Coolant flush vs drain and fill

[Jay3702]

So on my 06 Mustang it uses the gold coolant, every year I do a drain And fill, super easy and never been a problem.
I’m thinking of doing the same thing with my 2016 F150 since it’s due for a coolant change. Ford switched over to a new coolant but it is compatible

 

[rob1715]

I think that overkill, but your truck will be very happy.

 

[Jay3702]

I think that overkill, but your truck will be very happy.

Yeah I guess my Mustang is a little spoiled maybe I’ll do every two or 3 years for the truck

 

[doublebase]

Spill and fills are my preferred method...and I own a coolant exchange machine (that I never use).

It’s easier to just drain and fill a radiator evey other year, or whatever, after the factory initial fill is used up (somewhere over 70,000 miles, or whenever they suggest it). And I never bother draining a block, the last thing I need is to break a drain in there and have to worry about replacing it.

 

[wpod]

Spill and fill adds about a third of new additives and reduces what ever "dirt form a cover all description" in the coolant by a third.

 

[atikovi]

What's the point? Coolant is good for 100,000 or 150,000 miles. Why not just do a complete flush and change once and start fresh instead of adding new coolant to old, 4 or 5 times? That's like draining a quart of oil from your car every 1,000 miles and adding a new quart instead of just changing it all every 5,000 miles.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I usually do a drain and fill on all vehicles every 2 or 3 years. It's much less expensive than replacing a corroded leaking heater core. Plus, that tank looks nice with clean looking anti freeze in it. Anti freeze is cheap and so easy to drain and refill.

 

[JohnnyG]

One certain benefit to following your plan, even if it is a bit too frequent, is that you'll never have to be concerned about having the correct 50/50 concentration in your system.

 

[supton]

That's like draining a quart of oil from your car every 1,000 miles and adding a new quart instead of just changing it all every 5,000 miles.

Don’t some large engines do just that? Constant loss systems, something like that. Big engines, like ocean going.

Spill and fill is easier, done once or twice over the life of the car, goes the distance and off to the next owner.

 

[atikovi]

Don’t some large engines do just that? Constant loss systems, something like that. Big engines, like ocean going.

No, plenty of BITOG owners cars are like that, but we can't shame them because of it.

 

[doublebase]

What's the point? Coolant is good for 100,000 or 150,000 miles. Why not just do a complete flush and change once and start fresh instead of adding new coolant to old, 4 or 5 times? That's like draining a quart of oil from your car every 1,000 miles and adding a new quart instead of just changing it all every 5,000 miles.

Why? Because it’s difficult and a drain and fill is nothing like dropping a quart of oil every 1,000 miles. Coolant will remain clean with partial replacement of fluid. And it’s a ten minute job every couple years. There is no filter, or internal combustion byproducts to worry about.

A Simple drain and fill at around 100,000 miles is what some manufacturers suggest with their long life coolants, followed by drain and fills every 50,000 miles thereafter.

Most importantly After 100,000 miles you are at the point of coolant system repair/maintenance anyway. This is when your water pumps, radiators, houses and thermostats are starting to fail/need replacement. When you replace these parts you will be replacing more coolant anyway. Seems a waste to do a full flush/replacement...and go through that effort, only to have your water pump fail 10,000 miles later. IMO.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Drain the radiator, and then refill with the Lisle coolant funnel

 

[atikovi]

Seems a waste to do a full flush/replacement...and go through that effort, only to have your water pump fail 10,000 miles later. IMO.

To each his own, but it seems just as much a waste to drain and refill the system every 20,000 miles when coolant is perfectly fine to over 100,000 miles.

 

[supton]

To each his own, but it seems just as much a waste to drain and refill the system every 20,000 miles when coolant is perfectly fine to over 100,000 miles.

I'd agree, but I don't see a problem with doing 50% of fluid at the 50% mark. 50% at the 75% mark (75k into a 100k lifespan) is probably fine too.

 

[350Rocket]

Spill and fills are my preferred method...and I own a coolant exchange machine (that I never use).

It’s easier to just drain and fill a radiator evey other year, or whatever, after the factory initial fill is used up (somewhere over 70,000 miles, or whenever they suggest it). And I never bother draining a block, the last thing I need is to break a drain in there and have to worry about replacing it.

I think a regular drain and fill would be enough if done right from the beginning before the cooling system gets nasty...
I had a good experience with the flush machine at my old job (Goodyear independent shop) when my Cutlass started running hot on the highway. The engine was a junkyard find and ran water only the first 3 months until we found all the rusty frost plugs and replaced them...then it was fresh coolant and deionized water. I think it got one drain and fill when the aluminum rad needed welding but then it was a few years before it started running hot at highway speeds with ac on in the summer. I used the flush machine and pumped prob 4 gallons of water through it before filling with 50/50. No more overheating since then.

Obviously I had a lot of old buildup left in the block of my 1976 engine, but I've seen some nasty looking cooling systems in much newer vehicles.

I drained and filled my 2005 Silverado a couple times a couple years ago but i think it should be done again since I don't know how dirty it is inside. It was neglected by my employer before I bought it from him a couple years ago. Original coolant for 15 years minus the top up from a water pump replacement a few years before that. The picture I attached...the very left bottle is some coolant I extracted while checking strength for the cold weather. The black stuff is brake fluid.

 

[philipp10]

" That's like draining a quart of oil from your car every 1,000 miles and adding a new quart instead of just changing it all every 5,000 miles"

How is running 5 quarts for 5000 miles different than doing what you just described? Its not. the average miles per quart are the same. The transmission fluid chngers on here generally do the same thing, drain a percentage, then add clean right back in.

 

[atikovi]

" That's like draining a quart of oil from your car every 1,000 miles and adding a new quart instead of just changing it all every 5,000 miles"

How is running 5 quarts for 5000 miles different than doing what you just described? Its not. the average miles per quart are the same. The transmission fluid chngers on here generally do the same thing, drain a percentage, then add clean right back in.

Coolant doesn't deteriorate like transmission fluid so a drain & refill of trans fluid is just smart. Besides, a radiator is a lot cheaper to replace than a transmission.

 

[Boomer]

The coolant circulates through my overflow tanks on both VWs. I suck out the coolant and replace with the proper VW coolant every few thousand miles. Everything stays nice and clean, and I keep adding anti-corrosion chemicals this way.

 

[Tomioka]

I do radiator spill and fills at half the service interval of a complete coolant flush. No need to deal with stuck engine block plugs or pulling hoses to completely get all the coolant out.

 

[Donald]

You are going to use the Ford yellow (I think) coolant? It is the latest and I know it replaces Ford orange and I assume Ford gold. A drain and fill is fine but try and drain the engine block also. Opening the block drains every year or two is always a good idea.