Yellowy Coolant..............

[ROSSGR]

Where do you buy the stuff????????

I know there are different colours and you shouldn;t mix so I need some of the yellowy stuff.
Not came across anywhere to buy it though, local garage was useless(maybe it's me though!!)

Thanks before it dries up..................................................

[RDH]

Where do you buy the stuff????????

I know there are different colours and you shouldn;t mix so I need some of the yellowy stuff.
Not came across anywhere to buy it though, local garage was useless(maybe it's me though!!)

Thanks before it dries up..................................................

.....just add water.


try your local Unipart place?

[BiggestNizzy]

pee in it

[ROSSGR]

[robin]

What car is it for? What age? Why is the coolant low?

S1 engines fitted to elises are filled with normal "blue" coolant.

S2 K-series engines use OAT (Organic Acid Technology or something like that) coolant.

Not sure about S2 toyota engines, but would guess also OAT.

The colour of coolant isn't a reliable indicator of the coolant type, particularly once it's older and/or it's been topped up with coolant of more than one type, but in general blue/green is old-skool 2-year coolant while orange/pink is OAT 5-year coolant.

Whilst people say you mustn't mix them, what you really need to avoid is mixing the OAT coolant with air, so if you're refilling, try to avoid dragging air into the system.

Depending on age of car you may want to do a complete flush and start again.

BUT, if your coolant is low (BTW, the coolant should sit at the MIN/LOW marker on the expansion tank when cold and rise to the MAX/HOT marker when hot), what you really need to work out is why ... if air is being mixed into the coolant system due to leaks, the efficiency of the cooling system will tail off and if you have OAT, that air will destroy the coolant.

Cheers,
Robin

[ROSSGR]

2002 S2 k ENGINE

Had it 3 months now, when cold used to sit just above the minimum, now sits about 10mm below the minimum, done maybe 1200miles. No sign of any leaks etc

SO where do I get OAT??

Better to top it up until I get it into be looked at........

Cheers for your USEFUL, information

[steve_weegie]

Ross, 10mm below the minimum line is where my 2002 S2 sits and was pretty happy there. The coolant will self adjust its level, so you may find that there's nothing wrong.

Also, the yellow coolant that my 2002 K was filled with is not OAT - its standard MEG... If you've put a lot of water in, you can restore the correct mix ratio by topping up with standard halfords non-OAT coolant (coolant should be blue in colour). All the later S2's with the OAT coolant should have a big ring round the header tank cap indicating that OAT coolant has been used.

Personally, I'd keep a 'very' close eye on it without topping it up and see if the level drops further. If so, replace the header tank cap - its only about £4 from a rover dealer and could be a nice easy fix.

Cheers,

Steve

[cla5h]

Slight deviation, but after replacing one very bust rad, and later putting a new cap on the header tank, I'm still losing coolant.
I'd say it's dropping at not far off the rate as before the new rad was fitted - it goes from the min mark to near the bottom of the tank in c. 1000 mls, whereupon I usually top it up, to stop it getting too low.

Do you think I just have a very low natural level, and it's being vented out the cap, or have I a leak somewhere (no immediately obvious signs.)

What's the best way to check for a leak - bring it up to temp, and then use a pressure bleeder on the header?

[meatball]

Pressure test?

[robin]

The system is pressurised the most when at it's hottest, so leave it idling for a while until the fan cuts in then go over it with a fine tooth comb (mind, it will be hot1!).

You can pressurise when cold using an airline or similar - 18psi is plenty though - don't overdo it.

Also, if you deliberately overfill the tank when cold, it will generate more pressure when hot and perhaps make whatever is bust leak more quickly, but chances are it will just blow the pressure release valve.

Cheers,
Robin