[OffDaBeemer]

hello everyone,
i just got my 09 Ritz Vxi serviced at a local garage -
Replaced Engile Oil, Oil Filter and Coolant.
I have checked the manual for engine oil grades and coolant specs but missed to note down the quantities required

so here comes the trouble- the guy at the garage said that Ritz holds 6.5 Lts of coolant so I calculated and said I need 2 Lts of Coolant and 4.5Lts of Distilled water (30 - 70 Mix for petrol engines), came home and revisited manual to find that it only holds 4.4 Lts of coolant (1.3Lts of Coolant plus 3.1Lts of distilled water) Another thing is that while replacing, the service guy added 2 Lts of coolant plus just about 0.75 Lts of distilled water.

So here is my problem - the car now has 1.65Lts of old coolant(that probably didnt get drained) and 2.75Lts or coolant (which is 70% coolant with 30% distilled water), this makes me really worrying, should I drain half the coolant and then add more distilled water or re do the coolant service completely?

Expert advice

[quattroa4]

Using a 100% coolant also does not affect any parameter of the cooling system or harmful in any way . So my advice will be let it be as it is .

[searchingheaven]

Originally Posted by khoj

What could be harmful though is the so called distilled water. I say so as these days most of the battery distilled water is souped up with acid in trace amounts. Just enough so that when you pour it into your inverter battery it allows for quicker chemical reaction. While this is great for the battery water manufacturers sales it is certainly not good for the cooling system.

The water to use is the defrost water from your fridge or the water that your a/c (both heat exchange devices) lets out. The best of course is tap water no hassles at all.

What about aquaguard water?

[khoj]

Safe for human consumption = Safe for automotive usage.

Originally Posted by searchingheaven

What about aquaguard water?

[sgiitk]

See the graphs of Coolant Percentage v Freezing Point. The lowest temperature is about 65% coolant. Coolant also has various anti-corrosives, and water pump lube. So some (say 20% plus) is necessary, but unless you live in Ladakh 65% may not be necessary. 100% - well it is your money and your choice.

Some 30 years ago it was recommended to use distilled water in Aluminium blocks but modern anti-freezes have developed to the point where even with tap water you are safe.Just remember to change it as recommended - Honda claim a 10 year, 100,000km life for their coolant, but most have to be replaced every two years.

[carboy]

I thought water was the coolant. And you add those green/red/blue liquids to the water to prevent the coolant(water) from freezing, evaporating, corroding etc. Putting 100% coolant seems to be a meaningless thing to do.

[mgh]

Strictly speaking, heat transfer is most efficient with pure water, the coolants are organic and are less efficient for heat transfer.
Having said that, the cooling system will be designed to work with whatever maximum percentage of coolant is specified + engineering safety factor - which would ensure that it would even work with 100 % coolant.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by carboy

I thought water was the coolant. And you add those green/red/blue liquids to the water to prevent the coolant(water) from freezing, evaporating, corroding etc. Putting 100% coolant seems to be a meaningless thing to do.

Yep.

I think we repeat this conversation every few pages, along with it cropping up on other threads too.

I suppose that the combination of fluids is the "coolant." To call the stuff in the bottle "coolant," as opposed to "water" is certainly wrong. It's a "water-cooled" engine. Water plus additives.

[Zed]

Originally Posted by mgh

Strictly speaking, heat transfer is most efficient with pure water, the coolants are organic and are less efficient for heat transfer.

Absolutely. From a thermal management perspective pure water is the best medium to dissipate heat from an automotive radiator.

Additives, commonly referred to as coolants or antifreeze, lower the freezing point AND increase the boiling point of water in the radiator at the same time. This effectively reduces the risk of water in the cooling system freezing at sub zero ambient temperatures which could cause irreparable damage to system. Most additives have corrosion inhibiting properties.

[Thad E Ginathom]

the risk of water in the cooling system freezing at sub zero ambient temperatures which could cause irreparable damage to system.

Cracked cylinder block. Throw the engine away!

Back in the days before sealed systems I knew people who had suffered this.

[Catalyst_delhi]

I have tried pure coolant and the engine was at 98degrees at idling with the fan at 100% duty cycle (slow speed). The Engine refused to cool down quickly. I did not dare bring it out of the garage. I drained 50% of the coolant ( Ford Red OAT) and filled with distilled water. (5 lit for 60 rupees). The temperature did not exceed 90 degrees in a traffic jam. this is in a ford ikon 1.6. I did the pure coolant part for trial purposes only but did not have the guts to drive around with it.

[Zed]

Originally Posted by Catalyst_delhi

I have tried pure coolant and the engine was at 98degrees at idling with the fan at 100% duty cycle (slow speed). The Engine refused to cool down quickly. I did not dare bring it out of the garage.

The fact that the vehicle was stationery made it harder for the cooling system to do its job. If you drove normally your coolant temperatures would have been lower even without the presence of any water in the system as ram air plays a vital part in engine cooling loop.

But you make a valid point that a mixture of pure water and additives, in recommended proportions, is better than 100% additives when it comes to heat dissipation.

[Catalyst_delhi]

Originally Posted by Zed

The fact that the vehicle was stationery made it harder for the cooling system to do its job. If you drove normally your coolant temperatures would have been lower even without the presence of any water in the system as ram air plays a vital part in engine cooling loop.

But you make a valid point that a mixture of pure water and additives, in recommended proportions, is better than 100% additives when it comes to heat dissipation.

you are right ram air kicks is at approx 60km/h. But could not risk my HG and frankly speaking by the time i get ram air , getting stuck in a traffic jam is a higher possibility.

[Zed]

Originally Posted by Catalyst_delhi

you are right ram air kicks is at approx 60km/h. But could not risk my HG and frankly speaking by the time i get ram air , getting stuck in a traffic jam is a higher possibility.

Yes and no.

When vehicle speeds are in the 50 - 80 kmph range (for most types of vehicles) the engine fan becomes redundant, more or less (exceptions prove the rule, as always ), as ram air speeds will reach levels of airflow which the fan generates at that operating point.

But Ram air aids engine cooling even at lower speeds.

[gomzi]

I just saw the TR6 episode of Wheeler Dealers yesterday and 1 thing in the show intrigued me. Ed poured a waterless coolant into the radiator. The waterless coolant is supposed to have a much higher boiling point than water and a much lower freezing point too.
I looked it up and found this company that manufactures these coolants http://www.evanscooling.com/products/coolants/

Is this available in India? Has anyone tried it out? Thoughts?