waterless coolant

[colinmartin]

hi guys has anyone tried waterless coolant ?,i was just thinking because all the trouble we have with plastic coolant pipes it might be a better option than replacing them ,i had mine done about 6 months ago but im sure i would have looked into waterless coolant if i had known about it..

[JFP in PA]

hi guys has anyone tried waterless coolant ?,i was just thinking because all the trouble we have with plastic coolant pipes it might be a better option than replacing them ,i had mine done about 6 months ago but im sure i would have looked into waterless coolant if i had known about it..

Every so often, someone brings up this subject. Water-less coolant has always been a solution in search for a problem to solve.

It is really hard to beat pure water’s ability to conduct and transfer heat. Unfortunately, water boils at relatively low temperatures, and it freezes at 32F. Water is also fairly corrosive. But when the water is pure (as in distilled), and mixed with certain other compounds (modern antifreeze), it not only is an excellent automotive coolant, it is relatively free of corrosive properties for a very long time (we have seen properly maintained Porsches that were 7 and 8 years old with a couple hundred thousand miles on the coolant, and the coolant system was both free of corrosion and still able to go to -40F before freezing).

The water pipes issue, like the water pump impeller problems, is more related to the materials they are made from than from the type of coolant in the system. Switching to a ridiculously priced water-less coolant would probably not get you anything other than a thinner wallet to sit on.

As someone that services these vehicles every day, I can assure you that at some point your cooling system is going to have to be drained for maintenance work (leaks, failed water pumps, thermostats, etc.). Having to refill it with some magical fluid that cost north of $50 a gallon (and think about how many gallons your system holds), when there is a significantly lower cost and excellently performing alternative is nonsense….

Edited October 26, 2012 by JFP in PA