4 Tips to Choose a Coolant for the Engine

Engine coolant prevents the engine from overheating. Coolant protects your engine from extreme temperatures, both hot and cold. Your car's engine becomes hot when you drive. The temperature is high enough to damage essential parts. The coolant absorbs the heat from the car's engine and circulates back to the radiator. During winter, extreme cold can cause your engine block to freeze and even crack. However, it is very important to choose the right coolant.

Among all car breakdowns, every fifth occurs because of an incorrectly selected coolant or antifreeze. This problem can affect your car all year round regardless of the weather. Some drivers can have problems choosing a coolant for the engine. For this reason, engine problems are so common. Below we have outlined 4 amazing tips that will help you choose a good coolant for the engine.

Choosing the coolant depending on the color of the previous cooling liquid is the main mistake of all car owners, especially beginners. The logic behind it is simple. If the previous liquid was blue then you choose the blue one. However, you need to understand that the dyes used to make antifreeze do not reflect its properties.

For example, coolants in the United States are usually with phosphate additives, that aren't used in Europe. The Japanese use hybrid antifreeze containing phosphates and carboxylic acids.

Manufacturers developing formulas for their products over the years, taking into account the materials of the cooling systems of different automakers. They have their own suppliers of components. Antifreeze components can cause completely unpredictable reactions with engine materials. Improper chosen coolant can contribute to hence, corrosion, cavitation, and leaks.

The best option is to use liquids that were used during the production of your car. Their designation and class are included in the operating instructions. If you do not have such information or if you bought used car for cash, it is recommended to replace the contents of the cooling system. You need to rinse the cooling system and fill it with coolant recommended by a particular car manufacturer.

Antifreeze is primarily intended for engine cooling, but it also must protect the "insides" of the entire cooling system from corrosion. This system consists of different materials like steel, cast iron, aluminum, copper, lead alloys, rubber, and other elastomeric textures. Each of them needs its own protection from corrosion.

All types of antifreeze contain a main element mono ethylene glycol. Manufactures mix it with water in various proportions to achieve the required low-temperature properties. However, the effectiveness of anti-corrosion protection depends on the other components. One of the most innovative solutions on the market is lobrid(silicate-carboxylate) antifreeze. In this coolant, the organic base is mixed with mineral components that provide good protection for the cooling system.

Most types of antifreeze are able to cope with the cooling of the car. For this reason, some drivers choose the cheapest and low-quality coolants in the store making a big mistake. High-quality coolants are filled with additives, which largely determine their cost. You need to be responsible when choosing a coolant for the engine. It is recommended to choose well-known brands you trust.

Marketing information that antifreeze was developed specifically for a particular brand of car or engines often doesn't match the actual certification from the manufacturer. When choosing a coolant you need to check the approvals from car manufacturing companies. You can find this list of approved fluids on their websites.

The requirements can be confirmed only by the car manufacturers themselves according to the results of tests on their cars. After testing, they approve or refuse the use of a particular coolant in their cars.