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Radiator Issues

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#1 ·
So Friday I leave the office, on the way home I stop (to get a case of Alaskan Smoked Porter), then head back on the road. Look down, check engine light on. That's weird, look up and the temp gauge is pegged. Take the next exit a quarter mile away pull over. Open the hood I can smell coolant and there is steam coming from the top right corner of the radiator around where the plastic top cap joins the metal body. (2000 Rav-4, about 90K on it.)

I get her towed home and wait until morning. I figure I had a catastrophic failure, maybe a hose leak.

I fill it up with the hose, initially splashing some, it starts and runs fine, some drips but really only what I would expect from the excess flow from the hose initially, that was splashing. I top it off. Check the oil. Hmm, about a quart low. I top off the oil and go inside. Lets try this again in an hour or so once the drips stop.

I start it up and there are small slow drips and the back top of the radiator is wet. I think that is the leak source. Now thinking back, I think had noticed a coolant smell, but I figured it was another vehicle, like when I parked at the office. Now, I think this has been slowly happening and I wasnt paying attention and have gotten lucky.

I topped it off and drove it in this morning. No issues, temp gauge just slightly below the middle the entire trip. I stopped at McDonalds to pick up some unhealthy breakfast, and when I came out there were 2 very small drip streams/patters on the concrete stop block/strip. No puddling, what you might expect from a couple dozen drops or so.

I will check it now, after 45 minutes. There are 3 dark spots under it, I checked one, but it feels oily. Hmm.

I did research here about radiator replacement. I figure OK, I have a minor leak. Lets see what radiator prices are. 369 dealer, 100-140 for 3rd party from Pep Boys/Advanced/Autozone. RockAuto has a Denso for 110, I also ordered a thermostat/seal a couple filters and a radiator cap. Just Denso was available for the radiator and filters.

So I will do a flush after I get the new one in.

Red Coolant. How much do I need for this? As I understand it, the red is concentrate, designed to be mixed 1:1 with water (distilled) then added. Is there a simple way to flush, aside from repeated fills? As I understand it that method will leaves some coolant in there. Maybe repeated flushes with distilled. Dont bother with a radiator cleaning additive? If I do a flush, and the residue is clear, is there X gallons I can assume are in the engine/system, so add X pure red then the rest 50-50?

Suggestions?
 
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#2 ·
Found this while researching Red Coolant

This topic has been discussed many times on here but a brief summary - 2002-2004 Red "long life" concentrate was still being used. Pink "Super long life" premixed began use 2005 +. Red is concentrate, pink is pre-mixed. 2 are different chemistries. Life span for Red is 50-60k, pink is 100k +.

That overly expensive price of $31...sounds like the the pink, the red usually $26 ($12 when mixed 50/50). Parts dealers are sometimes only stocking pink because there was an old TSB that said pink was backward compatible with red. Unofficially, today people in the know say don't do that anymore. Waterpumps went/are going after the pink switchover. That can't be proved officially or at least Toyotas quiet about it, but those in the know say stay with what you had originally, and if anything use the cheaper red.
Toy Red coolant $31 at dealer? any other place to buy - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums
 
#3 ·
PVerdieck, I'm sorry i didn't see this earlier--there's a youtube video on replacing the Rav radiator. As for the coolant, you can get away with just ONE gallon of Toyota Red, but technically you need two. Get the Toyota Red--its worth it, even if its $30 (if you email some of your local dealers, you might be able to get it for cheaper: I just picked up 2 gallons at $19.95 each, which is a good deal). Don't use Toyota Pink; the formulation is different...our Ravs used Red.
The capacity of the coolant system is 2.125 gallons for Auto's and 2.2 gallons for Manuals. You want a 50/50 mix, so technically you need 1.0625 gallons of Toyota red. You only get 1 gallon in the jug. The that little 0.0625 gallons that you'd need for an exact 50/50 mix is equal to 1 cup...this is within the Low-Full range of the coolant overflow. So, you'll be a hair under 50/50, but you can get away with 1 gallon. Just be sure to test it for freeze protection suitable to where you live with a little $2 antifreeze density tester.
A little over 1 gallon stays trapped in the block. So, you can just replace your radiator, fill the new radiator with distilled water only, and bleed it completely so you can get good capacity data. Then drain the radiator and measure the capacity (this is why you need to bleed it even though its just distilled water). Then refill/idle/drain/fill/idle/drain it till you have nothing but distilled water coming out.
Then, just drain the radiator. You should be able to get right about 1 gallon out of the radiator drain (but if you get an aftermarket radiator, this capacity may be different, that's why you need to check it after the first bleed). Then, if you know you can get 1 gallon into the radiator, add 1 gallon of the straight non-diluted Toyota Red to the radiator. You should be able to get the whole gallon in, though it might take a bleed and then just letting it cool with the funnel still in.
If you'd like to have a higher coolant ratio, then get two gallons and do a 50/50 or 75/25 mix for the second-to-last time you refill the radiator, then idle to mix that. Drain the radiator, and refill with straight non-diluted Red, and you'll be over 50% coolant. Just don't go over 70% coolant (that's what it says on the Toyota Red label).
 
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