I changed out the Dexcool in my 11 year old GM V8 for the first time a couple months ago. 11 years and 138k miles on that coolant. It still worked (did not freeze at -18F) and did not overheat. The radiator, hoses and water pump showed no visible signs of corrosion. I used a sodium citrate flush for several days and about 12 hours driving time and it produced only the slightest amount of visible rust in the flush water. I refilled with 70/30 Dexcool and I expect to go another 10 years and 100k miles without any problems. I would drive many more miles on it if I had more to go, but my commute got shortened to 2.5 miles and I bought a Land Rover, so I just don't drive it as much anymore.

My experience and that of millions of others who continue to use Dexcool just doesn't allow for the kind of blanket allegations made against it. To conclude that Dexcool is bad is just bunk.

 

We're talking about Land Rover engines fella.

 

Nevada Ben- we just switch coolants as a precautionary measure.

We would all do a ritual dance in a tutu every night if it meant a reliable Land Rover.

 

And unless you are talking about the diesel you'd be talking about a GM. Lol ;-)

 

Touche'. But to compare a NEWER GM engine with the Rover 4.0L is apples and leaky oranges that don't like Dexcool

 

Did you pH test it?

The entire Dexcool problem is that it goes acidic in systems with air in them. And the DII cooling system tends to do that.

It's not bunk. It's an easily tested fact. Unless you think pH tests are bunk.

 

The linked photos and accusations against Dexcool were in GM motors, not Land Rover. The thread was using bunk cases against Dexcool based on GM engines to argue that it shouldn't be used in Land Rover engines. But both GM and Land Rover factories used DexCool. Now is this thread making the case that the good performance of Dex-Cool in GM engines (as I and millions of others have experienced) means that I shouldn't use Dex-Cool in my Land Rover engine because it has more air in it than a GM engine and the failure cases in GM engines that falsely conclude Dexcool failure proves it? Bunk. The fact is, the Dexcool allegations are a stupid, baseless, internet consumer myth and the only ones that could have benefited from it are the class action lawyer vultures. It's bunk, and good engineers everywhere will keep specifying OAT despite the vultures and the dupes because internet myth does not drive automotive engineering.

 

Again, you haven't done a simple pH test on a dexcool system with more than 50k miles on it, have you? Until you have some real data, your opinion is based on nothing.

I personally have no problem with the performance of dexcool. I just know that the longevity claims are a lie. Because I have and use pH test strips. You know, actual data. Acquired with something any decent garage should have around.

 

Read your owners manual, under the maintenance section it will tell you how often you need to change your Dex-Cool.
Which is every 3 years or 45,000 miles, whichever is sooner.
Dont you think the LR engineers knew something?
Do you think that in their millions of miles of testing they figured out that there was a problem with this "long life" coolant?
You can use it if you want, thats fine, but we are just advising against it.

And just to set the record straight, unless diluted engine coolant will protect against boil over or freezing for as long as it is around, the base stock (the freeze/boil protection) NEVER goes bad, just like motor oil, the base stock NEVER goes bad, it is the additives that wear out and go bad.
The additives that are in your coolant lubricate the water pump bearings as well as protect against rust, scale and lime build up.
OAT (organic acid technology) coolants are better for the environment (organic), and fight scale (acid).
What do you think that acid does when it is left to its own demise?
Dex-Cool must be Ph balance tested once a year or every 12,000 miles and then adjusted accordingly with the proper additives, just like a swimming pool or a hot water heating system for a house.

Motor oil and engine coolant can be recycled a infinite number of times, the base stock never changes, its the additives that wear out.