What coolant should I use 7.3 power stroke?

[cborg]

I need to replace my water pump and I was going to flush and start over with the coolant. I got the 203 thermo and housing as suggested. What coolant should I use? Is there one that is good that is not to hard to come by or to expensive?
Does anyone know if (FLEET CHARGE coolant SCA precharged will work)? This is available locally
I have 2001 7.3 ford excursion power stroke with 255,000 miles .

What is SCA prechared?

[ajohansson]

I saw you also posted on TDS. Check out this thread. It shoudld answer all of your questions. Especially pay attention to the article by Gooch. Try the search function on TDS. You can find lots of info.

AJ

http://www.thedieselstop.com/forums/...itives-203599/

[BruceM]

I was at wallymart the other day and they had Peak Final Charge premixed 50/50 Diesel truck coolant on clearance for $3.50 a gallon. Read the back and it said that it had all the additives and whatnot required for a long list of diesel engines specs that it met.

[skyskijason]

Originally Posted by BruceM

I was at wallymart the other day and they had Peak Final Charge premixed 50/50 Diesel truck coolant on clearance for $3.50 a gallon. Read the back and it said that it had all the additives and whatnot required for a long list of diesel engines specs that it met.

Don't do it!

Read the TDS posts by Gooch, good education.

I use Evans NPG+ in the F350 (there simply is no better coolant - period!). It doesn't boil until 385*F, at 0psi! Thats 100* higher than anti-freeze and I can run my system without any pressure! I did this cause I figured no pressure would equal less chance of a leak with all the 'extra' coolant connections w/my VO system. It lasts forever (literally) and no SCA's required.

The Excursion got CAT ELC (about $10/gallon). No SCA's required and it lasts 500,000 miles if ya add the 'extender' at 350k miles.

The danger w/diesel coolants is cavitation due to boiling. This often happens in the coolant jackets surrounding the pistons. If the coolant 'boils' here, it causes erosion in the metal and can end up making a hole in the jacket. This is very, very bad - mmmkay?

'Economy' is relative. Sure $3.50/gal is ALOT cheaper - up front anyway. But if ya flush and change it as required and monitor/add SCA's it may not be that great a savings in the long run.

[BruceM]

why not? I mean it does say down towards the middle that it meets or exceeds the spec for International, and I have seen this particular coolant mentioned on other PSD related sites.

http://www.peakantifreeze.com/finalchargeext.htm

FINAL CHARGE Global Extended Life Coolant features a patented Organic Acid Technology (OAT) formula that delivers total cooling system protection for 600,000 miles of on-road use (6 years of 12,000 hours or off-highway use) without the use of Supplemental Coolant Additives (SCAs). The only maintenance required is the addition of FINAL CHARGE Extender at 300,000 to 400,000 miles of on-road use (3 years or 6,000 hours of off-highway use). When required, you should also top-off the cooling system with FINAL CHARGE or FINAL CHARGE 50/50 Pre-diluted Global Extended Life Coolant/Antifreeze.

Meets or exceeds the performance requirements of the following specifications:

- CAT EC-1
- Cummins
- Detroit Diesel
- Mack Truck
- MTU
- Navistar B-1
- International
- Volvo
- Mercedes DBL 7700
- ASTM D-3306
- ASTM D-4656
- ASTM D-5345

Final Charge Global Extended Life Coolant/Antifreeze is recommended for use in the cooling systems of all types of heavy-duty diesel, gasoline and natural gas engines.

Final Charge Coolant is a diesel specific coolant recommended for use in heavy-duty engines. It is also recommended for use in the cooling systems of all types of industrial internal combustion engines, including systems containing large amounts of aluminum.

Gooch's post says that an OAT should be fine if not better than regular coolant plus SCA's, I quote him here... "And in fact almost all heavy duty diesel manufacturers use Heavy Duty ELC's meeting the most strict requirements in the industry...Caterpillar's EC-1." as this one clearly says it meets.

It's no Evan's NPG or NPG+ but at $3.50 a gallon vs $25 a gallon it doesnt' sound like the Peak Final Charge stuff at walmart needs to be avoided.

[skyskijason]

Originally Posted by BruceM

why not?

Sorry for the knee-jerk reaction to cheap coolant from wallyworld. I admit I am not a coolant expert, the more I learn, the less I realize I know. That just seems like a really low price/gallon. To good to be true? Let us know!!

[BruceM]

no worries on the "knee-jerk" post.

I was mistaken on the cost of the coolant, it is $4.50 a gallon for it in it's premixed form. Since I'm finally getting to the point of installing my whole WVO setup I think I am going to splurge and buy 8-9 gallons of this stuff so that I can change my coolant over to this.

Tis a shame though cause I just 7k miles ago spent $40 on regular coolant plus another few bucks on SCA additives to get it to the right levels on my test strips. I suppose though I could save the 8 gallons of coolant comming out for my 2 other vehicles (gassers). Both are due for a flush and fill. Course one needs a radiator cause the plastic end tanks leak when it's really cold out :-( I guess I need to get me some 5 gallon pails or rinse a few VO cubies out with gasoline to put the reclaimed coolant in.

[tubular031]

The way I understand it, EC-1 coolant is what you want. If this stuff meets it, I think (dont quote me boy, cuz i aint said S**T. Am I the only one still rocking eazy E?) it should be ok