Corrosion in Coolant reservoir

[mgcorreia]

I have a 97 Toyota 4runner 4cyl with 212k miles on it. I have only owned the car for about 7k miles. The first time I changed the oil, I noticed the corrosion in the coolant reservoir and did a good flush of the system and cleaned out the reservoir. I just changed the oil today again and noticed all the crud back in the coolant reservoir, a bunch of orange gunk. The reservoir is always nearly empty too. No matter how much coolant I pour in there it always goes nearly empty for some reason. I don't notice any leaks and my car runs fine, no overheating, and no codes. So I pretty much forgot about the issue after I did the first radiator flush. But I figure its probably time to look into this before it gets worse. I want to get it running tip top so I can drive it down to Baja mexico for surf trips. Any advice? thanks

 

[nissanh]

You are heading to the summer time and be aware your radiator might be clogged and may over heat.
When it is COLD, remove the radiator cap and start the engine. Wait until you see water is circulating (thermostat is open). Now turn the engine off and drain the coolant.

Let the engine to cool and add again fresh water (distilled) and repeat at least 3 more times.
Finally, just add distilled water and run for a day and drain that again.
Now load it up with 50:50 coolant. Use ONLY distilled water to dilute concentrated coolant. If the radiator is factory and no sing of recent change, it is a good idea to replace it at the same time.

 

[JayRolla]

You want to clean it all out like he said, most likely replace radiator and stick to the toyota red coolant, or Zerex Asian. They give the best corrosion protection in our vehicles.

 

[hopdup]

Prestone makes an awesome flush kit, called Prestone Super Flush. The Flush N' Fill Kit allows you to hook up a garden hose in-line with the heater core. The kit allows you to back flush your rad and heater core. I think it's the best cooling system flush kit on the market.

 

[mgcorreia]

Great advice. First time I flushed it I just left the car running with the hose going through it for a long time. I'll try the super flush kit. Guy I bought it from took really good care of the car but I'd go out on a limb and say the radiator was never replaced. Would you for sure replace it or just flush it? I live in San Diego, weather is always pretty mild.

 

[mgcorreia]

any good parts supplier where I can get a radiator? What brand is best?

 

[JBurt]

Most guys replace the radiator with the Koyo brand. It gives you the added benefit of not worrying about the pink milkshake, at least I've never heard of a Koyo rad failing at the transmission oil cooler.

 

[BrianSD_42]

Definitely get OEM and not aftermarket.

You're in San Diego so I'd suggest buying the parts from The Truck Shop on Miramar Rd. They seem to sell the geniune Toyota parts at about 20% below MSRP. Some of the local Toyota dealers actually sell at 50-100% OVER MSRP.

 

[mgcorreia]

Are Denso radiators any good?

 

[02SE]

Denso is a member of the Toyota Group of companies. Yes, they are generally good.

 

[mgcorreia]

I got my denso radiator in the mail last week, ordered it online from partsgeek.com These guys threw the radiator in a carboard box with hardly any padding. THe nozzle where the radiator cap is snapped off in the mail. Do you think a 2 part epoxy would be able to secure it back on , or would the heat of the radiator make it break apart? I might just suck it up and go down to autozone and buy another radiator, they have one from Spectra down there, I don't have time to deal with partgeek.com's bullshit. Don't ever buy stuff from partsgeek.com, lesson learned.

 

[jgue467]

Like J/B weld?

I think so if you mean the small overflow nozzle on the neck? j/b is really strong stuff holds to like 3900psi, probably w/b stronger than the metal around it. Luck!

 

[BrianSD_42]

When you order from shady internet dealers you should really check to make sure the part you get is the part you ordered.

I've heard several stories of people being shipped a TYC radiator in a Koyo box.

 

[jgue467]

When you order from shady internet dealers you should really check to make sure the part you get is the part you ordered.

I've heard several stories of people being shipped a TYC radiator in a Koyo box.

Agreed. I also like to triple check their warranty, guarantee and return policy. Warranty of course is the warranty on the item. Guarantee is the guarantee of satisfaction which goes hand in hand with the return policy. If they have a "no-return" policy then I don't deal with them. Find these 3 and you'll have a much better chance of a pleasant outcome with interweb stuff. :banana:

 

[mgcorreia]

I have the new radiator in and im trying to flush all that corrosion out now. I've seen people flush the radiator two ways: With the engine on, heater on high, running a garden hose though the radiator with the petcock off until the water is running out clear. If I do it that way then it flows out clear. I ran it like that for a good 10 min with the thermostat open. However, I also try to flush it by filling up the radiator with water, closing the petcock, and letting the fresh water circulate around in there for a good 10 min with the heater on high. After I drain that water it always comes out looking dirty doing it this way. I've done this a dozens of times and its still pretty dirty. I used Peak radiator flush cleaner in there too and let it run for a few days and it still drains dirty when I run water through the cooling system with the petcock closed. I'm trying the Prestone flush now. Is this water ever going to flow out clear when I am running it through the engine with the Petcock closed? I gotta keep doing this until it drains out crystal clear after running fresh water through with the petcock closed right?