Can anyone advise the procedure for giving the Townace (2L Diesel Turbo 4WD auto) cooling system a good flushing i.e. which pipes to remove and which pipe to insert hosepipe.
Also on refilling I've seen advice to 'put the heater on'. What does this mean exactly & why? I have a hot/cold slider which I thought only operated flaps and so can't see what different it makes to refilling the cooling system.
After a wonderful trip a few months ago after replacing the radiator cap and shortening the 'suck-back' tube in the expansion tank I've just been on the mainland again and it was terrible - refilling every 30-40 minutes at speeds of 40-50mph. On the Island it's fine. Hence my above queries!
- (#10471) Peter Dawson, 30 Aug 03 15:46
Heater is controlled by a in-line valve that allows or stops coolant reaching the heater matrix (on hiace this valve visible through front grill)
You need this valve open (heat slider hot)to allow the matrix to be drained/flushed through.
When flushing the idea is to flush one way through the system and then the other - so if the thermostats removed, 'in theory' you could just remove the top hose - push the hose into it for a few mins - then push the hosepipe into where the top hose came from for a few mins - probably good then to fill up with water and allow to idle till hot then empty the system again.
Proprietry bottles of cooling flusher are available to help de-scale.
When I did mine (hiace)I removed more hoses to flush various sections - also useful to find the block drain - on mine I did'nt bother - but slow filling of new coolant allowed about 3 ltrs of clear water to be pushed out of top hose - After reading of probs people had with air locks I pulled all the hoses on side of engine and on re-filling would reconect only when fluid reached that level.
Keep an eye on it for a week or two afterwards
I don't think that shortening the suck back tube in the expansion tank is wise (you will not get a warning light when problems as the tank cannot empty if tube not long enough + if the level gets too low will suck air)
Flushing will help the upkeep of the cooling system - but if the vehicle has no issues in this area it will not help mpg.
- (#10472) chris turner, 30 Aug 03 17:34
Also undo the drain tap at the bottom (front)of the radiator. This has a 'o-ring' seal which may need renewing if worn - do re-fill the system very slowly to reduce likelyhood of trapped air in system - you may find it useful to extend the coolant head (filler neck) briefly after filling, for the same reason
- (#10473) chris turner, 30 Aug 03 23:34
If you want to backflush the radiator (to remove any sludge etc), disconnect the bottom hose at the thermostat and shove the hosepipe into it...
- (#10474) david miller, 31 Aug 03 2:26
Hi we have a Spacecruiser model F 1989, 2.0 GL.
The anti-freeze has never been changed since we've had it.How much anti-freeze and how much water do we have to put in. The bottle contains 1 litre of antifreeze, how much water do I have to put with this in which to fill the system satisfactorily?
Many Thanks
- (#10892) Andy Richards, 27 Sep 03 22:15
It was recommended on this site to mix 50/50, so if you have drained the system you will need upto 3 litres of antifreeze.
- (#10893) Clive, 28 Sep 03 3:38
Hi Clive.
Many thanks for the info now got a busy day tomorrow.
Did you have a Spacecruiser? if so how long did you have yours?, and did you have many problems with her?
And are they as good as a Townace?
Please let me know.
Many thanks
Andy Richards
- (#10894) Andy Richards, 28 Sep 03 19:55
Andy you should have started a new thread, however,
I had my Cruiser for over 250,000 miles. Never had a problem with the engine 3Y or gearbox manual, still had the original clutch!
Lots of worn ball joints (ADL won't touch them again!) until I bought Toyota ones then lasted the last 50,000 miles until I sold it. Shocks rusted rather than wore out replaced once. Rear shoes replaced once and mostly due to a half shaft oil seal failure, axle otherwise untouched. Tyres due to naff ball joints got through a few. Dizzy died, alternator died, winscreen wiper died, washer broke and bulbs blew all the time. Carb wore out, never had a problem with the autochoke. Rusted on the sills ,back door, and under the windscreen the most.
Built the same as a Townie but with less toys (why only have the back and side door on c/l?), no a/c and the lower head room makes me fall in favour of the Townie.
- (#10895) Clive, 29 Sep 03 2:11
Hi there again! I've drained via the horizontal radiator - the water looked clear unlike the water in the expansion tank & filler neck which is murky brown.
I've removed the expansion bottle and given it a clean with stones as suggested somewhere. Now I think I see the 'bottom hose' under the expansion tank but where is the 'top hose' - is it one of the smaller hoses at the top passenger side of the radiator - please don't let it be under the driver seat pan which has to be removed? Do I need to remove the thermostat?
- (#11259) Peter Dawson, 18 Oct 03 12:42
Hi Peter.
Unfortunately yes, the top hose is under the drivers side. It fits on to the back of the filler neck.
Clear coolant in the radiator and rusty, murky coolant in the expansion tank would indicate a blockage in the radiator. Use a descale agent, and give it a real good back flush with a hose shoved in the bottom radiator hose. I think you would get a better back flush if you remove the thermostat.
Regards
dave Bright
- (#11260) dave Bright, 18 Oct 03 14:08
Hi Dave,
This is what I've done:
1. put hosepipe into filler neck and watch water come from the horiz radiator,
2. remove bottom hose, put hosepipe into this hose, watch water come out of the horiz radiator & eventually overflow out of the filler neck,
3. put hosepipe into filler neck again and watch water come out of the horiz radiator & bottom hose,
4. replace everything and refill with just water.
Tomorrow I will going on a ten minutes journey and ten minutes back. Then I will drain the system again, perhaps a bit more flushing with descaler and refill with 50/50 antifreeze & water.
I don't plan to remove the thermostat - other postings I've seen suggest it is very fiddly.
Apart from not removing the thermostat how does the rest of the above sound? Is there an easy way of telling if I am clear of blockages? I can't work out the routes of the waterways.
- (#11261) Peter Dawson, 18 Oct 03 17:32
Hi Peter
As you have clear coolant from the horizontal radiator, my guess is that this may be blocked, partially or fully. Its an additional radiator that is fitted to help the cooling under extreme loads, Motorway speeds being extreme.
When draining, you aught to drain both radiators because the horizontal one connects halfway up the vertical radiator.
If I was in your position I would remove the floor, do at least 1 descale, possibly two, then disconnect the top and bottom hoses to the vertical radiator and blast it with a hose, both ways. Then try to disconnect the horizontal one and blast it in the same way.
- (#11262) dave Bright, 19 Oct 03 3:50
I have a citroen zx 1900, can you tell me how much anti freeze, and how much water goes into the radiator.
- (#11328) v patterson, 21 Oct 03 16:22
UNLIKELY as this a Toyota Townace website!!!!
- (#11329) Rob Drinkwater, 21 Oct 03 18:29
Ah, but as our second car is a ZX, I can tell you that total capacity is 8.5l, or 9l for turbo-D models. Manufacturer specifys 33- 50% antifreeze so I'm sure you can work it out from there!
- (#11330) david miller, 22 Oct 03 2:32