G12 coolant and mixing it

[davidif]

I have a 2001 Toledo 1.9 TDI 110 BHP, about 8 months ago i started to have problems with a gradual loss of coolant i kept topping up with water and eventully added a product called k seal which seemed to cure the problem.

Driving to work today in minus 12 degrees and snow firstly i noticed that the temp guage started to go up more quickly than normal in this weather and secondly their was no heat in the cabin.

Checked the expansion tank and guess what coolant is very low. I didnt want to top up with water as the coolant is already a little diluted ,but my local petrol station only had all purpose coolant/antifreeze which i put approx 2L in.

Now i know you shouldnt mix G12 but i had no alternative question is do i now need to drain and flush the coolant system and if so how urgently?

Thanks in advance

 

[M1KEH]

What colour was the universal stuff you put in? If it was blue then i'd flush and change asap.

 

[MJ]

k-seal = bad
Mixing g12 = bad

ethylene glycol (blue antifreeze) and propylene glycol (red coolant) does not mix and instead causes the organic acid within the g12 to react badly, the mix coagulates (clots, goes purple and sludgy) thus blocking parts of the coolant system which can cause no end off circulation issues.

K-seal is just a cheat which can end up causing more problems than it prevents.

 

[davidif]

Thanks for the replys chaps, how urgent is it that i drain and flush the system?ie immediately before driving again or can it wait a week or 2 until after christmas and when the snow has gone?

 

[M1KEH]

Depends what you put in there.

 

[MJ]

the sooner the better really but a couple of weeks shouldnt make any difference.

Just be aware though - we've had 2 x A4s in that wont warm up correctly. The cause? - at some point someone has used K-seal in them and now the smaller water channels are gummed up and the matrix is massively restricted.

 

[Muttley]

Specifically K-seal, or just any old sealer e.g. Bar's Leaks, Radweld etc? I've had K-seal in my TDI 110 since April, and have observed no bad side-effects so far. The alternative was replacing the radiator.

 

[sssstew]

yep agreed with MJ here too. Get it flushed out and replaced with a clean G12 fill up.

 

[MJ]

Specifically K-seal, or just any old sealer e.g. Bar's Leaks, Radweld etc? I've had K-seal in my TDI 110 since April, and have observed no bad side-effects so far. The alternative was replacing the radiator.

k-seal is the worst because of the reaction it provokes and it contains small pieces of metal. bar seal is more of a solidified powder which turns your coolant into a coffee colour and can do very much the same thing.

ive only ever had bad experiences with k-seal and the like when used in VAG cars and tend to stay clear all together. a chap brought in an old jag v12 twin supercharged monster that was suspiciously drinking the coolant - the head was cracked and he used some american stuff that was garanteed for life and it bloody worked! he's still driving it about to this day.

it did come with a very long winded explanation into how it worked but i payed little attention as i suspect there was some voodoo involved.

 

[davidif]

Thanks for all the info guys i shall empty/flush the system in a week or so and then will have to look properly into the slow coolant loss issue

 

[bai_ILIA]

you cannot mix G12 but you can do it with G12+...Still, I don't think it's a good idea.

 

[MJ]

you cannot mix G12 but you can do it with G12+...Still, I don't think it's a good idea.

you can mix g12 and g12+ together, its just a superceeded version of the same product but you can mix g11 (blue) and g12 (red).

 

[bai_ILIA]

I meant that G12+ can be mixed with G11. However G11 and G12 cannot be mixed...

 

[davidif]

Thanks for all the advice, I have now drained and flushed the system and refilled with g12 all seems ok at the moment, fingers crossed.


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[ooswordfishoo]

new to this site

Using mobile phone as well. Anyway I have a seat Cordoba 1.9tdi se 130 pd 82k mls noticing coolant loss heater working fine starts fine no loss of power fan kiks in as it should. Can see any leaks but I put blue antifreeze in it then noticed the g12 on expansion bottle would this matter? Also anywhere there prone to coolant loss? Any help be much appreciated.

 

[sssstew]

How much blue did you put in?

To be 100% sure you should really flush and refill with G12 only to reduce the risk of build up.

Other place for coolant to leak is from the oil cooler into the oil, how is the oil looking? and on the filler cap?

 

[ooswordfishoo]

After investigation it looks like its leaking at o rings where pipes go through bulkhead. Oil isn't mixing . How easy is it to get to the o rings. ? Thanks for your reply. Just worried incase it isn't o rings as from what I can see the matrix looks like a nightmare to replace...will probably just bypass it and buy a space heater lol. If I keep heating on full it doesn't use as much coolant.

 

[sssstew]

not sure how easy it is to get to the o rings, sorry bud.