Re: how to change coolant

[Chuck Van Pelt <cvanpelt@aracnet.com>]

Haven't you ever had a vodka and ethylene glycol on the rocks? Good stuff. ;-)
Actually I thought it was common knowledge that coolant was sweet tasting and
should, therefore, never be left out where pets can get at it. I have never
actually tested this theory, mind you...

At least I know you read my entire email...

Chuck

Zab Biason wrote:

> My question is how do you know how coolant tastes like.
>
> Zab
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-jettaglx@igtc.com [mailto:owner-jettaglx@igtc.com]On Behalf
> Of Chuck Van Pelt
> Sent: Tuesday, March 14, 2000 9:42 AM
> To: jettaglx@igtc.com
> Subject: Re: how to change coolant
>
> Peter,
>
> What a timely question...I just changed my coolant this weekend in my 95
> GLX. Here's what I learned:
>
> DISCLAIMER: I am NOT a mechanic, but I do own a copy of the Bentley manual
> for my car and consider myself to be a reasonably machanically capable
> person.
>
> What I used: Auto ramps, new VW approved coolant (which you have), lots of
> distilled water (you can get this at just about any grocery store), nearby
> hose & water supply, tools.
>
> The Bentley manual says there is a drain plug in the tube that runs from
> the water pump to the thermostat housing. I couldn't find this to save my
> life. I drained mine from the lower radiator hose.
>
> I drove my car up on ramps (set e-brake and chocked wheels) and
> disconnected the hose running into the bottom of the radiator. There is a
> single compression clamp holding it on. Squeeze open the clamp with pliers
> and pull it off. Be sure to have a large (10+ quarts) container underneath
> to catch the waterfall. Also, be sure to turn the heat in the passenger
> cabin all the way to the "hot" position. This allows coolant to drain from
> the heater core. Also, take the cap off of the coolant reservoir, otherwise
> a vaccuum will form and the coolant will come out slowly or not at all.
>
> Once the coolant has all drained, you can flush the system. It is a bad
> thing to let coolant wash onto the ground...I let the coolant drain for
> awhile before I flushed so very little was left. I then put distilled in
> the coolant reservoir and began to refill the system without hooking the
> bottom hose back up. I then started the car and continued to pour distilled
> water "through" the engine to rinse out the gunk. Be sure to keep the water
> flowing so you don't overheat your engine. If you end up getting raw
> coolant on the ground, use your garden hose and rinse with LOTS of water.
> The idea is to dilute the coolant so the neighborhood pets don't drink it.
>
> Let the engine pump out the last of the distilled water...keep in mind the
> there is actually a bit left in the heater core that the water pump won't
> be able to pump out when the water level get's low. Turn off your car AS
> SOON AS the coolant reservoir empties. Hook the radiator hose back up and
> clamp into place. Pour your coolant mix into the coolant reservoir slowly
> to allow air bubbles to escape. Once the reservoir is mostly full, I
> started the car to begin to circulate the new coolant and force out the air
> bubbles.
>
> A note on coolant mixing: You can mix your coolant outside the car, or pour
> each part (coolant and distilled water) into the coolant reservoir
> seperately. The idea is to make sure you have a 50/50 mixture, or whatever
> the coolant bottle specifies. Cooler climates might need a higher ratio of
> antifreeze to prevent freezing in the winter.
>
> If you put in too much water or coolant, here's a trick for fixing the
> ratio without taking off the drain hose again: There is a recirculation
> hose going back into the top of the coolant reservoir. Pull off this
> connector and put it into a jar or other container that you have handy.
> Have a buddy start the car and the coolant will start a-flowin'. Once you
> have drained off some of the wrongly mixed coolant, replace it with either
> straight coolant or straight distilled water (depending on the ration you
> are trying to acheive).
>
> Here's a bit of trivia for you...I understand that water is actually a
> better conductor of heat than ethylene glycol coolant. (OK, so newer VW's
> don't use ethylene glycol coolant, but I digress...) Technically, a
> radiator full of straight water would better conduct heat away from the
> engine, but water has the unfortunate tendency to freeze in the winter and
> crack engine blocks. "Coolant" is added to reduce the freezing temperature
> of the water below what even the worst New England winter can throw at you.
>
> As far as where to take the coolant, mine is still in the sealed container
> in my storage space. I believe you can take it to any quick oil change
> place and they will dispose of it for you. (Maybe a small fee involved?) I
> will be taking mine next weekend. Whatever you do, don't leave coolant
> around in an uncovered container as it is very poisonous and it tastes
> sweet so children and pets may be tempted to drink it.
>
> Hope this helps!
>
> Chuck Van Pelt
>
> Peter Ziobrzynski wrote:
>
> > Can somebody outline the procedure for changing the coolant in 97 Jetta
> > GLX?
> >
> > I got one gallon of G12 from the VW dealer. I read the instructions on
> > the container and understand I have to mix it 60/40 with distilled
> > water. The main questions are:
> >
> > - where to dispose of the old coolant?
> > - where is the drain plug?
> > - where to buy distilled water?
> >
> > cheers...
> > --
> > Peter Ziobrzynski, mailto:pzi@pzi.net