Does my (3 year) old coolant look like Motorcraft Gold coolant?

[outatime88]

My '11 Ranger 4.0 is spec'd for Motorcraft Gold coolant so I bought some as I need to drain the coolant for engine work. I don't want to flush the engine though.

The old coolant is a slightly darker shade but I'm guessing it's because it's a bit dirtier? I had the t-stat changed out 3 years ago but I'm not sure what coolant the shop used to refill. They just told me whatever the "catalogue" said to use.

 

[sgtsandman]

The original coolant was Motorcraft Gold. The stuff from your engine just has aged and worn out over time. There are aftermarket brands that meet the same spec, so it is possible that what is in your engine is a compatible aftermarket. Either way, it's fine.

 

[outatime88]

The original coolant was Motorcraft Gold. The stuff from your engine just has aged and worn out over time. There are aftermarket brands that meet the same spec, so it is possible that what is in your engine is a compatible aftermarket. Either way, it's fine.

Cool yeah I was thinking it could be Zerex G05 but I read that’s fine to use with MC gold. Thanks for the help.

 

[DILLARD000]

Yep, good coolants for the V6~4.0L~SOHC Engine:
* MotorCraft Gold
* Zerex G05
* Peak 10X
These are HybridOrganicAcidTech\HOAT formulas without any 2EthylHexAcid\2EHA, they may be mixed;
Coolants with 2EHA are reported to damage seals in the V6~4.0L~SOHC, they should NOT be used\mixed.
Use these or equal LtGreen\Gold\Yellow Coolants; do NOT use Blue\DkGreen\Orange\Pink\Red Coolants.
Click here for more info.

 

[James Morse]

This is confusing me. On the '97 I put Fram. Is it wrecking things? I kind of doubt it, any good quality antifreeze should be ok. Am I wrong?
I like the undiluted stuff because if you flush with water some water stays in the engine so with full strength you can adjust to your desired consistency if necessary.

 

[97RangerXLT]

This is confusing me. On the '97 I put Fram. Is it wrecking things? I kind of doubt it, any good quality antifreeze should be ok. Am I wrong?
I like the undiluted stuff because if you flush with water some water stays in the engine so with full strength you can adjust to your desired consistency if necessary.

Prestone regular green is just fine. Don't pay extra for long life as at 25 years old and over 100k miles you will likely have a repair that involves draining it anyways.

That said,, if you have all of one type and not a mixture of types you should be fine

AJ

 

[James Morse]

Well it's hard to know what was in it before as to brand but it looked clean.
The first thing I had to do when I got it was put in new radiator so it got pretty well drained of anything in it (minus what stays in the engine so potentially there could be mixing of types but not much, besides, I was putting new coolant thru it while finding the leak).
I opted to not replace water pump/t-stat as those weren't issues. I did replace belt and the belt tensioner which was bad, you could see it canted at an angle and when I took it out it fell apart.
Some stuff you do in that area you can get away with just removing the shroud but granted it's a lot more room with the rad out so there's some wisdom to changing things out at that time, but I just couldn't see sinking money into something that wasn't giving me problems, and really it's not very hard to take the rad out, it's just messy, and expensive for the new coolant. I did buy the 36mm wrench figuring some time I'll use it.
I'm afraid to look at the shop manual / user booklet to see what all things I should be checking. They did wheel bearings and drums/rotors at the dealer so that's a plus. I got to check trans/diff fluid levels, maybe change out (?). Otherwise I just keep an eye on fluid levels in the engine bay, if they don't change appreciably and look pretty clean I figure those things are working.

 

[sgtsandman]

This is confusing me. On the '97 I put Fram. Is it wrecking things? I kind of doubt it, any good quality antifreeze should be ok. Am I wrong?
I like the undiluted stuff because if you flush with water some water stays in the engine so with full strength you can adjust to your desired consistency if necessary.

Page 2 of this says what coolant was used for what year. Using a newer coolant won't hurt but isn't necessary. In case the file doesn't load properly, green is the factory coolant for 1997 and 1999. Like mentioned above, it's better to stick with one type of coolant rather than mixing them. If you aren't going to flush out the system, I would stick with the yellow that is in it.

 

[James Morse]

Yeah I always pick a brand and stay with it for that vehicle.
I dunno color of Fram it's kinda green I guess.
Next time I have to have things apart and have to drain things I'll decide whether to stick with Fram or change. I don't have any particular loyalty to them.

Nice chart, thanks.

 

[DILLARD000]

Best to read & compare labels+datasheets for details of whats in the coolant formulas.

 

[sgtsandman]

Best to read & compare labels+datasheets for details of whats in the coolant formulas.

Most definitely. I had to do that with the 2019 to make sure I got the right coolant for it when the time comes. It makes a difference and not all engines or their systems are backwards compatible. While I might allow more latitude for what I put in the 2011, a turbocharged engine is a different animal. The Ecoboost engines have some issues of their own as it is without adding things to the mix like incompatible fluids that may exacerbate those issues or create new ones.

 

[Josh B]

Where do yall take the old stuff? I have a hard time getting the part stores to take motor oil, doubt they'd ever take antifreeze
I don't recall draining any since being here in OK except the Explorer a couple days ago, which I drained into a number 3 tub and moved in bits to 2 gallon jugs, hoping to re-use

 

[sgtsandman]

Where do yall take the old stuff? I have a hard time getting the part stores to take motor oil, doubt they'd ever take antifreeze
I don't recall draining any since being here in OK except the Explorer a couple days ago, which I drained into a number 3 tub and moved in bits to 2 gallon jugs, hoping to re-use

It depends on the location. Here, we are supposed to turn it in at a central collection point and pay them for the privilege of taking it. Many auto parts stores here will take used oils like engine, transmission, and gear oils. Brake fluids, nothing is mentioned anywhere that I'm aware of. So, person's discretion. Most power steering systems use a type of oil, so it goes with the other oils to the parts store.

 

[97RangerXLT]

Check your local municipal and county government. As Sandman mentioned you can often take it to them for a small fee. Our county provides it as a service to residents for free as long as you can provide proof of residency and you are not trying to recycle 55 gallon drums of it. They also take old tires, (up to 5 at a time), electronics, paint, oil. medical sharps in an approved container in which they give you an empty in return. All free (well tax paid) except tvs cost 20 bucks per tv)

AJ

 

[DILLARD000]

Here the county dump takes all sorts of oil in one tank, coolant in another tank, cardboard in a certain dumpster, general household trash inthe big dumpster. Typically $4 bucks for a pickup bed full. So every 2 weeks is a dump run.