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Coolant Change on '09-451

46K views 35 replies 14 participants last post by  jimvw57 
#1 ·
Hi Smarties...

Only 2.5 weeks old here :D. Am approaching 40,000 miles on my "new to me" 2009 Passion and am ready to tackle the 40K maintenance. Am pretty handy and well versed in things mechanical; however don't have a shop manual; cannot find one! The only major service now is coolant change besides the oil/filter change.

Planning to do a coolant/flush, etc. So from where do you drain it from(radiator petcock?) and to where do you fill the new coolant(expansion bowl?) and at what glycol/water % mix? Then you gotta "burp" her..right.?.IS there a procedure for the burping??

Thank you..

Cheers...
 
#7 ·
As always...Thank you... jwight...and the rest who wanted to chime in but our Bohemian Moderator was zu schnell, wasn't he? :D.

Curious !?..we can use the block drain procedure Evilution uses ? instead of the hose "burp", right IF we have that Allen drain plug. Haven't looked for it yet...engine too hot now...

Cheers...
 
#8 ·
Coolant change/flush..AGAIN!!

Hi All..

Another coolant change subject, ahem..!:(..BUT..after going through all the motions here regarding coolants, Evilution, WIS, etc...it seem that the coolant after removing the expansion cap can be totally emptied by just opening the block screw which is lower than the lower radiator hose! This will drain the ENTIRE coolant entirely?? Then one doesn't have to mess with accessing the lower radiator hose. OF course will one have to "burp" at the end of the coolant change at the block head!

What say you :cool:?

cheers...
 
#9 ·
Hi All..

Another coolant change subject, ahem..!:(..BUT..after going through all the motions here regarding coolants, Evilution, WIS, etc...it seem that the coolant after removing the expansion cap can be totally emptied by just opening the block screw which is lower than the lower radiator hose! This will drain the ENTIRE coolant entirely?? Then one doesn't have to mess with accessing the lower radiator hose. OF course will one have to "burp" at the end of the coolant change at the block head!

What say you :cool:?

cheers...
Should work :)

I pulled to lower radiator hose :D
 
#11 ·
The lower hose of the radiator is a pain in the arse to get to in my '09 Passion; have to remove the front underneath splash/stone chip panel(whatever you call it). To all my researches I agree with Evilution that you only have to open/remove the engine block coolant drain if you have one..slowly at first by just cracking the expansion tanks cap then open thecap fully for a streaming out flow! This engine block drain plug is at it's lowest then why not..gravity!!? Then close it...remove the header coolant hose; fill the expansion tank with your chosen stuff....once you see it come out of the header coolant hose: you got it "burped"...clamp hosefill expansion tank to min-max mark. Run motor...check coolant make level.

Please chime in..is this right ? or am I dreamin' .:)

cheers...
 
#12 ·
I don't believe you will get it all out that way. If you look at a diagram of how the hoses are run from the front of the car, they raise up to the front of the block after they come out of the body. Therefore, it will puddle in the hoses, and you will still have probably 1/2 a gallon of the old stuff still in the system. Will that hurt anything? Probably not, but if you want to completely drain it, you're going to have to pull the hose.
 
#16 · (Edited)
2009 Passion(451) Coolant Dance..

Hi All..

Many thanks for your input.

While our Northern Brethrens are battening down their Smarties due to TS/Hurr. SANDY.......Sandy is to skirt my State :D so took the liberty in doing my first coolant dance in my garage!

1) Locate the lower radiator drain hose; right front fender; under the panel..

************

Remove 2 of these screws; one on each side



Drop the panel and weigh it down with !!!



Locate hose clamp..unclamp; remove hose(whew)..drain coolant



Already had ss clamp attached; previous owner obviously had coolant changed at one time.



Open engine block bolt and drain...



Reclamp radiator hose and reattach underbody panel; reinsert engine block drain bolt and tighten.

****************************************

Position one way valve out of the way for access to header hose.



Locate header hose and unclamp..



Remove hose and have SWMBO pour..... >



into radiator expansion tank...observe coolant coming out of header nipple; reinsert header hose and clamp...It's been "burped"..:cool:.

Fill the rest of the coolant till MAX mark. Go for test drive...check level..add if necessary.

Now: manual says that my system holds 4.5 qts = 4.3l, but I could only add 4 qts=3.78l. I believe I drained the old coolant completely unless the water pump retained some! Now I am 0.5 qts short...cause for worry...air still there??

Expansion tank is at MAX level. Will sink below MAX overnight when coolant cools...add more to attain MAX ???

I did the procedure "cold"....was not running the engine when "burping", just bled the system cold!

cheers...
 
#22 ·
Hi All..

Many thanks for your input.

While our Northern Brethrens are battening down their Smarties due to TS/Hurr. SANDY.......Sandy is to skirt my State :D so took the liberty in doing my first coolant dance in my garage!

1) Locate the lower radiator drain hose; right front fender; under the panel..

************

Remove 2 of these screws; one on each side



Drop the panel and weigh it down with !!!



Locate hose clamp..unclamp; remove hose(whew)..drain coolant



Already had ss clamp attached; previous owner obviously had coolant changed at one time.



Open engine block bolt and drain...



Reclamp radiator hose and reattach underbody panel; reinsert engine block drain bolt and tighten.

****************************************

Position one way valve out of the way for access to header hose.



Locate header hose and unclamp..



Remove hose and have SWMBO pour..... >



into radiator expansion tank...observe coolant coming out of header nipple; reinsert header hose and clamp...It's been "burped"..:cool:.

Fill the rest of the coolant till MAX mark. Go for test drive...check level..add if necessary.

Now: manual says that my system holds 4.5 qts = 4.3l, but I could only add 4 qts=3.78l. I believe I drained the old coolant completely unless the water pump retained some! Now I am 0.5 qts short...cause for worry...air still there??

Expansion tank is at MAX level. Will sink below MAX overnight when coolant cools...add more to attain MAX ???

I did the procedure "cold"....was not running the engine when "burping", just bled the system cold!

cheers...
Good writeup!

I'm finally changing mine out later this week.
-What size is the hose clamp? Can anyone conform that the OEM clamp can't be reused?
- What size socket is the block bolt? Are we putting anything on the threads before reinstalling? Retorque bolt specs?
- Is the header hose on the side of the block? (B11/4 from #15?) Can someone post a side view of the header hose? The hose i'm thinking of looks like a vacuum hose.:confused:
 
#18 ·
Nicely done. Good photos and detailed process. You may be new here but you have a future in the asylum. :bigthumbup:

Regards,

Dan
Thank you guys for all the "Thanks"...By the way I could really be more specifically detailed in regard to photos but found out that you can post only 10 images..gggrrrrr. Hmmnnn; WHY! Coming from ADVrider.com I could post images with abandon . Now could I post 10 images per post, and call it Coolant-1; Coolant-2 :D= 20 images??

You guys need to answer my querry regarding the 0.5 qts shortage..any worries:eek:.

Brakes are next..:cool:.

cheers...
 
#33 ·
ok after reading all these posts i formulated my idea of what i will do so let me know what you think of it.

make sure heater valve is open
run front end up on ramps
i have two scissor jacks to raise rear end up (but not higher then ft end)enough so you can remove drain bolt
remove drain bolt, now all the coolant should drain out of the system (then flush with water and let drain out)
when done draining put drain bolt back in finger tight
have someone pour coolant into tank, when tank is full remove drain bolt and let coolant run out while assistant keeps adding coolant

when you see a steady stream put plug back in and tighten then take car off of rear end jacks and leave it at an angle
start engine and let cool then check tank level

buy adding coolant with system open at one end all air should be pushed out and bleeding wouldn't be necessary and if there are any bubbles they will flow to the tank

but this means you will get some antifreeze on you


please let me know of any comments. it is hard for me to scramble around under a car so i have tried to consolidate everything into as few moves as possible
 
#34 ·
Your method will leave a lot of air in the engine cooling jackets. The proper method to bleed and fill the system has been posted here numerous times. I don't know why you seem incapable of or unwilling to do a search but that is what you need to do. I, for one, am not going to post the procedure again.
 
#35 ·
i am not incapable or unwilling in fact i did search and did read ALL the threads and thought i could combine everything into one procedure, that is why i asked for opinions. so thank you for you insight and forthright honesty....much appreciated.

i was just trying to eliminate all the steps because my physical agility leaves a lot to be desired these days.
 
#36 ·
I changed the whole front end a month after total knee replacement. it wasn't easy and I took my time. That included replacing the radiator and bleeding the air out of the motor is done from the top side, not difficult. It is easy to over think things on these cars. just take your time and follow the instructions. If all else fails, there is always Evilution...
 
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