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Question about my Car's Coolant

Zorba

Zorba

Lifer
Okay, this is a pretty simple question, just wanted to get some input for you all.

I changed my upper radiator hose last night and noticed that my coolant had a nice rust color to it (not muddy, yet, just rust colored). This surprised me quite a bit since I did a complete flush and refill about 3 months ago. I used 50% water and 50% anti-freeze (the type Ford recommends) and haven't had any leaks or anything. Any ideas why this is and whether it is a sign of a problem? If it is a problem any ideas of what I could do to fix it?

BTW: My car is 12 years old and still has its original radiator and I am working on replace all the original hoses. I am going to do another full flush and refill on my coolant in a month or so when I replace the rest of the hoses.

Thanks for any advice.
 
There are some brands of radiator cleaner that work pretty well. The BG brand I've used comes in two cans. You run the car for a while with the cleaner....then flush the system with water. Then add a 50/50 antifreeze/water mixture along with the second can of BG. This can extends the life of your antifreeze mixture, as well as preventing corrosion and rust. Not sure where to find this particular brand (BG).
 
It's corrosion from your 12 year old radiator. I just replaced a 12 year old ford radiator about 2 months back. It still worked, but it was definitely pretty corroded inside. Eventually, it'll rust out, and you'll need a new one. If you want bright green fluid, you'll probably need to get a new radiator. Look inside the radiator (jsut pull the cap and look at the ends of the tubes that run through the core). You'll probably notice a fair bit of corrosion on the ends of them.
 
I just keep adding just water to the radiator, run it a while, drain the radiator. Do that 2 or more times . Eventually the drained fluid will look clear. Then you can fill up with the 50/50 mixture. Or slightly more antifreeze to make up for the extra water in the block. If you do see corrosion in the radiator, that BG stuff can actually remove it.

One more thing....while you're doing all this, keep your heater on high. That'll clean out your heater core and lines also.
 
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