Just curious. Needed to top up one of our Elantra Elites with some coolant fluid. I went to get some at SuperCheap and the young guy asked if the existing fluid was blue or green. Apparently they're NOT intercompatible. I couldn't tell him because In was on the other car lol.
What is this stuff and what's the difference between the colours?
do not put any other fluid then What the fluid is the kia dealer sells. The colour has nothing to do with the coolant the colour is just a die and compatible means its a wrong fluid. For vw i spent a long time to find aftermarket factory coolant. valvoline makes it for VW the G12++ Toyota is the worst nightmare no codes or numbers on there coolant to see if you could find a after market fluid the same. So buy 1 litre from Hyundai and see what number codes are on the bottle.
Find out where the leak is first if its obvious the level in the header tank had been dropping, even very slowly. If the car is at or overdue its coolant change interval you may as well dump it out and replace it, preferably with whatever Hyundai recommends for it. Tiny leaks often start at water pumps, heater hoses and pipes where o rings are involved.
nice_lady,
May 20, 4:40am
Well the car has done 110,000 km. It's never had the coolant attended to as far as I know. I doubt it's leaking. I've noticed that after stopping when the motor is warm a small amount of what of guess is coolant is dripped out. Overflow ? I guess that's where the coolant has gone ? It's only down to the 'Low level' mark on the external bottle.
apollo11,
May 20, 4:42am
They should be able to look up the appropriate coolant for the car.
nice_lady,
May 20, 5:00am
The guy at supercheap ? He did look something up and then said "Does it have blue or green coolant in it now"? I said " I dunno" he said "Well they don't advise mixing them so you need the right one" . so I thought I'd ask here about that ?
And anyway what happened to water ? It used to cool cars perfectly well. Obviously the coolant in the car is mostly water, (98% ?) - what happens if i just top it up with water ? Serious question folks.
toyboy3,
May 20, 5:06am
Find where the coolant is leaking before you cook the motor, there is two holes in your cooling system, one for putting coolant in, the other is the one that is letting the coolant out
franc123,
May 20, 5:11am
That statement contradicts itself. Unless it happens to be clear water under the car from when the air conditioning has been going and ONLY when/after its been going, absolutely nothing should be dripping out of your car. I would recommend you get it looked at by someone who knows what they are doing. Good luck.
nice_lady,
May 20, 5:19am
Well I dunno it probably is the aircon water as the air con is always on. Why would a car not use say a Litre of coolant over 110,000 Km ? Doesn't the radiator have an overflow hose also which would lose a bit when you stop ? Do I really need to pay someone $100 per hour to tell me that I need to top up the coolant ?
ronaldo8,
May 20, 5:23am
more likely that's condensate from the aircon. Coolant colour was (and to a large extent still is) an indicator dye used differentiate the coolant chemistry, a loose, but largely agreed to standard. Green and greenish blue coolants, high in glycol were the common coolant for motors with mixed metals etc, then came the red/orange OAT coolants. They shouldn't be mixed. Find out what that model needs, and never just mix with whatever happen to be in it, unless you know exactly what it is.
nice_lady,
May 20, 5:30am
Ok. So it seems that a cars coolant level should not be expected to drop from 'Full' to 'Low' even after over 100,000 Km unless there's a leak ?
gph1961,
May 20, 5:59am
what does Hubby say?
mack77,
May 20, 6:02am
Correct
nice_lady,
May 20, 6:16am
For real? So modern cars are so far ahead of their predecessors, (70's-90's, and perhaps early 2000 models approx), that while you would EXPECT an older vintage car to lose some water from the cooling system and actually you'dcheck it reasonably often, these modern cars simply don't lose any at all even over say 7 + years of being driven 14,000 km pretty year on average?
Really?
nice_lady,
May 20, 6:18am
I'm not going to go get some fancy diagnostics to see where some leak is - yet . I'm just going to top it up and see how long it lasts till it's needed again. I'm picking it won't be soon.
But thanks anyway for your thoughts.
franc123,
May 20, 6:20am
The coolant should be on the cold line when its cold and move to a point towards the hot line when its hot. If it is not consistently moving back to the cold line (ie going below it and needing a topup) after its completely cooled down there is a problem. Coolant should not be being ejected out of any part of the system anywhere. Cool down.
franc123,
May 20, 6:27am
Yes really. The same basic principles still apply regardless of age. The only real difference is that generally on 40+ yo cars the radiator would just have a vented overflow pipe instead of an expansion tank, but the radiator would not be completely filled up to allow for the expansion. All modern engines need to have an approved coolant mix in them at all times and needs to be changed out every few years, this can vary between 3 years on old cars up to 10-12 years on modern cars, or usually about 150000km what occurs first.
franc123,
May 20, 6:29am
Up to you, its your cooling system mine. All of this stuff is in your owners manual.once youve cooled down enough to bother reading it lol.
nice_lady,
May 20, 6:43am
Ok thanks. Well see how it goes
tygertung,
May 20, 6:53am
It might be worthwhile just changing all the coolant if it has done 110k.
gpg58,
May 20, 6:55am
You end up diluting the mix ratio, which could let it freeze sooner or boil quicker, and also reduce its anti corrosion protection, so not a good idea.(but ok, IMO adding a small amount as percent of total volume just the once, is unlikely to be harmful (but always use radiator water - which is demineralized) Is the coolant over 5 years old anyway? if so corrosion may already have started, so a flush and change could be a good idea.
From intrades link - How long does Hyundai coolant last? How naturally(often) you need to flush and replenish your vehicle's coolant relies on the type of coolant. There are innumerable types of coolants. Interestingly enough, up until the mid-1990s there was basically only a single type of coolant. It was a green formula coolant that contained corrosion inhibitors that only lasted between 24,000 - 36,000 miles or between two to three years. This type of coolant is not recommended for newer vehicles which come equipped with a longer-lasting coolant.
Newer coolants use an Organic Acid Technology (OAT) and last up to twice as long as older coolant. In some cases these long-life coolants can last over 5 years or 100,000 miles.
nice_lady,
May 20, 4:56pm
Well the Huyndai manual for my Elantra says to check the levels now and then and to replace the coolant at 120 months, (Ten years), or about 200,000 Km:
"Replace coolant (First, 120,000 miles (192,000 km) or 120 months after every 30,000 miles (48,000 km) or 24 months)"
So I'm just going to top it up a little and see what happens. If it keeps using coolant then theres a problem but if it takes another few years to use another litre I'm not going to worry.
strobo,
May 20, 7:54pm
It aint only just coolant persay ,It is also an inhibitor! so using right type is important .Why so pedantic about how often and how long between changes ?! If in doubt biff it out and fit new every season for peace of mind is the general rule as it dilutes and evaporates. Factory /manufactures change periods are only guides /recommendations to cover their own rrrrrssss.
gazzat22,
May 20, 8:17pm
You dont need a FancyDiagnosis. most garages would have a pressure tester which is simply a pump with a gauge and a variety of fittings for different cars.You pump up the pressure and watch the gauge to see if it moves denoting a leak which should be visible.Your local Hyundai dealer should put you on the right track.
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