Coolant Review

Pictures collected from the internet :)

There were a few coolants that I have tested/used in my Perodua Viva. Since not much review when I first try to search on coolants thus I make this review for others who might still blur what to use.

All this while I have tried Water Wetter from Redline®, coolant from UMW (said to be same Toyota® coolant- actually it is not. More about that later.) and the coolant for Toyota® itself.

Courtesy of: http://www.redlineoil.com/product.aspx?pid=74&pcid=10

Water Wetter from Redline® is said to be a high performance coolant additive but I just use it without mixing with any coolant as water is already the best medium to transfer heat. Furthermore since my Perodua Viva is residing in tropical climate country, I guess using coolant is not necessary. Thus using Water Wetter® alone should be able to substitute the use of coolant. This is just my logical thinking. You should be able to surf on Water Wetter function in Redline® website. Below are some of the benefits of Water Wetter®:

• Unique agent for cooling systems that doubles the wetting ability of water
• Rust and corrosion protection allows for use of straight water in racing or reduced antifreeze levels in warm climates
• Improves heat transfer and reduces cylinder head temperature
• May allow more spark advance for increase power and efficiency
• Use one bottle for most passenger cars and light trucks, treats 3 to 5 gallons or 13.2 to 15.9 liters. Vehicles with larger cooling systems should use two bottles. Small cooling systems should use 1oz (3 to 4 capfuls) per quart
• Compatible with new or used antifreeze (including DEX-COOLTM and long-life versions) to improve the heat transfer of ethylene and propylene glycol systems
• Satisfies ASTM D2570 and ASTM D1384 corrosion tests for glycol-based antifreezes

After about a year of usage, the verdict was that water in the radiator has some oily residue. At first I was scared and thought engine oil might have slipped thru to the radiator. This would be a major problem if it does. However further check up done by myself found no engine oil decrease and discussion thru forums and fellow automotive friends said this is normal. Maybe the Water Wetter® content has that element for anti rust that create those oily residue due to hot and cold situation. Or my Perodua Viva does not generate that much heat to fully utilize this Water Wetter®.

This is the residue I mention when using Redline Water Wetter®

The bottom part

 So next I tried Water Wetter with coolant from UMW that was told by the spare part shop to be the same as Toyota® Long Life Coolant. Guess what, the same thing happen again after a year of usage. Since I do not like what I see, now I change to Toyota® Long Life Coolant without the Water Wetter® anymore.

The UMW Coolant is also not as good as the original Toyota® Long Life Coolant. My experienced showed that the coolant mixed with water in the radiator becomes somewhat dissolve or too watery. However I do not know how to explain this, it may be caused by adding Water Wetter® to it. Unfortunately I did not take any picture of the outcome that day. Sorry guys…

From the day I used Water Wetter® I can say that Water Wetter® really can do what it claims to be. With my aftermarket temperature gauge, I can monitor at least a 2 degree Celsius drop during peak operation. Normally in traffic jams the temperature would indicate 90 degree Celsius but with Water Wetter added the temperature lowers to 88 degree Celsius. During cruising the temperature was about 80 degree Celsius but with Water Wetter® it dropped to around 78 degree Celsius.

Nevertheless the oily residue is not something I like to see in my radiator because I do not want to face problem with a clogged radiator in the future.

That is why now I use Toyota® Long Life Coolant. This should be more than enough for a standard car and as an OEM replacement of the Perodua® Coolant. Even though it does not lower the temperature nonetheless it gives a peace of mind to me. Just beware because there are said that many fake Toyota® Long Life Coolant in the market now.

I am planning to try Mercedes® Coolant after this but it is quite pricey. Cost more than MYR 50 per bottle of 1.5 liters.

Cost per bottle:

Redline® Water Wetter – MYR 45

UMW Long Life Coolant – MYR 18

Toyota® Long Life Coolant – MYR 18

For more information on how to change the radiator coolant please refer to my previous post:

http://peroduavivaez.blogspot.com/2010/12/it-is-time-to-change-your-coolant.html

A few interesting information on the net:

http://www.arrowheadradiator.com/coolant_&_radiator_service.htm

http://www.zerotohundred.com/newforums/car-problems/393430-question-about-coolant-2.html