5th & 6th Generation (2002-2006 & 2007-2011)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 2002-2006 & 2007-2011
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i've changed coolant on my 05 camry. i didn't put coolant in the reservoir is this ok? i didn't put in b/c the cap had somekind of pink stuff around it and i thought that's glue..lol
now that i drove the car like 50 miles with the new coolant. should i add more new coolant in the reservoir? or the coolant inside the car is old to mix with new.
i've changed coolant on my 05 camry. i didn't put coolant in the reservoir is this ok? i didn't put in b/c the cap had somekind of pink stuff around it and i thought that's glue..lol
now that i drove the car like 50 miles with the new coolant. should i add more new coolant in the reservoir? or the coolant inside the car is old to mix with new.
thx
As you suspect, the old coolant got sucked in to the car cooling system. The quickie thing to do is to drain (or suck out via shop vac) the old coolant from the overflow, and fill with fresh. No major harm, but I'd do the next change a bit earlier.
As you suspect, the old coolant got sucked in to the car cooling system. The quickie thing to do is to drain (or suck out via shop vac) the old coolant from the overflow, and fill with fresh. No major harm, but I'd do the next change a bit earlier.
i just put some new coolant in the reservoir..i hope that's fine.
i just put some new coolant in the reservoir..i hope that's fine.
yeah that ought to do it, i'd check it after driving it maybe 20 miles or more and letting it sit overnight.
Its a good idea to flush it out with water too during a flush then fill it with the same mix in the rad, or just use straight coolant. You can run up to 70/30 coolant/water ratio in most cars but really must have a minimum 50/50.
As you might already know, the purpose of the bottle is so that the coolant system is truly "sealed". I used to have older cars that had no coolant recovery bottle just a hose from the radiator cap hole area. The purpose is to allow the cooling system to vent off any overpressure so it doesn't blow out your radiator instead - in older cars the coolant was simply blown out onto the ground, and YOU had to keep an eye on the coolant level and top it up if this happened. Also this allowed air into the cooling system if your cap had a weak spring or bad seal - bad. In newer cars the system is much better, no coolant is wasted and you simply check coolant by glancing at the level in the bottle - and not much chance of air getting into the system.
By the way i prefer never to use that rip-off "50/50" mix they sell - i know where to find water to dilute my coolant with - who thought of that frikken racket!
Moreover if you flush your system with water then add this 50/50 you are guaranteed to have a less than 50/50 mix because it is diluted by the flushing water left behind in the engine (nothing you can do to get it all out). I always buy full concentrate never 50/50 for this reason, when i change i make it about 70/30 figuring the flushing water in the system will make it up (a healthy cooling system doesnt need any flushing chemicals so i NEVER use them - again no way to get it all out!).
Last edited by AlmightyCamry777; 01-02-2010 at 01:10 PM.
yeah that ought to do it, i'd check it after driving it maybe 20 miles or more and letting it sit overnight.
Its a good idea to flush it out with water too during a flush then fill it with the same mix in the rad, or just use straight coolant. You can run up to 70/30 coolant/water ratio in most cars but really must have a minimum 50/50.
As you might already know, the purpose of the bottle is so that the coolant system is truly "sealed". I used to have older cars that had no coolant recovery bottle just a hose from the radiator cap hole area. The purpose is to allow the cooling system to vent off any overpressure so it doesn't blow out your radiator instead - in older cars the coolant was simply blown out onto the ground, and YOU had to keep an eye on the coolant level and top it up if this happened. Also this allowed air into the cooling system if your cap had a weak spring or bad seal - bad. In newer cars the system is much better, no coolant is wasted and you simply check coolant by glancing at the level in the bottle - and not much chance of air getting into the system.
By the way i prefer never to use that rip-off "50/50" mix they sell - i know where to find water to dilute my coolant with - who thought of that frikken racket!
Moreover if you flush your system with water then add this 50/50 you are guaranteed to have a less than 50/50 mix because it is diluted by the flushing water left behind in the engine (nothing you can do to get it all out). I always buy full concentrate never 50/50 for this reason, when i change i make it about 70/30 figuring the flushing water in the system will make it up (a healthy cooling system doesnt need any flushing chemicals so i NEVER use them - again no way to get it all out!).
i already flushed it. i'm low on coolant because i didn't put enough..
i shouldn't have bought 50/50 damn. cause i flushed the system with water lol
so i guess there's like 50/100 water in the system lol
i already flushed it. i'm low on coolant because i didn't put enough..
i shouldn't have bought 50/50 damn. cause i flushed the system with water lol
so i guess there's like 50/100 water in the system lol
Your profile says you're in irvine which i assume is irvine, California, which is near me and i know it doesnt freeze here - so it probably isn't a critical matter until summertime. But rather than throw away brand new expensive coolant i'd pick up a cheapo coolant/water tester for a buck at walmart or someplace and just test it with that before buying more coolant.
Using one of these tools is simple, you just use it to suck some coolant out of the engine (not the bottle, the engine, remove the cap - engine COLD) and then turn the contraption vertical and count the balls floating (or read whatever indicator it uses to tell you your coolant/water ratio). If its around 50/50 its probably alright, if much less maybe still ok unless you take the car somewhere where it freezes.
If your coolant is at much less a ratio than 50/50, i'd consider fixing that if it were my car, (it needs to be 50/50 or greater under all weather conditions for the life of the coolant). I'd buy a gallon of full strength coolant and just drain maybe half a gallon out of the radiator, then top up with coolant (since you already flushed it) and test it again after running the engine (to mix the coolant) and a cool down . Manufacturer says anything between 50/50 and 70/30 (coolant/water) is ok.
Alot of people here will just tell you to go buy toyota coolant and go by the instructions on the bottle. They're right, of course, and you can't go wrong if you do this. But prestone is half the price and i buy the kind that mixes with anything (full strength) and just use that because i am a cheapskate.
Last edited by AlmightyCamry777; 01-02-2010 at 03:51 PM.
By the way i prefer never to use that rip-off "50/50" mix they sell - i know where to find water to dilute my coolant with - who thought of that frikken racket!
Moreover if you flush your system with water then add this 50/50 you are guaranteed to have a less than 50/50 mix because it is diluted by the flushing water left behind in the engine (nothing you can do to get it all out). I always buy full concentrate never 50/50 for this reason, when i change i make it about 70/30 figuring the flushing water in the system will make it up (a healthy cooling system doesnt need any flushing chemicals so i NEVER use them - again no way to get it all out!).
For 2005 Camry the coolant is pink. This is not available from the dealer in concentrated form. They only sell the pink stuff in 50/50.
Quote:
Originally Posted by whoisthis
i already flushed it. i'm low on coolant because i didn't put enough..
i shouldn't have bought 50/50 damn. cause i flushed the system with water lol
so i guess there's like 50/100 water in the system lol
That's not right because 50/50 means 50% water 50% coolant/antifreeze. Not knowing how much water was left in your system, it's hard to tell the concentration of your coolant.
Your profile says you're in irvine which i assume is irvine, California, which is near me and i know it doesnt freeze here - so it probably isn't a critical matter until summertime. But rather than throw away brand new expensive coolant i'd pick up a cheapo coolant/water tester for a buck at walmart or someplace and just test it with that before buying more coolant.
Using one of these tools is simple, you just use it to suck some coolant out of the engine (not the bottle, the engine, remove the cap - engine COLD) and then turn the contraption vertical and count the balls floating (or read whatever indicator it uses to tell you your coolant/water ratio). If its around 50/50 its probably alright, if much less maybe still ok unless you take the car somewhere where it freezes.
If your coolant is at much less a ratio than 50/50, i'd consider fixing that if it were my car, (it needs to be 50/50 or greater under all weather conditions for the life of the coolant). I'd buy a gallon of full strength coolant and just drain maybe half a gallon out of the radiator, then top up with coolant (since you already flushed it) and test it again after running the engine (to mix the coolant) and a cool down . Manufacturer says anything between 50/50 and 70/30 (coolant/water) is ok.
Alot of people here will just tell you to go buy toyota coolant and go by the instructions on the bottle. They're right, of course, and you can't go wrong if you do this. But prestone is half the price and i buy the kind that mixes with anything (full strength) and just use that because i am a cheapskate.
i'll prolly go buy one.
Or i can just drain some coolant in the radiator and put some new 50/50 coolant in? i think that will even out lol
i'll prolly go buy one.
Or i can just drain some coolant in the radiator and put some new 50/50 coolant in? i think that will even out lol
by now you've probably already done it but since you sort of need it now, i think having a coolant tester is a good idea - they are very cheap, easy and fast to use, just flush clean water through it after every use and you have a tool for life.
The camry engine, at least my 2002 V6, is all aluminum block and heads, (with pressed-in steel cylinder sleeves), and coolant is critical to engine life. 50-50 to 70/30 is the acceptable ratio, too much or too little may result in engine damage. Cooling system failure can result in catastrophic engine failure (it happened to me on another car when the thermostat stuck closed - goodbye, engine!) Worth at least a couple bucks i think.
Last edited by AlmightyCamry777; 01-08-2010 at 02:06 PM.
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