Had car home a few days and checked my oil etc. Something made me check the radiator and it is filled with water, there is some brown greasy looking stuff floating on top. Going to call the garage in a.m. My question is, can this be harmful to the car? I am so pissed off about this, They charged me $42.00 for that alone. Yeah, I know I could've done it myself, was just not feeling up to it. Thank you
2006-10-22 18:08:16 · 7 answers · asked by MaryFran 2 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
I don't think it's any great cause for concern; could just be rust if they backflushed the system (like they should), floating on the top of the antifreeze.
But to ease your mind, you should take it back to them and make them look at it and tell you. If they goofed, they'll fix it for free. But I don't think they goofed. That's pretty hard to do, cause this is an easy job.
I don't think you have any severe problem here. But that's just my opinion.
2006-10-22 19:06:29 · answer #1 · answered by MrZ 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depending on where you live, you want at least a 50/50 mix of antifreeze and water, more antifreeze in colder climates, but no more than 70Antifreeze/30water mix. Brown stuff you describe could be rust, or oil. How old is the car? How many miles on car? when was the antifreeze changed last? You should have it flushed to remove rust deposits from the radiator. Then wait a few days after normal driving and check it again. If no brown stuff is present, you are good. If brown stuff still exists, it may be oil, (which would rise to the top)which means a leaking head gasket.(not good). There is no danger if you can limit your mileage until you can get it checked. Keep an eye on your temp gauge.Either way, get the radiator flushed. Good luck.
2006-10-23 01:54:24 · answer #2 · answered by Mark B 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Winter will be here soon, you must have at least a 50/50 mix of antifreeze. You didn't say how old the car is but it is a good thing to change the thermostat (they don't cost much) when doing the anti freeze.. Newer cars go about 5 years on the new type of antifreeze.. If your car is a little older and uses the green fluid it should be changed about every 3.. Check your hoses and belts too while you are doing the cooling system.. good luck...
2006-10-23 01:28:02 · answer #3 · answered by the_buccaru 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You said the radiator was filled with water? Or did you mean antifreeze? It should be a 50/50 mixture of water and antifreeze to avoid corrosion. Depending on how cold it gets where you live. It doesn't sound like they replaced the anti freeze to me but charged you for it. Always get the system flushed when changing coolant to get rust and corrosion out of engine. good luck
2006-10-23 01:18:46 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes this brown sludge is usually a break down of antifreeze usually will clog up the radiator and will run hotter then normal especially in the summer and in winter because the glycol is breaking down so u will have to get a radiator flush and to i usually run the dexcool especially in my older cars and yes it is safe but if u ask for its orange in color.BUT make sure u have your system flushed first . and dexcool last a lot longer then your conventional green stuff wich is usually 30 to 60,000 were as dexcool last 100,000
2006-10-23 04:02:47 · answer #5 · answered by judge2173 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It would seem to be they may not have flushed the cooling system. I do this when I change antifreeze, but they may not. You may have to 'ask' to have this done.
It won't hurt, but it is a puzzle.
2006-10-23 01:11:46 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's probably rust from not being cleaned in so long, just have them flush it and refill it and it should be fine.
2006-10-23 01:10:56 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋