Coolant?

[ChristoT]

As the coolant in my bike is now spread between Andover and Whitchurch, I need to replace it! Is it literally just antifreeze? What should I ask for in Halfords?  Thanks in advance!

Also - shout out to Bozboz: He's given me a pipe to replace the one I broke - thanks again, fella! 

[Yamazer-92]

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_160508_langId_-1_categoryId_255224


Thats the lad you need.


I used this a few months back, good stuff and haven't lost a drop since. You may as well do a rad flush while you're doing it, pretty easy just a faff doing all the stages but worth it. Haha wheeyyyyyy I beat Darrsi to telling someone to rad flush! Foc the system!

[ChristoT]

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_160508_langId_-1_categoryId_255224


Thats the lad you need.


I used this a few months back, good stuff and haven't lost a drop since. You may as well do a rad flush while you're doing it, pretty easy just a faff doing all the stages but worth it. Haha wheeyyyyyy I beat Darrsi to telling someone to rad flush! Foc the system!

Cheers Yamazer! But I'm sure Darrsi will get his revenge! 

The bike only has 28k on it, and the coolant that came out was still good. The inside of the pipes are clean, so I think I'll do the rad flush next time I foc up! 

Ta muchly for the link!

[noggythenog]

Thats the same pink shit i put in when i changed my rad hoses over, i didnt do a rad flush either but the bike had only done 10k, the coolant came out like brand new & there was no dodgy bits or sludge or whatever.


Remember to pour in the coolant very very slowlyto avoid too much air in the system.i went a bit too slow probably as if pouring through a biro pen type rate, no glugging it in there.


If i remember correctly it was wobble bike to & fro to squeeze in much as poss, cap on & start her up for 20 seconds,give it 3 half blips of the throttle,let it cool & top up again.

[darrsi]

Not saying anything, you all know the score by now 

For what it's worth i've always been a huge fan of Motul Motocool coolant, the yellow stuff, i used to get it from Hein Gericke but it's cheap enough on Ebay to buy.

[Dead Eye]

Mine has been through two lots of the Halfords stuff, seems good enough to me

[darrsi]

Just to explain things a little clearer, when you make a cup of tea does the water out of your kettle come out as sludge?
No!
But the kettle could still be terribly scaled up on the heater element.
When this scaling happens in the coolant system it's the waterways and radiator that get clogged up, meaning a narrower path for the coolant to flow, which in turn makes for a hotter and less efficient system.
So don't be fooled by clean looking coolant, a Radflush should be done every couple of years minimum in my opinion. 

[reillypadraig]

I second that, but all depends on where u live and amount of line in the water, personal I just emptied my coolant, filled it up with water, emptied it again, filled with water again, then took off all the pipes running to and from the pump to make sure no old coolant was resting in the pipe work.

Filled with the halfords stuff, turned bike over to get pump moving, topped up, brought bike for quick spin, rechecked level and that was it, nothing major, 30mind in all, including spin. Well worth replacing coolant fairly often IMO.

Anti-freeze AFAIK turns acidic after a period of time. I can be proven wrong on that though!

[bandit]

50/50 mix,distilled water & some of this!.
http://www.therange.co.uk/silverhook-red-antifreeze---1l/automotive/the-range/fcp-product/68765

[noggythenog]

Darrsi are you saying that i should rad flush my kettle?


I do like a nice cup o tea!!!!

[ChristoT]

LOL, Noggy!

I've stuck the Halfords stuff in. Will check level tomorrow. I don't understand my header tank though... 

[darrsi]

LOL, Noggy!

I've stuck the Halfords stuff in. Will check level tomorrow. I don't understand my header tank though... 

Don't understand what?


By the way it's okay to start the engine with the rad cap off to release any air, and even gently rev the engine to get the coolant flowing, whilst safely supporting the tank of course.
The fluid won't jump out at you, in fact it will get sucked downwards, it's only when you shut the throttle off that the fluid will rise back up which is why you should do everything gently.
You'll see the unwanted air bubble up, then top up as necessary.

[noggythenog]

Are you on about the overflow tank under the seat Cristo???


If so, i sooked mine out with a sookery device  & re filled but i think lotso folk just leave it.

[ChristoT]

Are you on about the overflow tank under the seat Cristo???


If so, i sooked mine out with a sookery device  & re filled but i think lotso folk just leave it.

I am indeed, Nogster.

The tank is overfull, not sure whether to drain it off, or just leave it. Choices, choices! 

[noggythenog]

Far as i inow its an expansion tank so if youre bike boiled the coolant then it would have all gone into the tank,hence it's now over full,bare with me though that could be total bollocks as im still learning too but if that was the case in my mind i'd want that coolant all drained out & topped up with fresh as it might have lost some of its qualities.


Now lets wait see what the boys in the know come out with.

[ChristoT]

Far as i inow its an expansion tank so if youre bike boiled the coolant then it would have all gone into the tank,hence it's now over full,bare with me though that could be total bollocks as im still learning too but if that was the case in my mind i'd want that coolant all drained out & topped up with fresh as it might have lost some of its qualities.


Now lets wait see what the boys in the know come out with.

No, I filled the radiator, and worried it was undefilled, I topped up the header. Now it's over the max limit. Not sure what that means about my coolant levels though...

[noggythenog]

Ah i see, isnt there an overflow hose from the overflow tank though???


I seem to remember it being a long black hose that goes to the floor, from the side of the plastic tank,actually there is coz i replaced it with a blue one.


So any excess should surely come out the pipe & onto the road if the tank becomes too full.

[Hedgetrimmer]

Isn't there a 600 workshop manual download somewhere on this site? If so, it would be worth a look? I always used to use manuals as a good starting point, then you can modify your procedures as people give you good proven alternatives.

[Exupnut]

WHY DIDNT YA STOP!!!!

[noggythenog]

Exups up to somethin!!!!stop him Cristo!!!!


The blue beast from the east awakes!!!!!!!

[darrsi]

When the coolant gets hot it will 'expand' and any excess will go into the expansion tank, hence the name. 


The reason there is an upper level is because they've guessed how much will expand into this tank on a normal occasion so they've allowed so much space in there for this to happen, but if it's already too full it will simply get chucked onto the floor out of the overflow pipe once the levels rise.


*** When the bike cools down the fluid will get sucked back into the main system. ***


If all is well with your system , as in no air leaks or blockages of the waterways or radiator, then the coolant level should stay pretty much the same level in the expansion tank (when the engine is cool, and levels are settled), with maybe a minor top up every 6 months or so.
I haven't topped mine up for many months now!


Just by keeping an eye on that tank can give you a good indication if all is well with the system though so it's a useful visual tool as well.
If your expansion tank is empty then that means you should immediately check to see if the fluid is okay at the cap end under the front of the fuel tank.
If it's okay under the cap then top up the expansion tank to no more than the upper level.
If the level is low or you can't see any fluid then you need to figure out why?


If for instance you had a leak from a pipe up front then you would lose fluid from up front, but when the bike cools down it will suck whatever coolant it needs from the expansion tank, so you would see the levels were wrong, or decreasing, meaning there is a problem.
If you suspect it's a leak but aren't quite sure where from i've always found it easier to take the bike for a quick blast at night, then use a torch on the engine, it will show up coolant stains or leaking liquid much easier than in daytime, but a dark garage will do the same job too if you have one.


The other one to look out for is what i keep harping on about, when you have a blocked system the waterways will be thinner than normal so the coolant won't flow properly and the engine will get so hot that it will push the fluid into the expansion tank until it literally boils, fills the tank and chucks it on the floor. Remember, it's not just antifreeze, coolant has a higher boiling point than just water so if you see or hear it bubbling away in the expansion tank, or fluid is hitting the floor, then you have a problem.
This is the dodgy one 'cos it will just keep chucking it out until you have dangerously low levels of coolant, then that alone can obviously cause all sorts of grief.
That's why i'm such a big fan (excuse the pun) of keeping the system in good condition, it can only be a good thing and when it's all functioning well it is also very low maintenance. 

[fazersharp]

Great thread for coolant change, but I have some questions to ask. When you say rad flush are we talking about the standard Holts rad flush as isnt that designed for cars strength wise as a car has many mor ltrs coolant as we only have 2 ltrs. Should we consider only useing half of the bottle.
Also did you replace the washer on the blead bolt. I last did mine about 8 years ago and gonna re do it before the winter

[darrsi]

Great thread for coolant change, but I have some questions to ask. When you say rad flush are we talking about the standard Holts rad flush as isnt that designed for cars strength wise as a car has many mor ltrs coolant as we only have 2 ltrs. Should we consider only useing half of the bottle.
Also did you replace the washer on the blead bolt. I last did mine about 8 years ago and gonna re do it before the winter

Yeah, that's the stuff.
I've not really worried about the strength of it as it's only a small bottle, and it's never caused any issues for me.

Not sure what washer or bleed bolt you mean?

[fazersharp]

Should of said The coolant drain plug.And not bleed. From memory I only used that to drain I think its on the same side as the oil drain plug but higher up. I may of took off from the expansion bott pipe to get that out but never saw the need nor I think did haynes to take off any other pipes. The less you fiddle with them the les chance they are gonna damage

[darrsi]

Should of said The coolant drain plug.And not bleed. From memory I only used that to drain I think its on the same side as the oil drain plug but higher up. I may of took off from the expansion bott pipe to get that out but never saw the need nor I think did haynes to take off any other pipes. The less you fiddle with them the les chance they are gonna damage

It's really not something to worry about, that bolt ain't going anywhere, the same as the oil plug, and it takes a a good few turns before either plug considers letting fluid out so they're not gonna leak either.
Some people prefer to drain coolant by removing the water pump hose, but i personally prefer to leave pipes alone if possible.
Same as the expansion tank, i've personally never bothered emptying it out as there's so little liquid in there, but each to their own.