piece of mind no additional mineral content is introduced into the system.

[LXPearl]

In previous Toyotas, the red long life has performed exceptionally well for me, so I am a believer in using it. I always use distilled water to rinse out and dilute the long life, the minerals introduced with tap water are not friendly to the coolant system. My guess is the SLLC is essentially the LLC with distilled water added to get the extra life beyond 30K.

The dealers can't be trusted. They will even put the cheap green stuff in it, and typically use tap water.

[Jim_Chow]

Only flush w/ DISTILLED water. Read the label carefully, as some bottles say the water is purified for distilled applications while the best is steam distilled. You want the steam distilled. I could only find Arrowhead in steam distilled in 2.5 gal sizes. "Purified" water is merely reverse osmosis, so there will be residual solids in the water (can be anywhere from 15-75ppm).

I also drained the radiator and left block drain cock. The right side one (at least on the 5spd) has ATF lines covering the valve (you'd have to remove a bracket). IIRC, by draining the left block and radiator, I got about 11-11.5 qts of the 16 qts out on each drain. I simply drained them, filled the radiator w/ distilled water, ran the engine @ 2K rpm w/ f/r heaters cranked, drained again, then repeated 2 more times until the water draining out only had a slight tinge. Since you know you are draining 11 qts out, there are still 5 qts of distilled water in the heater cores and right block, so add 2 gal of LLC and 3 qts of distilled water and you know you have a 50-50 mixture.

You still have to remove the big plastic skid pan to access the left drain bolt (look underneath near the rear engine mount. The reason why I was so picky about flushing out the old coolant is I know the PO had the dealer do the service, and all dealers use tap water. Still, the inside of my radiator looked brand new. Next time at 90K, I'll have the dealer do the t-belt and bring in SLLC for them. This way, they won't screw it up and use distilled water.

The tech at my award winning toyota dealer said they just drain the radiator when they do a change, and that if you get the coolant hot enough, about 75% of it will drain out only through the radiator since it's the lowest point. Not true! I didn't get nearly that much out, so I had to drain the left block.

[KathmanduCruiser]

Very informative!

Thanks for the knowledge transfer, Jim.

I will make sure that I get the steam distilled water.

Originally Posted by Jim_Chow

Only flush w/ DISTILLED water. Read the label carefully, as some bottles say the water is purified for distilled applications while the best is steam distilled. You want the steam distilled. I could only find Arrowhead in steam distilled in 2.5 gal sizes. "Purified" water is merely reverse osmosis, so there will be residual solids in the water (can be anywhere from 15-75ppm).

I also drained the radiator and left block drain cock. The right side one (at least on the 5spd) has ATF lines covering the valve (you'd have to remove a bracket). IIRC, by draining the left block and radiator, I got about 11-11.5 qts of the 16 qts out on each drain. I simply drained them, filled the radiator w/ distilled water, ran the engine @ 2K rpm w/ f/r heaters cranked, drained again, then repeated 2 more times until the water draining out only had a slight tinge. Since you know you are draining 11 qts out, there are still 5 qts of distilled water in the heater cores and right block, so add 2 gal of LLC and 3 qts of distilled water and you know you have a 50-50 mixture.

You still have to remove the big plastic skid pan to access the left drain bolt (look underneath near the rear engine mount. The reason why I was so picky about flushing out the old coolant is I know the PO had the dealer do the service, and all dealers use tap water. Still, the inside of my radiator looked brand new. Next time at 90K, I'll have the dealer do the t-belt and bring in SLLC for them. This way, they won't screw it up and use distilled water.

The tech at my award winning toyota dealer said they just drain the radiator when they do a change, and that if you get the coolant hot enough, about 75% of it will drain out only through the radiator since it's the lowest point. Not true! I didn't get nearly that much out, so I had to drain the left block.

[Wellcraft19]

Kathmandu,

I "accidentally" took a photo of the drain plug on the driver side a few weeks ago. It is in this post:
http://forum.ih8mud.com/100-series-cruisers/148046-o2-sensor-replacement-found-pig-tail-connector.html