Where is that stinking COOLANT drain plug? =)

[jetfuel]

... Antifreeze itself (most commonly a chemical called ethylene glycol) doesn't wear out–ever–but the key ingredients are the rust and corrosion inhibitors, and they get used up. The most common inhibitors, silicates for aluminum protection, are used up faster than others. That's why some manufacturers (all General Motors, Mercury Cougar, VW/Audi models) have red or orange antifreeze with a new class of inhibitors, called organic acids. Examples of U.S. brands with these organic acids: Havoline Dex-Cool and Prestone Extended Life, both recommended for five years or 150,000 miles...
The new organic acid antifreezes may be used only if the cooling system has an aluminum radiator (rather than copper-and-brass)..

...more info here...
Choosing The Right Coolant - Popular Mechanics

jetfuel

[homeslice]

Originally Posted by jonnysan

Keep a roll of good quality electrical tape in the glove box and carry a gallon of water in the trunk...well secured ofcourse. Almost any hose incident with these two things could get you home or to a repair station.
I drove almost that many miles (35-40K) per year for 20 years so you have to develop ways to keep maintenance costs down as low as you can without it becoming a pennywise/pound foolish practice., you know? I developed the attitude after awhile that if it wasn't broken, don't fix it. I understand this does not account for certain obvious maintenance practices like regular tuneups, oil changes, tire rotations, etc.
All I can say is that it worked well for me with that car and others in the family that I cared for (our kids cars, ie).

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It's a shame people don't get this.

People think I am nuts for what I do with my transmission fluid. But for some strange reason, my transmissions never fail me. It's so nice not to have to pay $2,000 for break downs the way other people do.

[jonnysan]

Originally Posted by homeslice

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. It's a shame people don't get this.

People think I am nuts for what I do with my transmission fluid. But for some strange reason, my transmissions never fail me. It's so nice not to have to pay $2,000 for break downs the way other people do.

Changing transmission fluid on a regular basis (30k miles) is on my list of obvious maintenance things to do...just a regular as engine oil changes matter of fact. These items need no explanation to do as neglect in those areas can cause heavy $$$$ damage.
I am not complacent about normal maintenance....just things that I have proven to myself to be without merit to do.
Take a car that has never leaked a drop of coolant after 100,000 miles and "do it a favor" by treating it to a coolant system flush and new antifreeze and see what will most likely happen....YOU WILL HAVE LEAKS EVERYWHERE!!!!! Been there done that....You will most likely wind up having to then change all your hoses because suddenly they have become porous from cleaning them so thoroughly....another ICE "servicing myth" created by those who sell products and parts for automobiles.

[homeslice]

Originally Posted by jonnysan

Changing transmission fluid on a regular basis (30k miles) is on my list of obvious maintenance things to do...just a regular as engine oil changes matter of fact. These items need no explanation to do as neglect in those areas can cause heavy $$$$ damage.
I am not complacent about normal maintenance....just things that I have proven to myself to be without merit to do.
Take a car that has never leaked a drop of coolant after 100,000 miles and "do it a favor" by treating it to a coolant system flush and new antifreeze and see what will most likely happen....YOU WILL HAVE LEAKS EVERYWHERE!!!!! Been there done that....You will most likely wind up having to then change all your hoses because suddenly they have become porous from cleaning them so thoroughly....another ICE "servicing myth" created by those who sell products and parts for automobiles.

If you use cheap coolant from the auto part stores, then year, you should be changing it every 30,000 miles. Just like the automatic transmission and rear differentials, most people NEVER change that stuff and wonder why they have problems when the car gets old. Then they blame it on the manufacturer as the car being junk.

My car came with 150,000 mile coolant. I don't trust anything from GM. When I hit 50,000 miles, I took the car to a mechanic and had him flush it out and put the Amsoil 250,000 mile coolant in there. So far my car has been running like new with all the crazy miles I put on it.

I'll probably have to do the flush again when I decide to change all of the rubber hoses on the car. Maybe at 130,000 or 140,000 miles or so.

We'll have to see how long I will keep this car. This car was a mistake. It wasn't the one I wanted. Just something I could afford at the time which is a wrong way to buy a car. I believe that people should buy what they want. It may be more expensive, but at least when you pay it off, you're happy about keeping it when the car is 10 or 15 years old.

I'd like to have a smart car to commute back and forth to work and maybe 1 or 2 other cars for other reasons. The smart would be driven 95% of the time for my basic commutes and grocery store runs. I love this car in the big city.

[jonnysan]

I love this car in the big city.[/QUOTE]

I love this car in any city or anywhere!!!

I guess the long and short of this conversation for me is that I don't have to keep cars for 15 or more years anymore. I've had my days of caring for 5 cars at a time and don't care to become a slave to the garage anymore. I'd rather be out driving my smartie or in Summer, the S-2000. The oldest, highest mileage car we own now is an '03 Acura that has 85K miles and that is the next one to be replaced probably with some PHEV we're hoping. Moving into the suburbs from the country greatly lowered my/our driving time by hours a day and subsequently decreased the need for so much maintenance as a result. Could not have done it at a better time, too, with gas prices where they have been and where they will once again go.

[homeslice]

85k miles is NOTHING! The car I have now isn't much far behind that and my car still runs and drives like brand spanking new. Why would you even think of getting rid of that car? Why keep wasting money on cars every 5 years? What's wrong with buying the car you like and keeping it until the wheels fall off?

You should make a web page and take pictures and post them of your smart of all of the places you visit so we can all see.

[jonfscott]

A little science here...
Generaly you need to keep the PH adout 10.5 minimizes the disimiliar metals issue. An easy way to test is with a kit found at pool stores or even wallmart. Not a sugestion just to help in the understanding. Pure water has the best heat transfer an thermaldynamics, bar none. I said pure water. Add a few drops of amonia, just a few and you can get propper PH levels.

Would I do this in a car not really. Other factors come into play, lubrication for one. I do not know what the pumps, etc. require!

As for color of coolant today they are essentialy meaningless!!!!!

Check the MSDS for the MB coolant and you can see what it contains.

Go with a coolant good for aluminium engines and you can even go a step further having it both silicate and phosphate free. Even though MB has silicates the las time I checked. Prestone Extended life pre-mixed or strait meets the bill as do a host of others. If you want a good overly priced but enviromental coolant look at Engine Ice for motorcycles.