-
Which Extended Life Coolant
I was reading a great thread on the Wander Lodge site, http://www.wanderlodgeownersgroup.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10182&page=4 where Spike45 is an expert on engine coolants. If I followed all of his posts correctly, NOATs (OAT with Nitrate should be avoided) as should OATs made with 2-ethyl-hexanoic acid. This particular OAT formula has been proven to affect solder and silcon gaskets and hoses.
Detroit doesn’t specifically warn against either NOAT or this problematic formulation of OAT. FWIW, Detroit’s PowerCool Plus does not use this problematic formulation.
I wonder what ELC Prevost recommends? Given the soldered radiator, all of the soldered joints on the copper piping and the Webasto heating systems installed by Prevost, it would seem that we would want to avoid the problematic OAT formulation.
There is a coolant matrix in the Wander Lodge thread. The only OAT based ELCs that don’t use the problematic formula are Detroit’s PowerCool Plus, Old World Industries Final Charge, and Fleetguard’s ES Optimax. I’m not sure of the date of this matrix, just that it references specific engines after 2003.
Has anyone researched this and got a solid answer from Prevost for Series 60 powered coaches? It looks like Detroit’s own PowerCool Plus is a safe bet. I know some have used CAT’s EC-1 and does appear to meerts Detriot’s requirements. Unfortunately, it uses the problematic OAT formulation which may not be acceptable for the Prevost side of our systems.
-
8 Replies
-
My 2 cents worth. Last month it was time to change the coolant. We have a nephew that is in charge of the school buses for a large Colorado school district. Am not sure how may buses but seeing them in the yard there is a lot of yellow I asked him what coolant to use. He reply was green, not extended life. They found a lot fewer problems with all the pumps for heaters and other items. He said they will not be going back to extended life coolant. The total operation cost for a fleet of buses ended up a lot less with the green coolant. He did say to mix it with distilled water.
I used DD powercool with SCA in the coolant , not the extended type. If you turn off the valves to the front heater and aqua hot if you have one at the engine it is a easy chore.
I carefully drain the coolant and measure how much came out of the system so I know about how much put back in the system. Stewart Stephson has DD power cool for less tha $120 a gallon. Oh DD powercool is not green but it is not extended life. -
Just so everyone knows………colors may have had some significance for anti-freeze at one time. Not any more so if you are changing coolant just make sure it is a spec that is suitable for your coach and meets the engine manufacturer’s spec.
-
Larry,
Are you now using a blank filter cartrage?
-
Larry,
If I understand your post correctly, the problems experienced by the school district was not engine related but rather ancillary systems that share the same engine coolant. That is the concern I have with some ELCs based on the posts I referenced.
Although color has limited meaning, green generally meand a conventional coolant with low silicate and without SCA. Pink, like PowerCool (not PowerCool Plus) generally means conventional coolant with SCA.
I too am thinking about going back to conventional coolant.
-
I’ve been using the pre-mixed ELC (HD diesel spec) in everything I’ve owned (cars, 1957-2005 vintage, jet-skis, buses, both 8V92 and S60) for about 10 years with no known issues.
-
Tom, Yes have blank filter at this time. I think in the future will have to change to on with the pellets to keep the PH correct.
Gil, Yes the major problems they found with extended cool was stuff external from the engine. -
Joel,
There appears to be some good ELCs and some proven to be distructive. In our coaches that have so many soldered joints in the interior heating system and heating pumps, we MAY need to be concerned with SOME ELCs. We need to look beyond what’s acceptable for just the engine.
Let’s see what Prevost has to say,
-
Bill Jensen will answer the original question, but for the life of me I cannot imagine the Cat EC-1 spec coolant damaging any system. This coolant was developed by Cat and is used across the board in their products which includes trucks and truck engines. I seriously doubt they use any materials that differ from those found in our coaches, whether it is soldered joints, hose, piping, etc.
But we will soon know the answer.
Log in to reply.