tdi coolant

**hongkongstuey** · 30-01-2009,10:07 AM

my coolant light came on last night, big flashy red thing, anyway, rather than cadging a few litres off the local vw place for 8 quid a litre, is there any off the shelf stuff that'll go straight in, like halfords or anything, which one do they do for the tdi etc, thanks in advance, need it today so mail order isnt really an option.

**adamss24** · 30-01-2009,10:41 AM

Try ECP, they do g12 antifreeze for 15 quid incl.VAT for 5L. Halfords do it as well but its dearer at 20 quid a can. If you go to halfords look for the concentrated one as they do ready mixed one as well and its not cheaper. Look for the dark blue bottle with pink coolant inside ! Check first what coolant you have in the bootle as its not recomended to mix the green with pink coolants !

**hongkongstuey** · 30-01-2009,10:53 AM

have vw pink stuff at the moment, not meant to be anything else i have read? its 30 miles to my vw dealer, may just ring my vw specialist an get them to sell me some, its only 2 miles away and it'll be the same stuff.

**hongkongstuey** · 30-01-2009,04:59 PM

i had a good look under the bonnet and it turns out the pipe that goes to the heater matrix is all crudded up at the end and leaking because of this, no holes in the pipes themselves, took it to the garage who had a look and he suggested taking pipe off the fitting, taking the fitting off and giving it a clean up, then refitting the pipe, sounded logical, think its only lost enough to give warning light, but thats too much, i got 2 litres of g12 from the vw guys at the garage and they charged me a tenner, bargain

then booked it in for rear pads and discs

**paulthefox** · 31-01-2009,12:56 PM

looks as the pipe needs to be tied back so as not to give future problems

pauk

**tornadored7** · 31-01-2009,05:30 PM

Hope that I'm not splitting hairs here;

Originally Posted by adamss24

Try ECP, they do g12 antifreeze for 15 quid incl.VAT for 5L. Halfords do it as well but its dearer at 20 quid a can. If you go to halfords look for the concentrated one as they do ready mixed one as well and its not cheaper. Look for the dark blue bottle with pink coolant inside ! Check first what coolant you have in the bootle as its not recomended to mix the green with pink coolants !

Hi Adams.,

1) I believe the ECP generic coolant is the "CarPlan Premium Red Anti-freeze". It is red (well the name says it all

) and states 5 years extended life, costs £14.99 for 5L and claims to conform to VW G12 standard (ECP part number 523770241). It is Ethylene Glycol based but contains Organic Acid Technology and Ethanediol.

2) GSF also sell a Febi manufactured Purple coolant that costs £4.00 for 1.5L (GSF part number: 98074), with the correct VAG G12 part number (G.012.A8F.A1).

3) I think that VAG's own Purple G12++ higher grade coolant costs £8.18 for 1.5L (VAG part number: G.012.A8G.M1).

All coolants can be mixed 50:50 with (distilled/deionised) water for -36 deg. C protection.

Personally, based on price and the manufacturer I'd opt for (2), the Febi coolant.

Two quick questions;

1) Does unused coolant (either sealed or opened) have an expiry date ?
2) Can anyone please recommend a retail supplier of Grade 10.9 (Automotive) Bolts ?

**adamss24** · 31-01-2009,05:46 PM

Originally Posted by tornadored7

Hope that I'm not splitting hairs here;

Hi Adams.,

1) I believe the ECP generic coolant is the "CarPlan Premium Red Anti-freeze". It is red (well the name says it all

) and states 5 years extended life, costs £14.99 for 5L and claims to conform to VW G12 standard (ECP part number 523770241). It is Ethylene Glycol based but contains Organic Acid Technology and Ethanediol.

2) GSF also sell a Febi manufactured Purple coolant that costs £4.00 for 1.5L (GSF part number: 98074), with the correct VAG G12 part number (G.012.A8F.A1).

3) I think that VAG's own Purple G12++ higher grade coolant costs £8.18 for 1.5L (VAG part number: G.012.A8G.M1).

All coolants can be mixed 50:50 with (distilled/deionised) water for -36 deg. C protection.

Personally, based on price and the manufacturer I'd opt for (2), the Febi coolant.

Two quick questions;

1) Does unused coolant (either sealed or opened) have an expiry date ?
2) Can anyone please recommend a retail supplier of Grade 10.9 (Automotive) Bolts ?

Hi, as you allready said, you get what you pay for. As you mentioned, red/pink/orange antifreeze is G12 spec and should NOT be mixed with the green/blue G11 antifreeze. The g12+ wich the dealer sells is purple in colour and it WILL mix safely with G11 and G12 coolants... I have been using Halfords and ECP stuff for a few years now and its perfectly adequate.. I do not think open coolant has a shelf life while its open as long as it does not get contaminated it should be ok.

**hongkongstuey** · 31-01-2009,05:54 PM

Originally Posted by paulthefox

looks as the pipe needs to be tied back so as not to give future problems

pauk

concering coolant, i go by what the garage usually fits in mine, which is luminous orangey pinky colour, sitting in a coke bottle in the boot, my lads eyes lit up when he saw it, thinking it was a new type of coke

yeah will check that out tommorow too, had only noticed it when i looked at photo so dont know what it is till i have a fertle around, will probably gaffer it till i get a replacement length of silicone to sort it.

**tornadored7** · 31-01-2009,06:21 PM

Thanks for the replies Gents.

However, I am still trying to understand what the difference in expiry date between opened and unused coolant and coolant in a car is ? i.e. What makes coolant in a car cooling system expire, whereas bottled coolant doesn't ?

Is it the thermal stress endured within a car's cooling system ?

BTW Stuey,

Safety first: I'm not trying to teach you to suck eggs, but if kids see a coke bottle containing something as toxic as coolant

...

**lanciamug** · 31-01-2009,10:45 PM

Originally Posted by tornadored7

Thanks for the replies Gents.

However, I am still trying to understand what the difference in expiry date between opened and unused coolant and coolant in a car is ? i.e. What makes coolant in a car cooling system expire, whereas bottled coolant doesn't ?

Is it the thermal stress endured within a car's cooling system ?
...

No, the coolant has an anticorrosive action which is 'used up' over time and so should be changed periodically to maintain the protection. I dont't believe the anti-freeze properties are affected by age.