Now I'm scared and paranoid

[myf150]

I have an '02 F150 with the V6 and I flushed out the coolant system for the first time yesterday and put in some of that Prestone GM approved dexcool stuff (orange). The original stuff was green, and I'm usually pretty picky about what goes into my engine, but my dad was helping me do it and he said to put in the orange stuff...along with hose water..

I knew initially that you were supposed to use distilled but of course ol' dad knows best, and now I figure out that theres all these horror stories about dexcool, and my logic says that the green stuff seems to not have many complaints.

I would really want to do a proper flush using the tips that I found here, and put back in the green stuff, but it seems like a huge waste of money to dump out all the stuff already in there. Can I keep the dexcool and tap water in there for maybe a few months and then switch back to the green? How thoroughly do I need to flush the system so I don't have the two mixing together and causing problems?

 

[Virtuoso]

You sure can keep it in there. I ran tap water in my cooling systems for a long time without much build-up. (but I think that depends alot on where you live..)

I do use distilled water now.

FWIW The regular Prestone is basically Dex-Cool now too, even though it's pea-green.

 

[deepsquat]

I have always used garden hose water ..but then again I live in Washington State ..my water comes from run off from Mt Rainer some of the best water in the world ..if I do say so myself!

Now if in OK the water if very mineral heavey you may want to flush it out and use distilled ...hey the anti freeze was only $7.00 a gallon ...how much is a water pump or a radiator?

 

[Mike242GT]

With a truck that new, I'm pretty sure you have an aluminum and plastic radiator. However if you have a metal radiator (brass/copper), you may be in for some leaks, as the Dexcool will react with the solder that holds the rad together! Unless your tap water there is really nasty (lots of dissolved solids) and/or you have a metal rad, I'd just leave it in and check it regularly.

 

[Mr Nice]

If it came with the green coolant, keep using green coolant. Personally I WOULD NOT use Dexcool, but I would use Zerex G-05.

 

[pbm]

I believe that I read somewhere that Dexcool (and its clones) are more tolerant of tap water use than regular (non OAT) type A/F's. If it were me I'd leave it in a year or two at most and then go to G-05 type.

 

[myf150]

So if I flush out the system tomorrow, will I have to go as far as removing the thermostat or lower radiator hose, or can i just open the radiator drain plug, let it all out, then put in water and run the engine to operating temp and turn on the heater to let it circulate? I'll probably do this 3 or 4 times to make sure its all out.

I'm thinking the dexcool didn't have a chance to circulate all the way through since we barely ran the engine to operating temp after filling in the water/dexcool mix...

I also found that we have some Supertech antifreeze in a blue container..and it says it can last up to 5 years. Anyone know the story on that stuff?

 

[pbm]

quote:

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Originally posted by myf150:
[QB water/dexcool mix...

I also found that we have some Supertech antifreeze in a blue container..and it says it can last up to 5 years. Anyone know the story on that stuff? [/QB]

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According to the very knowledgeable Ray H. of this board the ST is the same as Prestones new yellow EL antifreeze which is the same as what you put in your truck minus the orange dye...thus avoiding paying the Dexcool licensing fees.
You can double check using the SEARCH feature.

 

[myf150]

Alright I went out and got 4 gallons of distilled water, and Zerex G-05. I flushed out as much of the cooldex as I could and I put a gallon of distilled water in and let the engine go to operating temp with the heater on (the heater eventually blew cold?). But it seems like it's about to storm here so I'm going to finish up tomorrow morning.

 

[Ray H]

You'd have been fine with the Prestone DEX-COOL, but, if dumping it gave you peace of mind, that's fine, too. Though fully licensed to meet GM's DEX-COOL performance spec, the Prestone and other non-GM/Havoline DEX-COOLs use slightly different chemistry for their OAT corrosion inhibitor. Prestone's DEX-COOL lists the same ingredients as Prestone's "All Makes Universal" extended-life non-GM licensed antifreeze/coolant and ST's like product in the blue jug. Someone posted awhile back that Advance Auto Parts' extended life syrup is also made by Prestone. The difference? licensed DEX-COOL, regardless of manufacturer, is always dyed orange. The non-licensed DEX-COOL clones may be any color, though none are orange to my knowledge. I've been running the ST in the blue jug (green, but NOT the same as traditional silicated green Prestone that's apparently now out of production*) diluted with distilled water for over 9 months without any problems in my 2003 Sonata V6. Zerex G-05 is very good stuff, so sleep tight.

*There are still some house brand conventional silicated antifreeze/coolants available, though.

 

[myf150]

It seems like it's getting very hard to find coolants that are NOT dexcool. Wally world stocks nothing but it, and at Autozone I was lucky to find the G-05 sitting on a box in the middle of an aisle. I'm just glad I don't need to change it out as often as oil or I'd be stocking up on G-05 now.

Anyone ever try gas stations or some supermarkets for the conventional green stuff? Might be a good place to look since the stock isn't updated often.

 

[Meistersinger]

quote:

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Originally posted by myf150:

Anyone ever try gas stations or some supermarkets for the conventional green stuff? Might be a good place to look since the stock isn't updated often.

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Your local Shell stations should be stocking 'Shellzone' which is a conventional green. Hope this helps.