It is time to drain and flush my radiator I bought some SUPER flush made by Valvoline it say to put product in

Question

radiater with fresh water and drive for 3 to 4 hours of normal driving then reflush etc.... will it hurt anything if I did the 3 to 4 hours in 1/2 hour trips over 4 days ?
thanks for the info

Answer 1

Yep, it very likely will.

First off, you should NEVER operate your vehicle without the proper coolant mix. Your vehicle will probably overheat without the proper coolant mix. This basically means that you should NOT use this product.

Many of those radiator flush products are highly caustic. Leaving them in the engine for more than the stated time may cause severe damage to the engine and the cooling system. Others use solvents that will damage gaskets and hoses if left in for very long.

If your radiator is so badly clogged that you need to clean it out, it's best to take it to a pro and have them do it. If you are just adhering to the manufacturer's maintenance schedule, only use the cleaing method specified by the manufacturer. If they don't specify one, then just flush it with plain water and refill it with the recommended coolant.

Answer 2

With radiator flush stuff, the idea is to get the engine HOT. That will let the detergent stuff in the radiator flush product clean the gunk out of your cooling system and radiator. It's not the same stuff as radiator coolant, and in the worst case, you could cork up your radiator GOOD if you just leave it in there. Radiators are expensive, so are water pumps, so flush that stuff out of your cooling system as soon as you can, and put in some fresh coolant...if your radiator's really bad, take it out of the car and have it boiled out, or use it as a core on a new one. If you do anything like that, though, it's always recommended to go ahead and get your radiator hoses, and the water pump, all at the same time...that way, no surprises when one part of your cooling system suddenly starts working as advertised, and at the rated pressure, so you're going to want a radiator cap, too.

Best answer on all that stuff is to hit the dealership, tell em what you want done, and they can check it out, pressure test it, and tell you if they think you have any surprises coming up...don't want to be 1/2way to nowhere and have that upper radiator hose go...