Coolant flush questions compilation

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Leandro

Leandro

Joined
Oct 10, 2016
Threads
86
Messages
915
Location
Middle Tennessee
Hi all
before everybody jump to my neck, I did search the forum and read almost every post I found.
having said that, I still have more questions, that were not clear enough for me.
I have a LX with 188K miles on it.
I need to change both radiator hoses and I thought it could be a good time to do a flush, especially because my truck has the green coolant (it came with it) and during the timing belt replacement the shop topped it off with doubtful quality green stuff.

I read that is not recommended to mix up green and red coolants, so how do I make sure that all the green stuff is out? especially from the rear heater core.
I was planning on flushing it with distilled water before putting the new red coolant, or at this point it would be advisable to put a good quality green coolant?
BTW, did anybody try the Valvoline red coolant? it's half the price.

I was not planning on replacing the thermostat, however some sites recommend to remove it during the flush to make the water flow better. So if i have to remove it, i just go ahead and replace it. Opinions?

I want to also replace the Ts, I don't know if they were ever replaced or if I even need it, but the forum made me hypochondriac. I was thinking on putting bronze Ts. Now the question is if the metal Ts will transfer more heat to the hoses and make them fail.

I think that's all I have for now.

Thanks in advance.
 
Drain all coolant, change out hoses and heater tees.
Fill up radiator with distilled water and run engine with heater on high both front and rear. Add water until it's full.
Shut down, drain water.
Repeat fill/run engine/shut down & drain process until water is clear (will take several fills).
Dump clear water.
Refill with red Toyota coolant.

The little bit of distilled water left in the system won't affect anything.
BTW, if you can do this on a driveway with a slight slope, it will help the coolant system burp air out in the system with the radiator being the highest point in the system.

Might as well replace the thermostat if you don't know when it was done last. I don't remove mine when I do the flushing.
Don't worry about metal tees damaging anything, the hoses are made to get hot. I used OEM plastic tees when I did mine, FWIW.

Hope that helps.
 
Capture and please dispose of old coolant properly (local disposal link for you below). I use a mortar tub to capture the old coolant (link below). I suggest the use of a coolant flush kit (link below) with the vehicle heaters on to flush old coolant from the system, with both the block and rad petcocks open. Take care not over-pressurize cooling system with your garden hose connection (easy to do). Refill the system with distilled water and your favorite AF at proper ratio for your locale.

Amazon.com: Prestone AF-KIT Flush 'N Fill Kit: Automotive

Bon 11-407 26-Inch by 20-Inch by 6-1/2-Inch Handyman Utility Tub - Masonry Mortars - Amazon.com

Hazardous Waste Disposal | Lisle, IL - Official Website
 
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@mrbigboy has a good process. I would just add that the expansion tank needs to be flushed too. And, you're not being paranoid if the heater T's have not been replaced at 188,000. For sure do that with either brass or OEM. I don't see the year of your LX, but I suggest you get either Toyota red or Toyota pink, whichever is OEM for your year. No need to replace the thermostat, but you won't get full circulation of the flush water unless the engine is warm and the stat is open.
 
Thanks all for the responses. I saw the prestone flush kit on Walmart, but was $3, the amazon link above is $106
 
Best way is to remove a couple hoses and flush the system with a garden hose. Keep pumping water through until it comes out clear on the other end. Same can be done with your heater core.
 
Once it's all clear you can drain most of the water out via block drains, lower rad hose, etc, and refill with Toyota coolant.
 
As for the heater T's. mine lasted 200 000Km before I replaced them (they were code red at that point), but 19 years and that type of mileage is a fairly durable part IMO. I just replaced them with OEM.
 
Thanks all for the responses.
Will probably wait for the weather to get warmer.
 
AMGAndrew said:
Walmart has Valvoline "Asian" with Zerex technology for $12 and it meets Toyota coolant standards with a 5 year/150k mile service life. Good enough for me.
Click to expand...
That's exactly the one I was asking about. I'll buy that one.
 
Leandro said:
Thanks all for the responses. I saw the prestone flush kit on Walmart, but was $3, the amazon link above is $106
Click to expand...
Yes, sorry...$106 can not be a real price. A flush kit makes quick work of getting all old coolant out. Other functional ways also noted herein. Cheers.
 
I did my flush this weekend.
Took 4 flushes to get clear water coming out the system.
I made the first flush with tap water and prestone flush fluid. The following 3 flushes were made with distilled water.
I drained the system thru the radiator and engine block drains, only the driver side, couldn't see the passenger side drain.
I could only get between 2.5 and 3 gallons out of the system, not the full 4 gallons that the manual specifies. The same way, i only got 3 gallons back in.
Replaced the Ts with metal ones, bought them on Amazon for about $13 a piece. Replaced also the 6 hoses that coonect to the Ts. What a PITA was to remove the smaller 1/2 inch hoses from the core pipes.

Any advice in yhe amount of coolant? I'm pretty sure the green stuff is all out, but I'm afraid the red coolant I put would be more diluted than 50/50.

Thanks
 
You could check with a hydrometer for that type of coolant. Lots of discussion on this about the accuracy but this measurement could give you a rough estimate.

I would not worry since you have changed the fluid which refreshes the anticorrosion properties of coolant which is more important than maximizing/minimizing the freeze/boil point if you live in mild climates.

My dad changed out his coolant with water since he lives where it does not freeze. Since the radiator was aluminum, it started to corrode and reduce heat transfer properties which caused overheating. If he had just added anticorrosion additive, he would have been fine.

No if your towing and driving your cooling system hard, you could get it tested.

https://www.analystsinc.com/oil-analysis-fluid-testing/coolant-analysis/

Coolant Hydrometers | Cooling System Fluids & Additives | Bob Is The Oil Guy
 
I've flushed 4 gallons of distilled water through the engine and it still is coming out nasty greenish red every time! I'm going to keep doing it until it's clear but the PO must've mixed coolants :/
 
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