[Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
[Profile/Gallery]
, Mon, 7 Jul 2003 19:16:37
Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup
Those trucks use an old fashioned radiator cap with the overflow stuck into a bottle. There is nothing but hope and a prayer to stop air from being drawn back into the radiator when it cools along with some coolant from the bottle. The Green Stuff (silicate based inhibitor) develops a nice thick passive layer on the engine passages which is quite tolerant of a little oxygen flowing past, but the acid in DexCool won't stand for it.
Our Saabs, with their coolant reservoir integral with the system (no separate, unpressurized overflow tank) don't have that problem. Ditto for Mrs. G's Oldsmobile.
Our old favorites G-05 (Yellow One) and the similar G-48 (Blue One) are also acid based, with just a little bit of silicate to "fill in" where the acid inhibitor doesn't do well - badly designed water pump impellors, for example.
What to do? Watch for any trace of brown solids in the coolant. I never have, despite 4 years between flushes with Mrs. G's previous (and wrong-designed) Olds. If you decide to flush and fill within the warranty period, you should definitely replace with Dexcool if that's what's already in there. After that, use orange, yellow, or blue according to your own best guess.
Why not use Green Stuff? The thick passive layer gets in the way of heat transfer, and the silicate wears away at water pump seals.
Don't be tricked into using Red Stuff (ELC). It is nothing more (or less) than Orange Stuff with some nitrite added to prevent cavitation on wet-cylinder liners. We don't have wet liners in our Saabs. They claim ungodly life expectancy (600,000 miles) from the Red Stuff, but remember that's under the assumption of virtually continuous use. I've done the math, and those 600,000 miles will usually roll by within 5 years, the same rating that the Orange Stuff carries. Cross check the life rating for stationary engines and you find that it's rated for 2 years continuous operation.
posted by 24.166.84...
, Mon, 7 Jul 2003 19:16:37
, Mon, 7 Jul 2003 19:45:00
No Site Registration is Required to Post - Site Membership is optional (Member Features List), but helps to keep the site online
for all Saabers. If the site helps you, please consider helping the site by becoming a member.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
