Diesel engine coolant

[old farmer]

What is the difference between heavy duty diesel engine coolant and standard green stuff used in cars and light trucks? Or what's the advantage of each? Which one would be best to use in an old gasoline fueled tractor with wet sleeves? Thanks!

 

[doitmyself]

I'll take a stab at this. Low silicates and SCA seem to be the ingredients required for wet sleeve diesel engines.

Coolants have changed in the past few years. Even today's conventional green coolants have lower silicates in them (check the Zerex site). As I understand it, with the old type high silicate green coolants, the silicates would lead to cavitation (pitting THROUGH the cylinder wall)on wet sleeve engines.

Diesel coolants also have SCA (Supplemental Coolant Additive) to address the issues of diesel engine cooling systems.

You can find diesel coolants with the SCA already added (John Deere and others), or you can buy a conventional like the Zerex and add the SCA yourself.

High use engines (over the road) recommend monitoring the SCA levels and adding more when required.

Diesel coolants, I have been told, are o.k. in gas engines too. In most gas engines, the SCA would be of no benefit.

Also, I haven't confirmed it, but I have read that the JD coolant is an G05 type. It can be used in both diesel and gasoline.

Did I confuse you more???

 

[George7941]

Standard green automotive coolant for automobiles have a lot of silicate in them to protect aluminium engine components, older diesel engines had few aluminium components. Cavitation is a bigger issue with diesel engines, hence diesel coolants are formulated to resist cavitation better. For a old gasoline engine I would go with conventional green diesel coolant(in Ontario this would be the Permflow brand, available at all truck dealers). OAT coolants do not protect brass well(so I hear) and I suspect your tractor has a copper/brass rad. Because your engine has wet sleeves I would pick conventional diesel over conventional automotive coolant.

 

[Thatwouldbegreat]

How about Shell Rotella ELC ?

http://www.shell.com/home/Framework?site...rotellaelc.html

 

[onion]

If it was mine, I'd put a heavy-duty coolant with SCA's in it. John Deere stuff works great, but it's expensive. Mother Deere even puts it in their new skidsteer/utility tractor engine, which has lots of aluminum. You can get Texaco heavy duty stuff at Advance Auto Parts, and it's cheap... it'd work fine. Lots of older trucks run it.

The high-silicate green automotive stuff is getting hard to come by nowadays- it's mostly been replaced with assorted "all-makes" OAT stuff (similar to dexcool, different color). Just the same, something with SCA's would be a much better choice in your case.

 

[oil pan 4]

I use Texaco heavy duty coolant concentrate in my old camaro and my 6.2L diesel.
Its Not a dexacool nock off
Its Not watered down
I only recomend people put 3 things in there engine cooling system gas or diesel.
Texaco
Or
LowTox
And
Water, distilled is best.
Any of those JohnDeere or CAT coolants should be great, but a lot of people don't have or know of a CAT or JohnDeere store near them.
If it has wet sleeves use a Diesel spefic coolant or grab some of that addtive.
I have heard that wet sleeve engines need coolant with nitrates for some reason. No clue why.

 

[onion]

Texaco heavy duty antifreeze and John Deere antifreeze are much the same- they both use SCA's (supplemental coolant additives), which include nitrates. They're both green and they both test pretty much the same with the SCA test strips used at most diesel shops. I agree with oilpan- Texaco heavy duty antifreeze would be your best bang for tha buck.