2nd Generation Specific 1986-1992 Discussion

The right way to change coolant

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Old 05-02-2002, 05:45 PM
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I was looking around the fc3s-pro site and came across the coolant change section. It basically says that All FC rad's should be upgraded due to the weak stocker. As for the serious coolant change, they recommend draining everything, filling it with Prestone Superflush and water, then driving around until the system boils over and your temp gauge hits the H. Then shut it down, cool it off, drain it, fill and drain again, then fill.



That doesn't sound real comforting too me but I definitely want to do a real good change this time and try to get more of the deposits out.



I change my coolant once a year even though the car only gets about 2-3K per year on it. I figure with sitting as much as it does, the deposits can definitely build up thick in the water passages.



I'm putting in 20% prestone, Redline water wetter, and the rest distilled water. Last time I used this combo with a big electric fan on my 86, it ran cooler and didn't heat up as quickly under full throttle runs. What do you guys think about this procedure from fc3s pro?? :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss:
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Old 05-02-2002, 05:48 PM
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i've heard mixed reviews of water wetter some say it eats the coolant seals !
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Old 05-02-2002, 06:36 PM
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Originally Posted by crx7cm' date='May 02 2002,19:45
I was looking around the fc3s-pro site and came across the coolant change section. It basically says that All FC rad's should be upgraded due to the weak stocker. As for the serious coolant change, they recommend draining everything, filling it with Prestone Superflush and water, then driving around until the system boils over and your temp gauge hits the H. Then shut it down, cool it off, drain it, fill and drain again, then fill.



That doesn't sound real comforting too me but I definitely want to do a real good change this time and try to get more of the deposits out.



I change my coolant once a year even though the car only gets about 2-3K per year on it. I figure with sitting as much as it does, the deposits can definitely build up thick in the water passages.



I'm putting in 20% prestone, Redline water wetter, and the rest distilled water. Last time I used this combo with a big electric fan on my 86, it ran cooler and didn't heat up as quickly under full throttle runs. What do you guys think about this procedure from fc3s pro?? :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss: :monkeypiss:
If you change the coolant every year then you shouldn't need to flush the sytem. Just drain the radiator and take out the other drain plug near the driver's side motor mount. If the coolant looks good then just fill it back up.
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Old 05-02-2002, 09:28 PM
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BTW, the stock radiator do suck and I do recommend to change it with an aftermarket. They're expensive ($400) but are definitly worth it. If you have the money and yours is leaking (mine is) its a good upgrade....but if you drive it 3k miles a year, its another question.
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Old 05-02-2002, 11:41 PM
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Who in there right mind would want to purposley overheat

for any reason?
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Old 05-03-2002, 07:24 PM
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Originally Posted by alton316' date='May 02 2002,22:41
Who in there right mind would want to purposley overheat

for any reason?
I have no idea but these guys probably know what their talking about...... Anyway, I only change it once a year but i've also only had it 2 years and I'm thinking it sat for a long time before I bought it. I can't tell if anyone has ever backflushed the engine. I'll flush the engine but I'm not doing that overboil thing. ut:
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Old 05-04-2002, 02:14 PM
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I still have my original radiator that came with the car, suits me fine. If the car is all stock, why bother changing the radiator until you have to?
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Old 05-04-2002, 11:46 PM
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If you have no temperature or leaking problem, just flush it. What you could do is to refill it with water, warm it up and flush it again completely. And refill it with new coolant. The most important thing is to replace all the coolant because the coolant turns into acid after a time and the worst enemy for radiator is the acid in the old coolant. ut:
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Old 05-09-2002, 05:27 AM
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Originally Posted by Rob x-7' date='May 04 2002,13:14
I still have my original radiator that came with the car, suits me fine. If the car is all stock, why bother changing the radiator until you have to?
My radiator's fine too, I'm just telling you guys what their saying.



I didn't do the overheat thing. I installed a prestone flush and fill tee in the heater hose going to the lower rad hose and backflushed it that way. It worked great, got everthing out. It just takes a while to get the car warm enough to open the thermostat.
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Old 05-09-2002, 08:47 AM
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The overheat thing is a certain killer.... The normal high temps in a rotary are hard enough on seals and oil... an overheat condition or even constant high temps shorten the engine life considerably. I did install a new radiator and found it lowered the operating temp by several degrees especially while running the AC...I live in Texas and summer temps run above 100 degrees so I invested in the radiator ...
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