Antifreeze warning!

[Steph_D]

My car has been messing up for a while, and now it's parked under the carport until I can get the radiator flushed out (hoping that will fix it). Last weekend we changed everything that we could think of, but it's still getting hot and not running right. I looked in the radiator jug and it looked like a pink milkshake in there. Weeelllll, I didn't know that there was a difference between the red and green antifreeze, but there is a major difference. If you put the wrong color in, your antifreeze will GEL and eventually could warp the head of the engine, among a lot of other damage. My car is supposed to use the green antifreeze and we've only had it for 6 months. Sometime before we got it, someone put in red and now my car is VERY sick.

I'm sure that a lot of you know about this, but we didn't. I figure if it helps at least one person to save their car or truck, it's worth looking like an idiot!

Be sure you check your owner's manual to see what kind of antifreeze you need to use and if you're not sure of the color, call a parts store like I did.

 

[bluetaterbaby]

I didn't know that! Thanks for this valuable information.

God bless,

Joan

 

[justaboutgeese]

Are you sure that "red anti-freeze" is not transmission fluid ??? Most vehicals have transmission coolers INSIDE the radiators that are a sealed separate system. If that transmission cooler happens to leak you could end up with red transmission fluid in your antifreeze. If this is the case flushing it will be necessary but it will not solve your problem. First thing to do is check your transmission fluid level. That will be your first clue. The leak might be a small one so the system will need to be pressure tested (a simple procedure). Personally I think the chances are higher for the transmission cooler leak than the alternative.

 

[shminifancier]

Yes is is very true about the New types of antifreeze...There is Really THREE colors now of antifreeze~!! Orange....Green,,,,,and Red,,,,, different types of antifreeze and what was posted is true and will happen if you mix the different types together..

An alternative to tradition green antifreeze is a product currently used by many engine manufacturers. "Orange" antifreeze is a long life or extended life type of antifreeze used to increase the useful life of engine coolant. It is ethylene glycol base as is the green antifreeze. The difference between the two colors is that orange antifreeze contains a different type of corrosion inhibitor that has a much longer service life than silicates, phosphates and borates. Orange antifreeze contains organic acids that protect engine parts from corrosion. Silicate (green) type antifreeze does not mix with orange type antifreeze. Never mix the two colors in a cooling system. The organic acids in orange types will cause precipitation of silicates in the green type and corrosion protection is greatly reduced. Orange type antifreezes are good for five years or 100,000/150,000 miles in newer vehicles (1996 and later). They can be used in many older vehicles (ask your vehicle dealer if it is safe to use orange antifreeze) if all of the green mixture is flushed from the system and is replaced with the orange mixture. Useful life is about four years or 60,000 miles in older cars.

Toyota uses a red antifreeze in many of its products and should not be confused with the orange type long life antifreezes. It is essentially the green type of antifreeze that contains red dye to give it the red color.

If you have doubts about switching from the red or green type of antifreeze to the new orange extended life antifreezes, contain your equipment manufacturer or dealer and ask about compatibility with your engine parts and cooling system.

Cummings diesel engines have silicone seals in the engine and do not recommend use of orange antifreeze because the organic acids will cause degradation of the seals after 80,000 to 100,000 miles of use. Coolant can leak past damaged seals into the engine lubrication oil system and plug oil filters with resulting damage to the engine.

 

[Buckskin gal]

Steph, I really appreciate your post to let us be aware of the differences in antifreeze. I didn't know about it but glad I do now!

Mary