coolant concerns
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
From: Waterloo, Illinois
coolant concerns
well about a week ago my truck was leaking coolant because a line rubbed over time and made a hole so i cut that part of the line out, put a fitting in, and clamped it down, boom leak fixed. however my truck was very low on coolant by the time i fixed it, i actually had to stop on the way home and buy 2 jugs of water that i poured into the coolant tank to keep me from overheating. my concern is that i didnt have alot of time as i needed the truck to drive the next day so i filled it up with some prestone 50/50 coolant. ive heard that alot of bad things can happen from the cooling system/coolant not being set up right and that there is a addative thats supposed to go into our diesels coolant. can the prestone 50/50 hurt or be bad for my engine in any way? do i just need to buy this addative and put it into my coolant tank and ill be good? id hate to drain it all out because i put 4 gallons of coolant into it but id much rather do that than mix oil and coolant or have holes where there aren't supposed to be holes. thanks in advance
Lead Driver
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 5,111
Likes: 1,544
From: western SD
Assuming the 50/50 Prestone was the old school green antifreeze, you will be fine. You don't want to mix the old school green coolant with the new style amber colored EEC coolants. Add some SCAs to the mix, and check for freeze protection, as it is lowered from the 2 gallons of water you added.
New User
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
My light came on for low coolant level, i added antifreeze but the light is still on. What could be causing this to happen and how can i fix it. also are you not suppossed to mix the green and orange antifreeze?
Fallick
Fallick
Lead Driver
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 5,111
Likes: 1,544
From: western SD
You must be driving a newer vehicle, as the OBS trucks don't have a low coolant light. LOL As for the green and orange coolant, I was told not to mix them. The green is the glycol based stuff, and the Amber/orange stuff is something else. Many years ago the glycol based antifreeze was pink, now it is green.
Lead Driver
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 5,111
Likes: 1,544
From: western SD
SCAs= Supplimental Coolant Additive It is an additive that coats the coolant passages in the block to prevent cavitation of the cylinder walls, caused by air bubbles in the coolant that eat into the cylinder walls during combustion. The old IDI 7.3 were famous for cavitation as the block wall were thinner.
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
|
Senior User
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 147
Likes: 0
From: Waterloo, Illinois
okay thanks I'll have to look around for some I'm not sure if any local stores around here have it
FTE Stories
Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts
3 Best / 3 Worst Parts of Modern Ford Ownership
Brett Foote
10 Amazing Upgrades That Solve Common Ford Truck Owner Headaches
Pouria Savadkouei
Every 2026 Ford Engine Explained
Brett Foote
10 Ugly Ford Trucks That We Still Kinda Love
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalyptic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer
Joe Kucinski
2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)
Brett Foote
Top 10 Ford Truck Tragedies
Joe Kucinski
Lead Driver
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 8,476
Likes: 37
From: Madison, WI
^^^^ Option - if you're replacing / flushing the coolant, you can get anti-freeze that's "pre-charged" with SCA. Note - this is distinct from "extended life" or "ELC" designation; it's specifically formulated with SCA so you don't have to add it separately. Some brands are _based_ on old-school ethylene glycol (aka "green") forumation, and others are _based_ on ELC formulation. The most commonly available one that's based on "green" formulation is Fleet Charge (note, that's Fleet CHARGE, not FleetGUARD), made by Peak. It's the old-school formulation, but it's dyed pink. Best price I've found is to buy it at Advance Auto, order it online for in-store pickup, and use discount code TRT30 ; that code seems to be active all the time, and knocks 30% off. Takes it down to aprx. $11 / gallon, which is cheaper than buying "green" old-school anti-freeze and SCA separately.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Resendiz
Pre-Power Stroke Diesel (7.3L IDI & 6.9L)
7
Nov 30, 2017 02:03 PM
Resendiz
Pre-Power Stroke Diesel (7.3L IDI & 6.9L)
41
Oct 21, 2016 12:46 AM