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MatrixGuy
17-09-2010, 18:02
How hard is it to change the coolant and clean the expansion tank? Bear in mind I am rubbish with cars! lol. :lol:

I want to clean my tank and fill it with Renault type d stuff.

Thanks

Iain

fab
17-09-2010, 21:25
open the expansion bottle. go to the left of the rad (on the bottom) there is a hose pipe, dis-connect it. wait till it is finished draining out. dis-connect one of the 2 pipes into the expansion bottle and stick a hose in it. connect it back up and do the same for the other pipe.
Ideally you should take the rad out and flush it through and through by running water through it from both connections. possibly can be done with rad in car but you will not be able to give the rad a good shake.
BTW if you have the "evil clips" make sure you have a good pliers to take them off. they can be a pain in the tits.
think thats it really, unless someone else can throw some light on it.

had mine done by reno 5 years ago and the expansion bottle was destroyed because they didn't bother to do it properly.

Brealbags
18-09-2010, 10:22
Invest in a set of spring clip pliers for the coolant hose clips. Worth it :wink:

MatrixGuy
18-09-2010, 11:58
Thank you for the replies guys. How long would it normally take someone who knows what they are doing? lol.

shag
18-09-2010, 14:32
20 min at most to empty good flush and refill and bled up

fab
18-09-2010, 15:14
yep as shag said, just be careful with the bleed screw. it's on the right hand side (if your looking at the car head on) they are a little odd to say the least.It seem's you do not over-tighten them and do not under tighten them. there is a sweet spot.
there is also a o-ring washer on the bleed screw. just note it's position when loosening, it may move
as I said, if your rad is old, flushing it (without cleaning the rad) will only keep the coolant clean for 12 months. after that the rust in the rad will muck up your bottle again.
I was at least 30 minutes shaking and tipping my rad around the garden to get all the gunk out.

andyrg
20-09-2010, 17:57
If i may make a suggestion, Renaukts Pre Mixed coolant that costs £13 at Trade price for 5 Litres made my car run 5 Degrees cooler than Halfords Coolant, I have a Ditital Temp Gauage on my Clocks, so for the money it may be worth buying some.

Andy

MatrixGuy
21-09-2010, 07:59
Hmm, interesting. Cheers mate. I think the only thing putting me off was the price but sod it, lol.