Coolant recomendation

[adamdinat]

The coolant in my daughters focus is low and I am unsure what to use. It appears to be the orange antifreeze. The Jugs at the auto store all list ther sutability for GM. I dont trust mixing the dexicol stuff having had some muddy experiences in other cars. What should I put in the ford?

[Davescort97]

First of all, check your owners manual or call the dealer to verify what kind of anti-freeze your Focus takes.The orange antifreeze is an ethylene glycol based coolant which uses organic corrosion inhibitors that are especially good for cooling systems with aluminum radiators, heads, etc. It is Ford's long life 100,000 miles coolant and should be used for replacement or top off. It shouldn't be mixed with any other kind of ethylene glycol antifreeze. If your car came from the factory with Dexcool use it for replacement or top off. It's the red stuff and is used in General Motors cars. If your car came from the factory with the standard green antifreeze, ethylene glycol, use that for top off or replacement. It is the most common. There is yellow, pink and blue antifreeze, too which is mostly used in European cars.

[i_a_n112784]

If you use dexcool in a ford you're an idiot. dexcool is a GM mistake that should have never been created. FORD uses a YELLOW coolant that is good for 100k miles. On many radiator/overflow caps it has a picture that has orange coolant with a "no" cross sort of symbol through it. dexcool eats your intake gaskets and will also quickly turn acidic. why do you think GM has so many problems with intake gaskets? If you were to top off a car with dex cool, it will be ok, just dont do it again. The Prestone stuff that says it is ok for anything is ok, but ideally, you would use the ford stuff. I am a Ford technician, I have seen/heard almost everything. A little bit of dexcool is ok, but DONT fill it with that crap!

[CL8]

Whatever coolant you use, remember not leave it out where animals can drink it.
It has a sweet taste and dogs like it.
We think thats how our German shepherd was poisoned and died in December.

['97ventureowner]

Originally Posted by i_a_n112784

dexcool eats your intake gaskets and will also quickly turn acidic. why do you think GM has so many problems with intake gaskets?

Because of poor quality design and gasket materials. It only turns bad because of infiltration or introduction of air into the cooling system, or mixing with other coolants. Dex Cool is blamed too many times when other factors are the cause.The problems in the past with most of the intakes has been resolved with new design/materials for the gaskets, and better maintenance of the cooling systems.

Originally Posted by CL8

Whatever coolant you use, remember not leave it out where animals can drink it.
It has a sweet taste and dogs like it.
We think thats how our German shepherd was poisoned and died in December.

There are other brands out on the market that use an embittering agent making them safe if animals should come in contact with it. The taste turns them off from drinking it. Look for it on the shelf with the labels that say they are a safer alternative for both animals and the environment.