Question about antifreeze ? - Page 2
 

Question about antifreeze ?

Started by eagle rush, October 06, 2010, 07:04:11 AM

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luvrbus

Jim, I always used the green in my 8v92 but never bought the cheap stuff from Auto Zone or such DD sold the green under their brand up to last year and that is where I bought mine now they only sell the designer color long life and I never used distilled water only R/O water.
Me I would not classify a 92 series as a true wet sleeve engine only 2 inches on a 92 series comes in contact with the coolant at the top of the block.
Cummins and Cat had their own antifreeze but DD never had anything but the green till the 60 series came into the world


good luck
Life is short drink the good wine first

rv_safetyman

Clifford, you bring up an excellent point.  I think the confusion comes in when we talk about "green colored" antifreeze. 

From the research I could find, it appears that the industry had two kinds of green colored antifreeze.  One was formulated for cars and one for diesel engines.  The formulations were different.  It appears that if you go back far enough (30 years?) that there was only one formulation.  As the automotive engine technology started to change to aluminum components (was the Vega the first US car to have an aluminum head?) the formulations changed and the automotive formulation became higher in phosphates and silicates (have never understood why, but it was apparently necessary for protection of the aluminum components).

Any green colored antifreeze purchased at DD would have been low in phosphates and silicates.

As pointed out, I don't think you can find green colored ("shorter life") diesel formulated antifreeze easily anymore.  Most manufacturers (few in number - most brands are private labels from a small number of suppliers) have now migrated to "long life" formulations.  Those formulations are pink or purple (perhaps other colors).

Bottom line, the color does not define the formulation.

As I said in an earlier post, for a few dollars more, I will always defer to a product that clearly states it is for diesel engines.  Even with the "semi wet sleeve" V92 engines.

Jim
Jim Shepherd
Evergreen, CO
'85 Eagle 10/Series 60/Eaton AutoShift 10 speed transmission
Somewhere between a tin tent and a finished product
Bus Project details: http://beltguy.com/Bus_Project/busproject.htm
Blog:  http://rvsafetyman.blogspot.com/

Jriddle

I'm not sure which is better and I don't care either. I bought a good brand from my local NAPA and put it in. I will not worry about how much damage I am doing IF ANY. Test your PH in your antifreeze and you should be good to go. My Detroit has more damage from sitting around than from the few thousand miles it got this year with cheap antifreeze.
John Riddle
Townsend MT
1984 MC9

desi arnaz

real stupid ??? but how do i check my level on a 4106?
thomas f  Bethlehem n.h

FloridaCliff

Desi,

Not sure on your 4106, but my 4905 has an access door to the coolant fill on the drivers side rear, right at the rear cornor.

Has a surge tank.

HTH

Cliff
1975 GMC  P8M4905A-1160    North Central Florida

"There are basically two types of people. People who accomplish things, and people who claim to have accomplished things. The first group is less crowded."
Mark Twain

wildbob24

Desi,

Your 4106 is the same as Cliff's 4905.

Bob
P8M4905A-1308, 8V71 w/V730
Custom Coach Conversion
PD4106-2546, 8V71, 4sp
Greenville, GA

artvonne

  Years back I had a manual for a 1947 GMC PD 3751. In it they listed several chemicals that could be used in the cooling system. One I believe was methyl alcohol, and if im not mistaken another was propylene glycol (RV antifreeze). If someone has one of those old manuals it would be interesting to recall what else they suggested back then.

Geoff

I remember watching an old WWII survival movie that showed a soldier broke down in the desert with his jeep.  The movie showed how he could drain the water from the radiator and drink it.
Geoff
'82 RTS AZ

artvonne

Quote from: Geoff on October 12, 2010, 12:25:42 PM
I remember watching an old WWII survival movie that showed a soldier broke down in the desert with his jeep.  The movie showed how he could drain the water from the radiator and drink it.

  Wow.  I cant believe anything in a war jeeps cooling system would be good for you. Might not kill you today though, so maybe it depends on what kind of survival they are talking about. Fast death by dehydradtion, or slow death through lead poisoning, antifreeze poisoning, or both. Ick.