sounds kinda stupid i know.. but i dont usually do my own maintnance.. can anybody give me step by step instructions on how to change my coolant fluid...??? any help would be appreciated..

thanks..

There should be a drain at the bottom of the radiator. If not(I havent changed mine yet)just disconect the bottom radiator hose.

Yeah, there's a drain at the bottom of the radiator. Just loosen the plastic screw on the drain and take the radiator cap off and it'll drain right out.

I'm sure you know this, but just for the record:

Make sure to add an equal part of water to the coolant, it should be a 50/50 mix.

Fill it though the radiator cap, and then fill the coolant resivor to the full line.

I just did mine a couple of weeks ago when I replaced my coolant temp. sensor.

look under the bumper of your car (passenger side)...attached to the bottom of the radiator, there shoud be a plastic tube/straw sticking straight down. Right next to it is a white/yellow plastic knob that you can turn. Loosen that thing and the coolant will drain out of the tube/straw. Needless to say, you should have a drain pan right under the tube to catch all your coolant. Your radiator cap should also be off. Tighten the the knob back when it's empty and refill through the radiator cap.

Like what Wickedesi said...make sure you mix the coolant properly. It's probably one of the easiest things you can do for your car. You don't even have to jack it up unless you are really lowered.

you should probably only do this with a cold car, right?
______________
Chris
96 ESI 5 spd
Milwaukee, WI


Matt_95tgs: "People probably call your car rice because it's a straight up Uncle Ben mobile." - in reference to Jwadeclipse

Quote:

Originally posted by bullox
you should probably only do this with a cold car, right?______________Chris96 ESI 5 spdMilwaukee, WIhttp://home.wi.rr.com/chrisill1/tal3.jpgMatt_95tgs: "People probably call your car rice because it's a straight up Uncle Ben mobile." - in reference to Jwadeclipse

that is correct, unless you want scalding hot coolant spraying at you (under high pressure).

you might end up having to get a new fill cap (after changing my thermostat the old cap wouldn't keep the coolant in the car after it warmed up!) they go bad too.


heh, i went for distilled water to mix with the coolant (yeah i'm anal about my car and what she gets)

they now sell a 50/50 mix coolant so you are better off buying that instead. Where can i get a new cap from besides satin?

napa, carquest

One thing I did, I took the small hose off down below the header on the driver side(I think it goes to the heater core???) And let all that coolant out then I took an old cutoff garden hose and pushed it onto the lower metal flange and turned the water on, then I started the car and ran the heater on high to flush the whole system... I let it run for only a few minutes then put a new hose on and filled it all up. Its a bitch to get the new hose back on( use alittle soap) but you should've seen the dark sludgy chunks that came out of the drain!!!!I also used csome coolant flush before doing this...This all took alittle bit of time and you want to get the chunk of hose before you start.... I think its about 3/4" (Its been awhile so I cant remember exactly)

Thanks for the tips guys... it went really smooth..

If you just want to drain and fill use the drain on the radiator and there is a plug on the back of the block to drain some of the coolant in the block. Do both of those. But this will still leave some old coolant in the block, hoses and heater core. The only way to really clean it out is a flush and fill, you can do your own with a garden hose but you ar ealso runnign water mith minerals through it that can leave it's own deposits.

This is one of the few things I let my dealership do for me.



15.9 @ 86.7mph
http://www.exileracing.com

Mods List:
http://highlander.dsmpower.com/sig.htm

yeah use distilled water, that way you have less chance of electrolysis occuring and making you radiator rust. Bleh that the least of my radiator worries, the inlet on my radiator snapped off one day, these damn dsm parts haha. if you hoses aren't lookin too good that might be a good time to change em also.

well, I'm changing my coolant for the winter because it's a tad bit muddy. What mix should I use, 50% antifreeze 50% water? What about additives like redline waterwetter or anything (which I have laying around because I use it in my computer's watercooling system)