Hello all. First radiator flush...planning on distilled water then Asian red coolant. thoughts?

I like to start with fresh coolant. Kinda like removing all of the motor oil before adding new oil. The old stuff will have contaminants.

 

On my sequoia at the "big 60k" super service that I did.... I changed every fluid in it. Front and rear diffs, brake fluid, power steering, transfer case, oil, trans flush, and coolant. The coolant looked and smelled fine. It was very clean. I opted to buy a case of Oem pre-mix and drain what I could out of the radiator, fill it up, run it a week and repeat. I never saw anything scary or nasty. I recommend the OP go get 2 gallons of pre mix, drain the radiator, and see what comes out and how it smells.... if it's nasty... pull all plugs and flush. If it's not... then fill it run a week and repeat. The distilled water is cheap insurance compared to tap water if you go the flushing route. I work with commercial boilers and perfect water is critical for those systems longevity.

 

I don't think changing too Prestone is a good idea if your truck is still under a protection plan,I simply drain refill drive for a few days and then drain again ,and refill with Toyota antifreeze.Keep it simple.

 

I would welcome any other input for my own education and thank you all for taking the time to help me.

 

I agree. Distilled water is less than a buck a gallon at your local grocery store. Who knows what is in tap water, and when I was in the country on a well system, the water was very heavy in minerals (especially Iron). Compared to the cost of the antifreeze you will be replacing, the distilled water will be a drop in the bucket.

 

It does get confusing.


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I did purchase the ZEREX Asian formula coolant. It's not the Toyota long life but my overflow was dry and the dealership was closed. I wasn't taking any chances.