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Thread: Coolant Flush

  1. #11
    Still Plays With Cars Loren's Avatar
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    Personally, I'd get a bottle of distilled water and just top it off.

    Clogged heater core scares aside... it's supposed to be "lifetime" coolant, and we live in Florida where the demands on coolant/anti-freeze are minimal. If you still have the car when it hits the 10 year mark, maybe change it then!

    When I changed my engine, my old coolant was clean and blue. I just drained what I could of the old coolant... and dumped it right back into the new engine. Topped off with a half-quart of distilled water.

    If you did want to clean out the reservoir, a couple bolts would have it out and you could rinse it easily any way you want.

    And I don't care what anybody says about "compatibility", if I was going to put anything other than the original Mitsu coolant in there, I'd give the whole system a serious flush (don't forget to turn the heat up to maximum with the car fully warmed up to get full flow through the heater core) so that you're at zero risk for mixing coolant types.

    But, really... I would (and did) let it ride.

    You wanna change something that most people don't think about? Change your brake fluid!


    Simplify and add lightness.

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    fc321 (02-02-2019)

  3. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by fc321 View Post
    My coolant is getting close to the Low mark (at the very top of the letter L):

    What do you think about this stuff from Walmart for 7.99$ Says safe for 'ANY' car

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Super-Tec...e-Mix/16928010

    Super Tech 50/50 Antifreeze/Coolant Pre-Mix:

    Compatible with any antifreeze/coolant
    For any vehicle with aluminum and other engine metals
    Meets or exceeds ASTM D3306 and D4985
    Corrosion protection
    Super Tech antifreeze provides freeze-up and boil-over protection
    Provides protection from extreme hot or cold for up to 5 years or 150,000 miles
    Super Tech coolant comes ready to use
    No water needs to be added before placing in vehicle
    This topic has been discussed before & someone shared a product that Walmart sells that matches what's presently in our cars. If I can help it, I would not mix coolants of different types. This is only a little more expensive, but I willing to pay a few extra bucks for no worries.

    https://www.walmart.com/ip/Valvoline...llon/801754735

    Walmart carries the red & blue version of this product side-by-side when I bought a jug. My Mirage has the blue coolant. I haven't used it, but if I am ever low I have it. Since it is pre-mixed, I thought that I would buy a second jug prior to doing a change of coolant. Given the cost, I don't see a reason to try anything else. I plan to change my 2017 Mirage ES coolant this coming spring or summer. If your Walmart doesn't carry this, I would order it.

    Since Daox bought his Mirage used with a quite a few miles on it, I am hesitant to jump to major conclusions. Someone may have added a different type coolant to his car? There are some unknowns at least.

    I think a person should do what is recommended and hope for the best. Doing maintenance items ahead of schedule doesn't hurt anything, especially if you are willing to do them yourself.

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    fc321 (02-02-2019)

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    Quote Originally Posted by fc321 View Post
    My coolant is getting close to the Low mark at the very top of the letter L

    My car only has 15,800 miles but it is a car that sat on Dealer lot for 1 year before I purchased it in 2016 so it is 3 or maybe 4 years old. Should I drain the coolant and put new coolant?
    The easy way: Like Loren said, you would need about one cup of distilled water to simply top it off. Look under the radiator cap there is no excessive air pocket. That would need to be topped off too.

    The best way would be to measure the PH value with the help of PH paper (cheap and easy). If PH is still good, fantastic! If PH has run off and chemical reactions have taken place, thoroughly flush it and renew it, but only with a sort that specifically states it is good for your type of car!
    On my car, PH was way off after almost two years, so it was thoroughly flushed out with water then coolant renewed. Three years later it is still OK.
    As Mark said, don't mix different coolants, you would be asking for trouble.
    Last edited by foama; 02-02-2019 at 07:23 AM.

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    Senior Member fc321's Avatar
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    Thanks,

    I topped it up with the distilled water and I ordered the PH paper test strips so when they get here from China in a month I will know whether to change the coolant. Appreciate the wisdom from you guys, thanks again.

    I am going to swap out the brake fluid using the transfer pump as suggested. Hoping with tender and loving care that my car can make it to 15 years of age or maybe even 20.

    Under the radiator cap it was about 2 inches of dead air so I topped that up as well with the water.
    Last edited by fc321; 02-02-2019 at 03:39 PM.
    2015 Mirage DE 5 speed Manual - 30k miles

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage DE 1.2 manual: 44.9 mpg (US) ... 19.1 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 53.9 mpg (Imp)


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    Senior Member stevedmc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by fc321 View Post
    Thanks,

    I topped it up with the distilled water and I ordered the PH paper test strips so when they get here from China in a month I will know whether to change the coolant. Appreciate the wisdom from you guys, thanks again.

    I am going to swap out the brake fluid using the transfer pump as suggested. Hoping with tender and loving care that my car can make it to 15 years of age or maybe even 20.

    Under the radiator cap it was about 2 inches of dead air so I topped that up as well with the water.
    Did I read this correctly? Yall are trusting a made in China PH test strip to tell you whether or not to replace coolant? Oh vey.

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    fc321 (02-04-2019)

  9. #16
    Still Plays With Cars Loren's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by fc321 View Post
    I am going to swap out the brake fluid using the transfer pump as suggested.
    You're what?

    I thought this thread was about coolant, not brake fluid.

    To properly flush your brake system, you have to pump fluid all the way through the system and out the bleeder screws at each wheel. You could remove some dirty fluid from the reservoir with a pump if you wanted to, but that's NOT going to be an effective brake fluid flush in any way. Gotta run some clean fluid through the system FROM THE TOP down.

    And if you're not sure what you're doing... you might want to have a shop do it. If you were to open a bleeder screw and start bleeding brake fluid, and let the master cylinder get low enough to start sucking air... now you're letting AIR into the top of the system, and you can end up with air in your ABS system. Then you may need to go through a special bleeding process to bleed the air from the ABS pump and valve assembly. That can be a real pain on some cars, I don't know about this one. I just make it a point to never let air get into the brake system from the top like that. Unless you're changing a brake master cylinder, you can usually keep fluid in the master cylinder.

    Cars just aren't as simple as they used to be.
    Simplify and add lightness.

  10. #17
    Senior Member fc321's Avatar
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    Sorry for derailing the thread that is supposed to be about coolant. I posted my reply instead to here:

    https://mirageforum.com/forum/showth...id-okay-to-use
    2015 Mirage DE 5 speed Manual - 30k miles

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage DE 1.2 manual: 44.9 mpg (US) ... 19.1 km/L ... 5.2 L/100 km ... 53.9 mpg (Imp)


  11. #18
    Senior Member Alex1a1f's Avatar
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    Just an fyi. Advanced Auto carries an antifreeze suitable for our cars.
    (blank signature)

  12. #19
    Administrator Daox's Avatar
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    Thats what I've used.
    Custom Mirage products: Cruise control kit, Glove box light, MAF sensor housing, Rear sway bar, Upper grill block

    Current project: DIY Nitrous oxide setup for ~$100

        __________________________________________

        click to view fuel log View my fuel log 2015 Mirage DE 1.2 manual: 47.2 mpg (US) ... 20.1 km/L ... 5.0 L/100 km ... 56.7 mpg (Imp)


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    Alex1a1f (02-10-2019)

  14. #20
    Senior Member Alex1a1f's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Daox View Post
    Thats what I've used.
    After online discount I got 2 gallons for $28, pretty reasonable imo.


    (blank signature)

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