got the warning on the message center..


2011 F350 38,000 miles I am not original owner


has lifetime POWERTRAIN so thinking of letting dealer handle this,,,but..?


with the importance of these cooling systems.. and coolant being in there for approx. 60 months.. I am thinking why pay for test kit or pay dealer to test it and add additive...


do you think I should just pay to have both systems flushed and filled..?.


any idea what a fair price for both to be flushed and filled?


I guess I could just buy the oem coolant and distilled water and drain & fill it myself... but can I use garden hose to flush? or just better to let FORD handle it?


thanks for the help

 

The message is just saying you need to have the system checked. It should last over 100,000 miles, so flushing now is a waste of time and money.
My dealer will test with strips for free.
Pat

 

Normal use the coolant is rated at 105,000 miles. Under severe duty it is rated at 60,000 miles. So consider how you use your truck.

The message is just reminder to check your coolant. The OAT based coolant in the 6.7L engine coats the internal metal in the cooling passage with Carboxlytes which prevent rusting. Any air in coolant passage will cause corrosion( rust ) very quickly. So it's important to keep the coolant system topped off to prevent air corroding the internals

This was Fords first use of OAT based coolant. All previous Powerstroke engines used a Nitrite based coolant. It is important to not mix the two types of coolants. So the test strips test to see if any nitrites are in your coolant. The only way they get in there is if somebody added the wrong coolant. So if you are confident that nobody has every added the wrong coolant type. The only part of the Check Coolant you are concerned about is the Corrosion protection. This can be boosted by adding the Ford VC-12 Coolant revitilizer. 48oz in the Primary coolant system and 22 oz in the secondary. And can be done twice during the coolant life.

I think my dealer charges me $200 to flush and refill my coolant at 100,000 miles. It's difficult to get a complete flush with a garden hose and you don't want to use tap water, Distilled water would be better, and I think I read somewhere the factory uses a Ionized water for the original fill.

 

thanks.... what about the 72months? I am sure many folks hit 105,000miles much much faster than I ever will

 

Are you in a cold climate where you need to worry about below zero temps? It's easy to test for the freeze point on your coolant. Most common test still work on this coolant for freeze point.

If you worry about Corrosion Inhibitor. You can add the VC-12 twice in the 105,000 mile life of the coolant. It's $12-$15 a quart and you will need 3 quarts, (48oz in Primary and 22oz in secondary coolant) So weigh the cost of just doing a complete flush and fill. But adding the VC-12 my buy you that extra couple of years before you flush