Hey all. I'm in the middle of a coolant change. The refill instructions I have say to fill the reservoir to begin the refill process, but when I do the fluid just sits there. Do I start the engine with no coolant in the system except for in the reservoir to get it to take it into the system? That doesn't seem good to me Thanks.

 

How did you drain the old coolant?

 

I think I'm OK, but so far it has pulled in less than 2 gallons.

I just opened the drain on the bottom of the radiator and let it drain until nothing else came out. Took a while. I know I'll have a bit left in the block, etc., but I'm not worried about that. Of course, I picked up 2 gals of Dexcool to do the swap and have only used one, so at this rate I could swap it again next weekend which would help in flushing out all of the old fluid

 

Make sure you remove the cap on the fill reservoir so it doesn't cause a vacuum and allows it to drain. When I did mine, it was a slow process, especially when filling. I drained and added back just about 2 gallons. Like you, I didn't care about what was left in the block. I did notice however that after changing the fluid, the engine coolant tends to run a couple of degrees cooler.

 

Also be sure to turn the heater controls to full hot in order to drain the heater core. When I did mine this past summer, I found that the draining & filling process is very slow. You can speed the drain process by disconnecting the upper radiator hose at the thermostat housing. I also did an initial fill with tap water.....ran the engine up to operating temp & drained again to get more of the old coolant out before adding fresh Dexcool.

 

Is 2 gallons what it is supposed to hold? I thought it was 3???

 

just start it for a few seconds and then the system will "burp" and the coolant will get sucked into the system

 

If you don't drain the old coolant in the block you will leave behind 2 to 3 quarts. If you are using straight Dexcool you will have to measure how much water you put in and add an equal amount of Dex or just use the pre mix version.

I usually use the Service Manual Flushing procedure below:
Flushing
Important: Do not use a chemical flush.

Store used coolant in the proper manner, such as in a used engine coolant holding tank. Do not pour used coolant down a drain. Ethylene glycol antifreeze is a very toxic chemical. Do not dispose of coolant into the sewer system or ground water. This is illegal and ecologically unsound.


Various methods and equipment can be used to flush the cooling system. If special equipment is used, such as a back flusher, follow the manufacturer's instruction. Always remove the thermostat before flushing the cooling system.


When the cooling system becomes contaminated, the cooling system should be flushed thoroughly to remove the contaminants before the engine is seriously damaged.

Drain the cooling system. Refer to Cooling System Draining and Filling.
Remove the surge tank. (I don't do this if the tank is clean which it usually is)
Clean and flush the surge tank with clean, drinkable water.
Install the surge tank. Refer to Radiator Surge Tank Replacement.
Follow the drain and fill procedure using only clean, drinkable water. Refer to Cooling System Draining and Filling.
Run the engine for 20 minutes.
Stop the engine.
Drain the cooling system. Refer to Cooling System Draining and Filling
Repeat the procedure if necessary, until the fluid is nearly colorless. (This takes about 3 times)
Fill the cooling system. Refer to Cooling System Draining and Filling.

When I do the final fill of the cooling system I first add 1/2 the capacity of the system with Dexcool and then top off with water. This usually brings me right to the 50/50 mixture required.

Bill