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Hey Guys,
I was in the dealership today to have my coolant tested and they told me that it failed every test and suggested a flush and to change the coolant. I asked them if they could use the VC-12 and they had no clue what I was talking about so I declined the coolant change and left. My truck has 76k miles on it (2013 Super Duty) and has done very little towing. Going on the assumption that their test was performed correctly and it did in fact fail, should I add the VC-12 or just flush and change the coolant? Doe anyone have the Ford procedure on how to change the coolant?
Just ordered the two test kits. Let's say it comes back as a fail, at 76k miles, and not knowing the service history, should I add the VC-12 or replace the coolant?
replace the coolant since you don't have the history of the motor.
Drop the coolant.
Put in distilled.
Run it up to operating temps.
Dump and repeat if needed.
One last dump of the distilled.
Then fill with fresh and test.
Well, I got the two test kits in on Monday and tested both coolant systems twice just to be sure and both times gave me identical results. It looks to me like the coolant passes perfectly as is. Am I reading the test incorrectly or was the Ford dealership wrong when they said the coolant "failed all tests miserably and needs to be replaced immediately"?
The first test was part number 328-00001 and the second was part number 328-00008.
I'm pretty disgusted with the Ford dealer at this point especially since I've never had a good experience there. And now they were trying to get me to change what appears to be good coolant for no reason at a cost of over $400.
The first photo, where is the chart for Nitrates? Should be Pink or Mauve or Burgundy. That is all the first test strip should be used to check. It anything else shows, it has wrong antifreeze.
The freeze/boil points are tested with a coolant refractometer.
Did you check both cooling systems? Primary and secondary systems?
I have never tested had a reason to test the coolant in my truck yet. Not trying to say yea or nay on what you did is wrong, just trying to get a grasp of what to do from your experience and photos.
Thanks for sharing.
Thought would take time to also post the Ford Service DVD test procedure for future reference.
Larry,
The procedure you posted, which states for use in a 2015, is nearly identical to the procedure I followed for a 2011 with the exception that the older procedure states to use the 328-00001 test strip for percent glycol in addition to the nitrite test and makes no reference to a battery refractometer. I did not use a battery refractometer when I tested mine. The part numbers for the two test kits cross to the same thing though the 2015 procedure you posted has a difference part number listed. Thank you for sharing the new procedure as this is good information. Below are the instructions for the 2011 model year which I followed.
The nitrite test is the one at the bottom of the chart just above where it says "Nitrite (NO2)" and is to be compared to the pad closest to the handle of the strip. According to the color chart and my interpretation, the test passed. The first two pictures are the primary cooling system and the second two are the secondary system.
I am reasonably sure that the truck has the correct coolant in it. I am the second owner and the previous owner conducted all maintenance at a much larger, more reputable, Ford dealer than the one local to me. Also, he put nearly 72k miles on the truck in two years traveling and hardly towing any loads. The coolant is clear and is the correct color according to the manual. The only reason I even checked it is because the dash indicator told me to. My truck has about 77k miles at this point.
It is nice to see the difference between the 2011 and 2015 procedures. They appear pretty much the same. Does clarify some of it. Thanks for posting the 2011 procedure.
I did not post the secondary coolant check as it is same as primary except for the volume of the system.
...I'm pretty disgusted with the Ford dealer at this point especially since I've never had a good experience there. And now they were trying to get me to change what appears to be good coolant for no reason at a cost of over $400.
Hi jnye6625,
This is definitely not the kind of experience we aim for our customers to have. I'd like to document your feedback about this so it'll be available for internal review. To get the ball rolling, PM me your full name, best daytime phone number, VIN, dealer info, and any details you'd like me to include. I'll do the rest.
jnye6625, While the standard cooling system maintenance is 105,000 miles, The Severe Duty maintenance interval is 60,000 miles. Which you are 16,000 miles past. I don't know that I'd get all that upset at the dealer for suggesting a flush and fill when you are between the normal and severe duty cycles. This is a whole lot like the oil changes they push at 3,000 mile intervals and these engines run 7,500 miles easily on oil changes. They are a service department that makes a profit by performing service.
I don't approve of them telling you it failed when it appears to be fine. Either they didn't test, or they didn't test correctly, or they are lying to get you in for service.
The Flush and refill my dealer did was in the $250 range. Your dealer seems to have a higher overhead than mine. I don't fault a dealer for charging what he thinks the market will bear. But if he starts charging more than I think the service is worth, I will take my business someplace else. You are free to make the same decision.
12-28-2015, 11:05 AM
