Originally Posted By: PandaBear
Originally Posted By: AdRock
I've worked on quite a few cars with this problem. Below is the process I used that seemed to help the most if not stop the problem.
1. Clean every ground you can find and the terminals on the battery.
2. Pull out the thermostat
3. Put some Prestone or other flush in the system and fill it back up with water
4. Start the car and let it run for a while. Then drive around for 10 or 15 minutes with the heater on full blast.
5. come back and let the car cool down
6. pull the radiator and have it tanked to completely clean it out. Fix or replace it if it's leaking
7. While the radiator is out backflush the [censored] out of the system until no more junk is coming out and the water is clear.
8. Check all the hoses for interior cracking or sludge. Replace if needed.
9. Put the radiator back in
10. Put a new thermostat in
11. Fill with 30% coolant, 70% deionized water, & a bottle of Redline Water Wetter
12. Make sure to burp the system
13. New radiator cap
14. After a drive cycle or two check to see if anymore water needs to be put in
This process has served me very well in the past.
Can't you just backflush the system with a garden hose when you have the T stat out? and why a formula of 30% coolant and water wetter? why not just 50% coolant?
Yes you can backflush with the garden hose. That's how I've always done it. One thing I used to have, don't know where it went, was a fitting I made that would let me clamp the upper radiator around the end of the garden hose that way all water pressure was forced through the block. But yea, put the garden hose into the upper radiator hose with the thermostat out and turn it on full blast and let it run.
As for the Watter Wetter, it works best with less antifreeze in the system. Here's a think from Redlines site, pretty informative and easier than me typing it all out, give it a watch.
http://www.redlineoil.com/products_coolant.asp?subCategoryID=4&coolantFlash=1
Depending on the climate you live in and how often you see temps that could cause freezing in the cooling system, that can change how much antifreeze is needed in the system. Use enough to keep the system from freezing on cold days or nights but no more. The rest should be the water wetter and distilled or deionized water.
A lot of people see the water wetter as another snake oil but I've had good luck with it and know other people that have also. For $8, even if it doesn't work for you it's worth a try. It won't hurt anything.