Why not use prestone universal in everything?

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself
Originally Posted By: Donald

G-05 is fully compatible with the old green stuff which means you do not need to flush 100% of the old green stuff out before you switch to G-05.



Ford has an opinion about your opinion, at the page bottom:

http://www.fcsdchemicalsandlubricants.com/dealer/quickref/scuc.pdf


Ford and Zerex agree. They are compatible. But you do not get the full long life benefit of G-05 until all the old green stuff is flushed. I was thinking of a yearly drain and refill of radiator with G-05 for a few years then I would assume its close to 100% G-05.

I would continue to use the old green stuff in my 94 Camry except its hard to find and I would like to stock a single antifreeze for Jeep and Camry. The 2001 Jeep definitely wants G-05, but it looks like the old green stuff also, maybe prior owner converted factory fill of G-05 to old green stuff.

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: sayjac
Quote:
G-05, on the other hand, is everywhere now.
Huh? Not to be argumentative, but rather informational, Wally World does not carry it, nor Advance, nor Autozone, at least not in my part of country.


Must be a local thing. Around here (Austin TX) Zerex G-05 has got a big shelf presence at Pep Boys, O'Reilly, Napa, and Carquest. A local chain (A-line) carries Motorcraft G-05 on the shelves. Plus every Ford and Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer has it. I try to avoid Wal-Mart (not a political anti-Wal-mart thing, I just hate big crowds and big parking lots) but I'll check the next time I go in to stock up on Rotella Syn. I do avoid Autozone too- for corporate culture reasons relayed to me by friends who worked for Alldata during time when Autozone bought that company.

 

[ARB1977]

A gallon of Toyota Red is 27.00...pretty expensive. I still change it every 30K or two years. Factory stuff isnt cheap but its cheaper than a new cooling system.

 

[PeteTheFarmer]

Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
(antifreeze bottle labels aren't very informative for the most part).


Amen to that. Even an MSDS usually doesn't tell the whole story. As for house brands, I've seen a couple that only mention gycol on the label, leaving me to wonder what if any corrosion protection they have.

 

[ryland]

Originally Posted By: ARB1977
A gallon of Toyota Red is 27.00...pretty expensive. I still change it every 30K or two years. Factory stuff isnt cheap but its cheaper than a new cooling system.


Thats my whole point in this thread! You guys are missing it. What I'm trying to say is JUST USE PRESTONE!!! and dont worry about it. If it is truly universal than why ever choose something else. Under the coolant section of bitog it should just say see http://www.prestone.com

 

[Scimmia]

Originally Posted By: ryland
If it is truly universal
This is the key here statement here, IF IT IS TRUELY UNIVERSAL, which it is NOT. That's just marketing [censored].

 

[ryland]

Originally Posted By: Scimmia
Originally Posted By: ryland
If it is truly universal
This is the key here statement here, IF IT IS TRUELY UNIVERSAL, which it is NOT. That's just marketing [censored].


I dont think that they would be able to say that for as many years as they have without someone calling them on it. Also I would bet that most people have this in their cars and I dont see everyones radiators exploding. When you go to a parking lot its oil spots in the parking stalls not antifreeze puddles.

 

[Scimmia]

They were called on it, IIRC Ford sued them because of the claim. Just because the court says something is legally OK doesn't make it correct, just look at the whole Group III synthetic debacle.

I would take your bet, as I would bet heavily that most people still have the OEM coolant in their cars and haven't touched it.

 

[rumple]

Did you understand that Prestone contains the corrosion inhibitor 2-EHA which is incompatible (read that as softens and causes leaks in) many auto cooling systems, typically non-GM autos? It is not compatible with all makes, all models as their marketing spew indicates.

Valvoline took Honeywell (the owner of the Prestone brand) to task for advertising Prestone as "All Makes, All Models" with the National Advertising Division (NAD)of the Council of Better Business Bureaus to stop what they perceived as false advertising.

Valvoline won the action and the NAD recommended that Honeywell stop advertising Prestone as "All Makes, All Models". Guess what? Honeywell declined to adhere to the ruling. The NAD which is an advisory organization refereed the issue to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) for action, which sadly they rarely take in such matters.

Here is more info on the Valvoline vs. Honeywell dispute and the details into why Honeywell lost and why their advertising is false.

If the above does not convince you that Prestone is not in fact compatible with all makes, all models, happy sailing my friend.

Rumple
Originally Posted By: ryland
You guys are missing it. What I'm trying to say is JUST USE PRESTONE!!!

 

[Scimmia]

thanks for the info, rumple, I know Ford was really making a ruckus about not using it in their cars, so I was thinking they were the ones involved; I was obviously mistaken.

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: ryland
[

Thats my whole point in this thread! You guys are missing it. What I'm trying to say is JUST USE PRESTONE!!! and dont worry about it.


No one is "missing" your point, we're saying that your point is totally and completely WRONG.

Prestone "all makes all models" contains the primary ingredient in DexCool (2EHA) which attacks plastics and makes it INcompatible with many engine seals. Don't come crying to us if you lose a gasket and get a crankcase full of Prestone/oil goo. You've been warned. And don't believe everything you read on advertising glossies.

My hunch: Prestone's going to get badly burned over selling that stuff under the "universal" banner. I used nothing but Prestone for decades, but I won't ever use it again until they market their products correctly with separate DexCool, G-05, and conventional formulas the way Zerex does.

 

[doitmyself]

Originally Posted By: ryland
I dont think that they would be able to say that for as many years as they have without someone calling them on it. Also I would bet that most people have this in their cars and I dont see everyones radiators exploding. When you go to a parking lot its oil spots in the parking stalls not antifreeze puddles.



I wonder just how prevalent coolant system failures really are? A bit of Googling comes up with this ad naseum:

"Cooling system failure is the leading cause of mechanical breakdown on the highway, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation."

Anyone know about this DOT "study"? If true, maybe cooling systems are more problematic than we think.

 

[Sayjac]

I can now add O'Reilly to the list of NO G-05.

I looked first and saw only different brands of all makes and some Dex. When I asked the counter person he looked at me like I was stupid. Then he went to look and asked me what color it was. I laughed to myself and thought, and he thinks I'm the one that's stupid. After some time, he said G-05 with a quizzical look, though he never would admit they didn't carry it.

He just didn't believe there was such a coolant. And, when I said coolant, he said you mean antifreeze. Yeah, that's what I meant.

I tried to explain that it was the recommended coolant for Ford and Chrysler, I could see he had no clue.

Clearly, G-05 is much more difficult to find than any of the All Makes EL. Right or wrong, All makes EL is the predominate type coolant sold in the major retailers (Wally) and parts stores.

 

[01rangerxl]

Originally Posted By: sayjac
I can now add O'Reilly to the list of NO G-05.

I looked first and saw only different brands of all makes and some Dex. When I asked the counter person he looked at me like I was stupid. Then he went to look and asked me what color it was. I laughed to myself and thought, and he thinks I'm the one that's stupid. After some time, he said G-05 with a quizzical look, though he never would admit they didn't carry it.

He just didn't believe there was such a coolant. And, when I said coolant, he said you mean antifreeze. Yeah, that's what I meant.

I tried to explain that it was the recommended coolant for Ford and Chrysler, I could see he had no clue.

Clearly, G-05 is much more difficult to find than any of the All Makes EL. Right or wrong, All makes EL is the predominate type coolant sold in the major retailers (Wally) and parts stores.


I have only found Zerex G-05 at NAPA. Auto Zone and Advance pretty much only have the all makes stuff. Interestingly, Wal-Mart has all makes along with Dex-Cool from Prestone that is specifically labeled as Dex and has the GM logo on it. Of course, dealers have G-05, just not the parts stores. We have a pretty large John Deere dealer nearby, so I'll see what their price is on a gallon of Cool-Gard (G-05 dyed green) the next time I do a drain and fill.

 

[Diesel_Clatter]

Surprisingly, our local Drug Mart drug store chain has about the best selection of antifreeze around.

They have a dex cool, they have Zerex low silicate green, they have one of the universal dex cool clones, and, yes, they have Zerex G-05.

We have an ION with dex cool and a Corolla with Toyota red and I am toying with the idea of flushing and converting both to G-05 since I find the different coolant for every car thing a little irritating.

 

[onion]

While I'm a big fan of G05... and I'm not too familiar with imports- you might want to do a little investigation before putting G05 in a Yota. I've been told that Japanese manufacturers are adamant about wanting no silicate whatsoever in their cooling system. Not sure that the small amount of silicate in G05 would hurt anything, but you might want to look into it.

Hopefully others here can elaborate- but I think the BITOG consensus has been that Peak Global Lifetime is a better choice for the Yota.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: Diesel_Clatter
Surprisingly, our local Drug Mart drug store chain has about the best selection of antifreeze around.

They have a dex cool, they have Zerex low silicate green, they have one of the universal dex cool clones, and, yes, they have Zerex G-05.

We have an ION with dex cool and a Corolla with Toyota red and I am toying with the idea of flushing and converting both to G-05 since I find the different coolant for every car thing a little irritating.


What year Toyota? The Zerex chart shows to use Zerex G-05 through 1996 in Asian cars then after that use the Zerex DexCool. I would never use DexCool.

So I might use G-05 until 1996 then use Peak Global if it was newer than 1996.

You can find Peak Global at some Walymarts, and its been seen in both gold and blue jugs.

 

[kschachn]

Originally Posted By: Donald

What year Toyota? The Zerex chart shows to use Zerex G-05 through 1996 in Asian cars then after that use the Zerex DexCool. I would never use DexCool.


Same here, I saw that on their website too and thought it was a bit strange.

I'm one for using Toyota coolant anyway. Both my Toyotas have well over 100,000 miles on them (one at 198,000) and both have sparkling clean cooling systems. On the 198,000 mile Sienna, I changed out the water pump with the last new timing belt. I might well have left it in there as the thing looked brand new.

Toyota red is about $17 a gallon here and that of course makes two gallons when diluted. I guess the gallon of distilled water costs another buck (on sale at Walgreens this week for $0.69 though!) but even then it is reasonable.

I just wouldn't use anything else.

P.S. The same goes for Honda blue (Type 2) in my Honda.

 

[Donald]

The thing that is odd about the Zerex chart is that I would guess a 1995 Toyota had the old green stuff in it from the factory rather than G-05 yet the charts says to use G-05. I use the old green stuff in my 94 Camry as I believe that is what came in it from factory. The owners manual just says ethylene glycol antifreeze.

Does anyone know what year these new antifreezes came out and auto makes went away from the old green stuff? I certainly cannot remember.

 

[ryland]

Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: ryland
[

Thats my whole point in this thread! You guys are missing it. What I'm trying to say is JUST USE PRESTONE!!! and dont worry about it.


No one is "missing" your point, we're saying that your point is totally and completely WRONG.

Prestone "all makes all models" contains the primary ingredient in DexCool (2EHA) which attacks plastics and makes it INcompatible with many engine seals. Don't come crying to us if you lose a gasket and get a crankcase full of Prestone/oil goo. You've been warned. And don't believe everything you read on advertising glossies.

My hunch: Prestone's going to get badly burned over selling that stuff under the "universal" banner. I used nothing but Prestone for decades, but I won't ever use it again until they market their products correctly with separate DexCool, G-05, and conventional formulas the way Zerex does.




So do you guys think I should go back to using honda coolant then? Even though I've already had problems with it and no problems with prestone??