Coolant Change - Advice.

[matt9566]

Can anyone give me some advice as to what I need to do to flush and change the coolant, basically I need a how to if possible, there is some information when I've done a search but not enough for a me to confidently do it.

Where is the best drain point ? Do I need to use the bleed points once I have refilled it ? or is it just a case of removing the bottom radiator hose, letting the coolant drain, re-connecting the hose and filling up with Type D coolant ?

It's not very often that I attempt to do work on the car myself but thought it's time to give it a go, I had a leak (now sorted) and have just been topping the car up with water but since it's starting to get really cold I thought it's best I get some proper coolant in.

Thanks in advance
Matt

 

[Legend@wheels]

Open filling cap ,Drain from the lowest point ,
After drained all out open the bleed points (located at the thermostat housing iirc ) and start filling after that let the engine run to circulate the system and once the air get out and start to bleeding fluid from the nipple close them and top up the rest.
Do it asap... If you got water in your system -DONT Put regular water again!
Sorry no pics ,and Put coolant type d .
P.s the lowest point i personally found in our cars was the bottom hose (that come from the bottom of the radiator to the block) .
make sure you have the right tool to open the metal Clip there .
And when you start the engine look good at the heat gauge.(to make sure coolant fluid gets in properly)
After all check for leaks and thats it .
Good luck

 

[Legend@wheels]

Forgot ,there is another bleed point on the hose that goes to inside radiator (through the firewall)its plastic clips Just unscrew it .(if you do it too turn on the heat aircon)

 

[Rishi]

Open filling cap ,Drain from the lowest point ,
After drained all out open the bleed points (located at the thermostat housing iirc ) and start filling after that let the engine run to circulate the system and once the air get out and start to bleeding fluid from the nipple close them and top up the rest.
Do it asap... If you got water in your system -DONT Put regular water again!
Sorry no pics ,and Put coolant type d .
P.s the lowest point i personally found in our cars was the bottom hose (that come from the bottom of the radiator to the block) .
make sure you have the right tool to open the metal Clip there .
And when you start the engine look good at the heat gauge.(to make sure coolant fluid gets in properly)
After all check for leaks and thats it .
Good luck

This pretty much covers it.
I'd second having the tool for removing the bottom hose, that clip was the most tricky part of the job for me!

This thread shows the bleeding points. The bleed screw on the thermostat housing is the copper colored screw.

Once you're topped up and bled through, turn the heating/blowers on full (with the engine running) until the air gets hot, and keep an eye on your temp guage to make sure the thermostat is working.

 

[matt9566]

Thank you the info guys! Can you point me in the direction of the correct tool to remove the clip on the hose ? Is 5 litres the correct amount of coolant ?

Just to clarify - once I have drained the coolant, I then fill up with coolant to the correct level, open the bleed points and start the engine ? once air is all gone and coolant starts to appear at bleed points I then close them and keep the engine running to make sure everything is ok ? Apologies for all the questions, new to all of this.



Hopefully will give it a go at the weekend, these early dark nights are no good for car maintenance during the week!

 

[Siliconsteve]

Thank you the info guys! Can you point me in the direction of the correct tool to remove the clip on the hose ? Is 5 litres the correct amount of coolant ?
Once it's all bled keep blower on hot when running. it's a good indication whether it's bled properly. IE heater not hot then it's air locked somewhere
Just to clarify - once I have drained the coolant, I then fill up with coolant to the correct level, open the bleed points and start the engine ? once air is all gone and coolant starts to appear at bleed points I then close them and keep the engine running to make sure everything is ok ? Apologies for all the questions, new to all of this.



Hopefully will give it a go at the weekend, these early dark nights are no good for car maintenance during the week!

 

[Legend@wheels]

Thank you the info guys! Can you point me in the direction of the correct tool to remove the clip on the hose ? Is 5 litres the correct amount of coolant ?

Just to clarify - once I have drained the coolant, I then fill up with coolant to the correct level, open the bleed points and start the engine ? once air is all gone and coolant starts to appear at bleed points I then close them and keep the engine running to make sure everything is ok ? Apologies for all the questions, new to all of this.



Hopefully will give it a go at the weekend, these early dark nights are no good for car maintenance during the week!

Well,
5ltrs suppsed to be enough maybe youll miss 300-400ml (get 5ltr+1ltr Just incase).
After youll Drain you cant fill to correct level immediately ,youll need to let the trapped air go out and to the fluid flow thru the block .
Open fill cap and Drain>open bleeding points>close the Drain hose>start filling > use your hand to press abit on the pipe to let the fluid flow and then youll see the filling bottle getting lower level that means fluid flowing down ,keep filling and start engine(at this point look at heat gauge and the filling bottle to make sure it flow up properly) >once youll see fluid comming out from the points close them > turn the heat aircon and then > keep filling and let the engine work for like 15mins and look carefully on the heat gauge and fluid level>check for leaks and you done !
P.s while all this always make sure the filling bottle has fluid in it atleast between min to max,dont let it get empty at any point.
All step by step.
Use tool like this and get one that open wide .
Bear in mind its hard to reach the Clip there.. after you done Put it exactly like it was (youll see its pressure mark on the rubber )
And do not forget to check for leaks/fluid level the day or two after that

 

[matt9566]

Well,
5ltrs suppsed to be enough maybe youll miss 300-400ml (get 5ltr+1ltr Just incase).
After youll Drain you cant fill to correct level immediately ,youll need to let the trapped air go out and to the fluid flow thru the block .
Open fill cap and Drain>open bleeding points>close the Drain hose>start filling > use your hand to press abit on the pipe to let the fluid flow and then youll see the filling bottle getting lower level that means fluid flowing down ,keep filling and start engine(at this point look at heat gauge and the filling bottle to make sure it flow up properly) >once youll see fluid comming out from the points close them > turn the heat aircon and then > keep filling and let the engine work for like 15mins and look carefully on the heat gauge and fluid level>check for leaks and you done !
P.s while all this always make sure the filling bottle has fluid in it atleast between min to max,dont let it get empty at any point.
All step by step.
Use tool like this and get one that open wide .
Bear in mind its hard to reach the Clip there.. after you done Put it exactly like it was (youll see its pressure mark on the rubber )
And do not forget to check for leaks/fluid level the day or two after that

Brilliant! Thanks for all your help, really appreciate it!

Hopefully get chance to do it this weekend!

 

[Legend@wheels]

Happy to help ,good luck