Windshield washer fluid capacity?

[MLA]

This happened to me on I70 in the mountains on a particularly bad day. It was obvious that there was frozen fluid because it would only take 1/4 of a gallon before it was full, and would run out after very minimal use. My tank was fine, it was just the Walmart "-20" rated fluid that was full of shit. Granted it was cold, but more like -10 to 15. I now only run the expensive -32 to -40 stuff. Having a wiper fluid issue on a busy, snowy mountain road is not something that I will be repeating. I was able to get it unfrozen by letting the vehicle idle, allowing the engine bay to heat up a bit, all while constantly running new fluid through it. Total pain in the ass, but when you need to see, you need to see. At home, you could always just heat up new fluid, or even water, to melt the ice. Then run the system until it is dry, making sure there is nothing remaining of the suspect fluid. Finish by spending a dollar more on fluid that will not let you down.

I ran into the same problem yesterday on my way to Mary Jane. I didn't even realize the fluid I bought in TX was only rated to 20 (not -20 like I'm used to seeing). Aside from being a major safety issue, it has been a complete PITA to fix. I noticed that ever since CDOT started using that new chemical (magnesium chloride?) instead of sand, the amount of windshield fluid I use has gone up dramatically. Whatever that stuff is, it cakes your entire car and requires a lot of fluid to wash off. I had to leave my TE in the garage overnight, drain all of the fluid then replace with winter fluid. I tried leaving the engine running as described above, but wasn't able to melt all of the ice in the reservoir using that method due to low ambient temps

 

[DougEFresh2]

Capacity: 4.4 quarts (1.1 gallons)

My FLUIDS GUIDE: Beginner Fluid Maintenance

:cheers: