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[VXL V6]

Checked the coolant strength yesterday and found it to be a little weak (well the £1.99 tester from Halfrauds says it is!), so bought some VX coolant to top up.

The coolant in the car is a luminous yellow / green colour so I wanted to check before I emptied the tank and topped it up with the VX stuff (was then going to run the engine and check it a few days later when it's mixed up)

so the question is.... can I mix the VX orange stuff with this?

[Marks DTM Calib]

Yes you can......although its worth draining the system and flushing it all out then re-filling with the superior orange anti freeze mix.

Note also that hydrometer based anti freeze testers dont work so well on modern antifreeze.

Remember that if you ever need to top the coolant up then you must use a 50:50 antifreeze mix.....that way your oil cooler will last the life of the car...

[VXL V6]

Planning to flush (and replace the waterpump if it's not been done already) and refill with a 50% mix when I do the 60K service which is in 4K... just wanted to make sure it's strong enough until then.

Having read plenty of threads on here about quality of coolant relating to oil cooler failure, so taking that advice that's why I checked the coolant!
As you say, I would like the oil cooler to last as long as possible!!!!

What sort of tester is recommended? Is there an electronic device? Does it cost mega ££££?!!!

Thanks for your help

[Marks DTM Calib]

Its cheaper and easier to drop the coolant and re-fill with a 50:50 mix than it is to get a tester.....as long as you then top up with a ready mixed solution and not water plus change it every 2 years then there should not be a problem or any need to test it.

[TheBoy]

Its cheaper and easier to drop the coolant and re-fill with a 50:50 mix than it is to get a tester.....as long as you then top up with a ready mixed solution and not water plus change it every 2 years then there should not be a problem or any need to test it.

Am I being over cautious by changing the MV6 coolant yearly?

I am changing the Rover coolant every 6 months in the vain hope it will prevent the inevitable there again

[Marks DTM Calib]

Its cheaper and easier to drop the coolant and re-fill with a 50:50 mix than it is to get a tester.....as long as you then top up with a ready mixed solution and not water plus change it every 2 years then there should not be a problem or any need to test it.

Am I being over cautious by changing the MV6 coolant yearly?

I am changing the Rover coolant every 6 months in the vain hope it will prevent the inevitable there again

Possibly although it wont hurt it.

As for ther Rover....its a fundamental design fault that causes the HG failures, not the coolant!

[VXL V6]

Right, will stick to that routine then, starting at 60K

Many thanks

[TheBoy]

As for ther Rover....its a fundamental design fault that causes the HG failures, not the coolant!
 

Chatting to the Lotus (who used K series in Elise) chaps (brother used to work there), it would appear that due to being an early all alloy block and head, and the chemical reaction that occurs between block and head at high temperatures (below the combustion temps though), means its very reliant on the cooling system doing a perfect job, with the tiniest cooling glitches causing the reaction to happen, and ultimately HG failure.  Apparently this is also why K series HG are almost always cylinder to coolant or oil failures. Other early all alloy engines suffer.  Later design all alloy engines are designed with this in mind.

So yes, design flaw.  But tip-top cooling should help

First failure was at 72k....   ....hopefully will never have to replace again...

[VXL V6]

Sure I posted this before but I think Land Rover were trialing the use of a different spec of HG in the freelander with K series lumps and so far the signs are good.

(RANT = ON)
The other prob with most modern cars is that the header tank is so small that the slightest coolant leak and the tanks empty in seconds when under pressure and in this 'it never breaks down' society nobody apart from us more informed individuals bother to lift the bonnet.
(RANT = OFF)

[TheBoy]

Sure I posted this before but I think Land Rover were trialing the use of a different spec of HG in the freelander with K series lumps and so far the signs are good.

(RANT = ON)
The other prob with most modern cars is that the header tank is so small that the slightest coolant leak and the tanks empty in seconds when under pressure and in this 'it never breaks down' society nobody apart from us more informed individuals bother to lift the bonnet.
(RANT = OFF)

Not sure the Freelander was any better. In fact worse, as it used the 1.8, which is the most susceptable.

The coolant bottle on my Rover 25 is probably about the same size as the Omega.  True, many do not check weekly, but as a sealed system, it shouldn't leak, and if it does, it will probably lose too much between checks anyway.


The other K series issue, as when it was designed, people wanted cars that reached temperature quickly. The only way to do that is make the water jacket as small as possible. This leaves no tolerance for any small glitch in the cooling system.

[VXL V6]

All those Caterham and kit car owners can't be wrong! Shame that small glitches can cause more major problems really.

[TheBoy]

All those Caterham and kit car owners can't be wrong! Shame that small glitches can cause more major problems really.

You have to remember what an old engine the K series is.  It was designed early 80s to replace the ageing A series.  It was a good engine in its time, but needed development to overcome these issues that were found in service. Alas, when BMW took over in early nineties, they had no interest in putting any money in to development (hence, only 75 was designed under their reign), so the K series didn't get the modifications it needed.

However, despite its age, it is a match for the Zetec 1.6 and the Ecotec 1.6 perfomance and economy wise. Having owned a 1.6 Rover and 1.6 Focus at the same time, the Rover 25 (despite being a bigger car than the Focus!) easily outperformed it, and returned better MPG. And we could get a weeks worth of shopping in the boot. And my golf clubs would go in. But load carrying space is sod all to do with engine  

[Kevin Wood]

Not sure the Freelander was any better. In fact worse, as it used the 1.8, which is the most susceptable.

The other factor is that the freelander is a heavy bus with the aerodynamics of a sub post office, meaning that a small, light, revvy 16 valve engine was hardly the best choice, and had to be ragged mercilessly 100% of the time to keep it moving. K series was just closest to the door of the parts store when that vehicle was "designed".

All those Caterham and kit car owners can't be wrong! Shame that small glitches can cause more major problems really.

I know many of them. Most don't rack up anything like the mileage that a Rover does, of course, and many do have head gasket issues. However, it is an engine that produces fantastic power for its' size and weight and now that its' weaknesses have been identified there are tuning packages that will give you 200+ BHP from a 1.8K with very good reliability. I have personally seen a very well sorted 1.8 K series make 253BHP @ 9,000 rpm. Not many Rover parts left in that one, though!

However, despite its age, it is a match for the Zetec 1.6 and the Ecotec 1.6 perfomance and economy wise.

And then some! The Zetec(E) 1.6 was a terrible engine borne out of the desperation to fill the 1.6 hole in the market buy adding metal (cast iron in this case) to a 1.8, until the Zetec SE came on to the scene.

Zetec SE is a lovely engine and the 1.6 Ecotec is reckoned to be nice too. One or tother of these will be filling the K series' shoes in the sub-200 BHP light engine for sports / kit car market.

Kevin

[TheBoy]

And then some! The Zetec(E) 1.6 was a terrible engine borne out of the desperation to fill the 1.6 hole in the market buy adding metal (cast iron in this case) to a 1.8, until the Zetec SE came on to the scene.

No idea (or interest!) in what ours was - 51 plate car. Had a 05 plate 1.6 Focrap as a hire car when the MV6 was being repatriated from France, and that motor was no better. Nor was the handling either - driving it reminded me why I hated the Focus....