Or a DexCool?
Thanks, I prefer G-05 since my new intake manifold gasket and changeover from DexCool.
Thanks, I prefer G-05 since my new intake manifold gasket and changeover from DexCool.
Prestone PreMixed Universal Coolant[Gold] = G-05?
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Yeah, I like the idea of G-05's instant protection (the reduced silicate levels) along with the stable, long-life protection of the OAT, too. I haven't had any problems with the SuperTech "All Makes" extended life antifreeze (also made by Prestone, but dyed blue-green) I currently have in my Hyundai (1 year, 4 mos. and counting) either.
Is the SuperTech G-05 or a DexCool family thingy?
Read somewhere that coolant begins to oxidize as soon as it's mixed with water. The advise was when buying premix'd coolant to check the date on the jug. If it's year or two old keep looking. Not sure if it's true just thought I'd pass it on.
I won't touch any of it that has the word silcate anywhere on the jug. Had some bad experiences with it eating away delicate parts on bike motors. Mainly magnesium and sand cast alum.
I won't touch any of it that has the word silcate anywhere on the jug. Had some bad experiences with it eating away delicate parts on bike motors. Mainly magnesium and sand cast alum.
outrun, WalMart "SuperTech" is a DEX-COOL "clone". (so named because it meets the GM DEX-COOL performance standard but is not licensed by GM to use the "DEX-COOL" name on its labeling) SuperTech extended life antifreeze uses exactly the same chemistry as Prestone's yellow jug "universal" extended life antifreeze. Only the marker dye coloring is different.
wileyE, I agree with your objections to silicates insofar as older, high-silicate content antifreeze products were concerned. (It wasn't that the coolant actually "oxidized". The problem was that high silicate levels are difficult to stabilize and keep in solution - the higher silicate levels gunk out as a gelled glop anytime after a couple of years, and will eventually dissociate further to hard silica micro-precipitates that're murder on waterpump seals.) The reduced silicate brews, such as G-05, (approximately 1/3 the former levels of silicates according to the Zerex website) are stable out to at least five years in use. G-05 has been used exclusively by Mercedes for over two decades as factory and service fill. G-05 is also the recommended antifreeze for BMW engines - including the new composite aluminum-magnesium 3-liter block used in the 325i and 330i models. (I think magnesium is cast as an outer block to form the coolant jacket around the aluminum cylinders if I understand the technology correctly. Tricky fabrication due to the two metals' different expansion rates...) G-05 has been the recommended antifreeze for Chrysler products since 2001, and for Ford since 2003. G-05 shows very good resistance to cavitation damage of wet cylinder liners and waterpump impellers. G-05 is recommended by Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Navistar, and Mack in their respective heavy-duty diesel engines. G-05 has a proven track record. You could definitely do worse without trying hard. (By the way - I'm not anti-DEX-COOL. I'll have been running the SuperTech extended life syrup in my Hyundai aluminum V6 for 17 months come this Friday. I just happen to now be of the opinion that Zerex G-05 offers some significant protection advantages at just a modestly higher price.) In short, think of silicates in coolant like vitamin A in vertebrates - a little is beneficial to the point of necessity, too much can cause very serious trouble.
wileyE, I agree with your objections to silicates insofar as older, high-silicate content antifreeze products were concerned. (It wasn't that the coolant actually "oxidized". The problem was that high silicate levels are difficult to stabilize and keep in solution - the higher silicate levels gunk out as a gelled glop anytime after a couple of years, and will eventually dissociate further to hard silica micro-precipitates that're murder on waterpump seals.) The reduced silicate brews, such as G-05, (approximately 1/3 the former levels of silicates according to the Zerex website) are stable out to at least five years in use. G-05 has been used exclusively by Mercedes for over two decades as factory and service fill. G-05 is also the recommended antifreeze for BMW engines - including the new composite aluminum-magnesium 3-liter block used in the 325i and 330i models. (I think magnesium is cast as an outer block to form the coolant jacket around the aluminum cylinders if I understand the technology correctly. Tricky fabrication due to the two metals' different expansion rates...) G-05 has been the recommended antifreeze for Chrysler products since 2001, and for Ford since 2003. G-05 shows very good resistance to cavitation damage of wet cylinder liners and waterpump impellers. G-05 is recommended by Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Navistar, and Mack in their respective heavy-duty diesel engines. G-05 has a proven track record. You could definitely do worse without trying hard. (By the way - I'm not anti-DEX-COOL. I'll have been running the SuperTech extended life syrup in my Hyundai aluminum V6 for 17 months come this Friday. I just happen to now be of the opinion that Zerex G-05 offers some significant protection advantages at just a modestly higher price.) In short, think of silicates in coolant like vitamin A in vertebrates - a little is beneficial to the point of necessity, too much can cause very serious trouble.
Ray,
Is G-05 better than the Honda coolant ?
Is G-05 better than the Honda coolant ?
Just curious, what color is this G-05 coolant supposed to be, and what's a good brand? I bought a new (used) Goldwing and need to flush out the coolant in it and from what I have been reading in various message boards is that this bike needs a silicate free coolant and the 'G-05' designation is the way to go. This is the first water-cooled bike I have owned so I'm on a new learing curve here.
G05 is light orange if it is in a Chrysler, Gold if it is a Ford, and nearly clear (slightly yellow) if new in a Zerox container.
LT4 Vette, G-05 is probably equivalent in performance to the Honda coolant. I hedge because the Japanese "big-three" are anti-silicate. (In former higher concentration levels, silicates had a tendency to destabilize in solution and fall out as waterpump seal-destructive hard precipitates. The reduced silicate levels in G-05 haven't been a problem.) The "big-three" Japanese coolants use phosphates for co-corrosion protection. In any event, G-05 has been used in Europe for decades. The Europeans' objection to the Japanese chemistry is based on the potential that the high phosphate levels could come out of solution and damage water pump seals due to Europe's high mineral content water. DEX-COOL has neither silicates nor phosphates. But, its disadvantage is that it won't mask underlying cooling system problems, nor does it establish ultimate corrosion protection as quickly as phosphates or silicates do. (OAT, by itself, can take several thousand miles of driving before it fully establshes a corrosion resistant barrier on bare metal.) Personally I think the Europeans are overstating the high-mineral content argument, but ya' never know what an individual European car owner will top up the radiator with... Be that as it may, G-05's definitely got a track record. It's factory fill for Mercedes and BMW in its various color guises.
road_rascal, G-05 is NOT silicate-free. If you truly want a silicate-free coolant, you're restricted to DEX-COOL chemistry or the Honda syrup.
_rascal, use the OEM Honda Type-II "blue" coolant that's already pre-mixed. Grab an extra gallon of it, and use that to flush your Wing's radiators.
Drop the old coolant out when the engine is cold, add the Type-II, keep the radiator cap off, and run the bike up to temp. Keep a rag over the fill hole when the engine's running, as the Honda bike thermostats have a bypass section in them that allows quite a bit of coolant to flow even when the thermostat's not open. Add more coolant while the engine is running to maintain a full level, blip the throttle to get things moving and the thermostat to open up, and then shut off the bike and let things drain.
Wait for 20 minutes or so for the engine to cool off, and then fill with the final load of the Type-II. Same drill as before -- cap off, get the engine warm, keep full, shut down, and then do a final top-off before replacing the cap.
Don't forget to clean out your overflow reservoir, and then fill that to an inch or so above the "hot" line. As the bike cools off overnight, coolant will be drawn out, and you should end up just about perfect level-wise when everything's completely cold again.
BTDT many times on my ST1100.
Drop the old coolant out when the engine is cold, add the Type-II, keep the radiator cap off, and run the bike up to temp. Keep a rag over the fill hole when the engine's running, as the Honda bike thermostats have a bypass section in them that allows quite a bit of coolant to flow even when the thermostat's not open. Add more coolant while the engine is running to maintain a full level, blip the throttle to get things moving and the thermostat to open up, and then shut off the bike and let things drain.
Wait for 20 minutes or so for the engine to cool off, and then fill with the final load of the Type-II. Same drill as before -- cap off, get the engine warm, keep full, shut down, and then do a final top-off before replacing the cap.
Don't forget to clean out your overflow reservoir, and then fill that to an inch or so above the "hot" line. As the bike cools off overnight, coolant will be drawn out, and you should end up just about perfect level-wise when everything's completely cold again.
BTDT many times on my ST1100.
Thanks for the tip. The bike is a 1998 model but only has 9300 miles on it. Other than oil changes no other fluids have been replaced on it (supervisor's ex-bike; he never rode it much in 8 years). I'm going to replace everything (fork, clutch, brake, rear gear oil, coolant, etc) as soon as the weather gets a touch warmer here.
I like G05 and get the stuff at PepBoys. I'm always concerned with statments like "it probably is or just as good as" JMO
Another silicate free OAT coolant choice is Peak Global, Peak long-life, or Final Charge fleet, all of which are made by Old World Industries (I think they are all the same, just different dyes and packaging), they are silicate free and are non 2-EHA (2-EH is a 'dex-cool' type formula) in formulation. Sodium benzoate seems to be part of the anti-corrosion chemistry.
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