Prestone Quick Fill?

[jeepzj]

Is the Prestone Quick Fill green anti-freeze G-05 low silicate and is Prestone QF good stuff? Also, how does the Prestone coolant tester work? I have it and my antifreeze/antiboil range is fine but how does it actually measure it because it looks as if it's just a red plastic indicator inside the cartridge that moves then stops at a certain point.

Thanks.

[ February 27, 2004, 05:48 PM: Message edited by: jeepzj ]

 

[RavenTai]

the tester works because water and coolant weigh different amounts /volume the red thing floats or sinks depending one how dense your coolant is


I would stay away from any of the quick fills it costs almost as much as regular coolant but is half water

distilled water is .58 at wally world, also how would you adjust for flush water left in the system? If you are adding half & half to water in the system you will be left with diluted coolant witch may not be bad for florida (better cooling ability) but corrosion protection would be decreased as would freeze protection

IIRC G-05 is a Valvoline name brand I doubt Prestone sells it specifically but maybe something comparable

[ February 27, 2004, 06:28 PM: Message edited by: RavenTai ]

 

[brad_d]

I'm pretty sure the Prestone Quick Fill isn't low silicate. I believe it's the same stuff as is in the yellow bottles, but diluted 50/50 with water.

As a dissenting opinion, I believe the pre-mixed stuff has its place.

My heater control valve was slowly leaking recently, so while I waited for a chance to replace it I topped off every day or so from a bottle of 50/50. It does cost more; whether or not the labor of mixing coolant it saves is worth it is a personal choice.

For total flush/refills, I prefer the straight stuff. Usually, a "flushed" system is filled with straight water, and there's no way to get it all out. If you add 50/50, the final mix WILL be some lower concentration - there's no way around that.

Since you don't know the car's cooling system capacity, if you really want to control the coolant mix precisely you may have to guess and iterate.

Once you get the system filled up, test it. If the concentration is too low, siphon/drain some out and pour in pure antifreeze; too high, do the same and add straight water. Not exactly ideal, but it will work. Eventually.

My truck's cooling system capacity is just under 2 gallons (so, I use just under 1 gallon of antifreeze), as a reference point. I have no clue how this compares to the average.

 

[Kestas]

I know the cooling system capacity for all the vehicles I maintain. After flushing I simply charge half the capacity with pure antifreeze and top off with water. Cheap, easy, and accurate.

I always have a jug of 50/50 home mix on the shelf for topoffs.

[ March 01, 2004, 10:42 AM: Message edited by: Kestas ]