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SolaraGuy.com • View topic - Radiator Flush (Changing Coolant)
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Radiator Flush (Changing Coolant)

Radiator Flush (Changing Coolant)

Postby hari-bhari » Thu Jul 03, 2003 8:13 pm

1)open the cap at the top of the radiator
2) unscrew and pull out the white plug at the bottom of the radiator
3) let all the fluid drain into some canister, you don't want it all over your driveway and going into your yard, its harmful, and illegal.
4) flush the radiator out with a garden hose by just shooting in from the hole up top and letting it drain from the hole in the bottom.
5) after the water coming out looks nice and clean, replace the white plug in the bottom and just fill your radiator up with plain water
6) don't forget to replace the cap on top, and drive around for about half a mile or so, not very long, and don't put much strain on teh engine. this driving is just for the purpose of circulating the clean water so it can clean all the hoses and everything out
7) open up both the top cap and bottom plug again, and let all the water drain out, you may want to even flush it out once more to be safe
8 ) mix the coolant according to the instructions on the label. usually about a 50-50 ratio between coolant and water. use red coolant not green.
9)replace the bottom white plug
10) fill up with the new coolant
11) if you also want to replace the coolant in the reservoir, there is a bolt you will have to undo, and then you can lift the whole reservoir out after disconnecting the rubber hose.
12) wash the reservoir out as well, and then bolt it back into place, fill up to the line with coolant
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Postby Jai_Jai_Binks » Mon Jul 07, 2003 7:29 am

good write up, things to add:
* When flushing it the second time...leave the car on for a 3-5 minutes period with the heater blasting...

* In addition to Toyota Red...our cars can also drink PRESTONE ORANGE (something like GM DEX-COOL).
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Postby TadS » Mon Jul 07, 2003 8:22 am

Quick Question:

How much coolant will you need, as in will one bottle be enough?
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Postby hari-bhari » Mon Jul 07, 2003 9:19 am

our radiator and reservoir hold something between 8 and 9 liters, i beleive. double check in the manual. since its supposed to be a 50-50 mix of coolant and water usually, a 4.5 or 5 liter jug will do. i beleive this is a pretty standard size, just go to the store and have a look
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Postby TXSolaraSLE » Mon Jul 14, 2003 11:29 am

question for anybody else who's done this:

how did you get to the white radiator drain plug? did you take off the skidplates underneath the car? I couldnt reach the plug from above, but fortunately my dad has skinnier arms and was able to get to it.

also, our total coolant capacity is just at 2 gallons, so a 1-gallon jug is perfect for a 50-50 mix
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Postby Jai_Jai_Binks » Mon Jul 14, 2003 11:59 am

TXSolaraSLE wrote:question for anybody else who's done this:

how did you get to the white radiator drain plug? did you take off the skidplates underneath the car? I couldnt reach the plug from above, but fortunately my dad has skinnier arms and was able to get to it.

also, our total coolant capacity is just at 2 gallons, so a 1-gallon jug is perfect for a 50-50 mix


I can easily reach the white radiator plug...I usually don't have to remove the skidplates under the car...I'm not sure about the coolant capasity...but i usually take platic cup and measure equal amounts of water and equal amounts of coolant..and clean the resivor and fill that with coolant only. If in the middle need be (not on my solara - more so in my celica)...if when you open the radiator cap, and its not full...i just fill it with distilled water...
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Postby hari-bhari » Mon Jul 14, 2003 5:28 pm

yea i had no problem pulling the white plug from the buttom, but those with bigger hands might have to remove the plates from the bottom. the haynes manual acutally says to remove those plates, as this is hte 'proper' way to do it.
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Postby guest » Mon Jul 14, 2003 9:58 pm

what is the difference between the red radiator fluid and the green radiator fluid?
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Postby 808Camry » Mon Jul 14, 2003 10:41 pm

Do we need to fill the water portion with distilled water or just plain tap is fine?
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Postby hari-bhari » Tue Jul 15, 2003 4:57 am

distilled water is preferred, but tap water wont kill you really, as long as its not too hard. in atlanta, the water isnt very hard, but ive heard in cali it is. hard water can lead to unwanted deposits in your system, so to be safe, maybe just goto walmart and pay a dollar for a gallon of purified water.
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Postby Yanks0114 » Tue Jul 15, 2003 2:30 pm

Use distilled water
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Postby onefiend » Sun Jul 27, 2003 9:04 am

For the "white plug" at the bottom, we can use the existing white plug after the coolant flush, it doesnt have to be replaced, right? we dont have to go get another new white plug?

And also what is the major difference between the green & red coolants?
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Postby hari-bhari » Sun Jul 27, 2003 12:02 pm

nope the plug should be fine. the only thing u might want to replace after a while is the little rubber washer at the end, that keeps the seal tight. if its still soft and spongy though, you shouldnt have any problems. only if its rough and cracked, you should get a new one to prevent leaks.
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HELP!!

Postby 4banger » Fri Sep 19, 2003 8:23 pm

I was in the process of flushing my radiator ealier tonight. Everything was going fine. Drove the car on the ramps... no problem, opened up the white valve and drained the radiator... no problem. However, I did have problems with the plug on the back of the block (which the Haynes manual says to remove). First, that thing was in there so tight, I had to use a 2 1/2 ft. cheater bar. But that was just the begining, when I finally had it finger loose, I took out the plug by hand. Coolant started pouring out all over me ( and no, I wasn't right under it), so I got out from under there as fast as I could. I thought all was well untill I couldn't find the plug. I looked everywhere and couldn't find it. I think it's cought up some where under the engine. Obviously I couldn't drive it, but I thought it might fall out if I rolled it back down the ramps by hand. DON'T DO THAT, my bumper scraped on the way down, and scraped the paint off.
Does anyone have any Ideas on how to get the plug out? I already tried bouncing the car, using an inspection mirror, and using a magnet to fish around. Also how hard do you think it would be to find a replacement? Would auto zone have it, or would I have to go to a dealer? Any help would be appreciated, cause my car is stuck here at work until I can get that plug. :x
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Postby Hsakuragi » Fri Sep 19, 2003 9:29 pm

did you mean the white plug? i think it's made with hard plastic so maagnet won't do anything, try take out the plate...good luck finding it, if not ..dealer still open tomorrow.
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